Rehoboth Day Nursery

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision requires improvement The staff greet the children warmly, making them know they are welcome. The manager strives to create a cosy, home-from-home environment.

Relationships are caring, and children are generally comfortable and confident at the setting. The manager has addressed some of the matters arising from the last inspection. Children are now encouraged to develop some independent skills.

They learn how to put on their shoes and serve themselves at mealtimes. They carefully pour water from large jugs when they want a drink. Some areas for development identified at the last inspection continue to require further improvement.

The... curriculum is not clearly understood or implemented by all staff. Some do not know what they want children to learn from activities. Some staff interact well with the children, and some children engage well in meaningful play.

They enjoy the company of the staff and hold back-and-forth conversations. However, overall, the quality of teaching is not yet consistently good. This means that children, including those with identified gaps in their learning and development, are not making the best possible progress.

Children behave well, and some are building friendships while other children play alone. Staff use children's interest in stories, such as 'The Rainbow Fish', to promote discussions about feelings and behaviours. Staff support children to share their toys, saying, 'sharing is caring'.

Staff remind children to use good manners, and children willingly thank the staff for their care.

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

The manager has updated the safeguarding policy. Information on how to contact child protection services is now readily available to all staff.

Staff understand the signs and symptoms to look out for that could indicate a child is at risk of harm. They know how to escalate concerns and make a referral if they need to.Staff know the children well.

They identify children with emerging needs early. They work with parents to agree appropriate next steps and make referrals to the relevant agencies. However, current strategies to close development gaps rapidly are not fully effective, and this impacts on children's readiness for the next stage in their learning.

Children are provided with healthy, home-cooked meals. They are encouraged to try different foods and eat their fruits and vegetables. Children are invited to sit together with staff and enjoy talking about their food preferences and news from home.

The manager has improved partnership working with parents. Information about children's care and learning is shared on a daily basis. There are regular opportunities for longer meetings to discuss children's progress and plan their next steps with parents.

Parents feel well supported. They appreciate the advice on potty training and behaviour management that staff provide.The quality of the staff's interactions and the activities provided for children vary.

Activities are not all well prepared and implemented. For example, while mixing flour and water, staff do not explore ideas fully with the children. They do not demonstrate and explain concepts clearly for the children, without prompting from the manager.

However, most children enjoy the activity and engage well, but they do not gain as much learning from the experience as they could.Children are developing their physical skills. They have opportunities to play outside every day.

Some enjoy making sandcastles in the sand and talk about 'rainbow castles', kings and queens. Other children slide, climb and enjoy ride-on cars. Large paintbrushes are available so that children can 'paint' on the fences, developing their large-muscle movements.

Children are learning about their local community and the wider world. They occasionally go to the park or visit the local market. Children use the bus to visit the nearby fire station and learn about people that help them.

The nursery is inclusive. Children are taught to treat each other with respect and kindness.The manager has struggled with the recruitment and retention of staff since the last inspection.

She is working to build a strong team. She has introduced more regular supervision meetings for the staff, during which they discuss the individual needs of children. The manager checks staff's ongoing suitability to work in childcare and their knowledge and understanding of safeguarding.

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 and Childcare Register the provider must: Due date review the curriculum and share the learning intentions with staff, so they are clear about what they want children to achieve and how they will achieve it 11/06/2024 ensure that strategies to close the gaps for children with identified emerging needs are effective, especially in relation to children's speech and language skills 11/06/2024 monitor and develop staff's teaching skills to ensure that they are consistently good and enable all children to build strong foundations for future learning.

11/06/2024

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