Pound Lane Daycare

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision requires improvement Children arrive happy and settle well.

They form warm and trusting relationships with staff and enjoy playing with and alongside their friends. Staff caring for babies meet their care needs well. They cuddle them for bottle feeds and recognise when they are becoming tired, before settling them to sleep.

Toddlers and older children are becoming increasingly independent. For example, they cut up fruit for their snack and dress themselves for outside play. However, not all children benefit from good quality interactions with staff.

For example, staff know toddlers well, but they do not consistently interact in their... play to support their development. There is a broad and ambitious curriculum, although staff do not implement it consistently. For example, staff randomly show babies a building block and tell them its colour.

This is confusing for young children and does not build on what they already know. However, children have daily opportunities to develop their physical skills and benefit from fresh air. They enjoy pretending to cook in the mud kitchen and skip and jump as they count to 10 while playing a game outside.

Most parents share positive reviews regarding the nursery. They comment that their children are happy and settled and make good progress in their development.

What does the early years setting do well and what does it need to do better?

The provider has made some improvements since the last inspection.

They have worked well with the local authority to address weaknesses in implementing safeguarding policies and procedures. There are now more effective risk assessmsents and staff have improved the sleeping arrangements and hygiene routines to support children's health and well-being. However, this is not sufficient to improve the overall quality of the provision.

Children's experiences are not consistent throughout the nursery. Staff caring for the younger children do not support their communication and language well enough. They do not ensure they are consistently engaged in purposeful play.

For example, as staff help children to get ready for outside play, other children who are already waiting to go outside have nothing to do. Consequently, children become bored and wander. As a result, their behaviour deteriorates.

In addition, staff do not always notice when children are not engaged or are waiting for long periods, such as at mealtimes.Some staff do not support children's communication and language effectively. They do not enrich children's language or provide them with new words or explanations as they play alongside them.

This does not engage children or build on what they already know and can do.Older children play in the sand and water, skilfully using equipment and tools to move items from one place to another. They develop a love of books and stories, using pictures in a book to tell their own version of the story.

They learn about letters and sounds and show an interest in writing. However, sometimes, staff do not organise adult-led group activities as effectively as they could to support all children to participate fully and focus for longer periods.Staff support older children to learn mathematical language to broaden their knowledge and understanding.

Children begin to use language such as 'taller' and 'tallest' as they build towers with large bricks outside. They understand the words 'more' and 'less' as they compare the different heights of the towers.Older children enjoy handing out stickers to their friends, such as a reward for good tidying.

Staff use praise effectively to support children's good behaviour. Children take pride in their achievements and have high self-esteem.The provider supports staff well to ensure their well-being and provides them with a good range of professional development opportunities.

Recent training has had a positive impact on supporting children to recognise their feelings and emotions in themselves and others.Staff understand their role and responsibilities to keep children safe. They know how to identify safeguarding concerns and understand the reporting procedure to follow.

The provider regularly reflects on the practice of staff and the quality of the provision. They have implemented changes to make improvements and recognise what they need to do next to make further improvements.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

There is an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts children's interests first.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To meet the requirements of the early years foundation stage, the provider must: Due date improve the quality of staff interactions with children to support their development, particularly their communication and language skills 06/01/2025 ensure staff implement the curriculum consistently to build on what children already know and can do and to encourage positive attitudes to learning.06/01/2025 To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: review the organisation of adult-led group activities to ensure that all children can participate equally and share their ideas.