The Carshalton Day Nursery and Pre-School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Children are excited as they arrive and quickly settle in this welcoming nursery. They confidently leave their parents and carers and are eager to start the day. Staff prioritise building strong relationships with children and their families.

Staff demonstrate a secure understanding of the children's needs. For example, they gather vital information from parents when children start attending to help them support the children to settle. Staff spend time getting to know the children, which helps them to feel safe and develop a sense of belonging.

Staff develop a curriculum that is based on the interest and needs of the c...hildren. For instance, they focus on children's speech and language, personal, social and emotional skills, and their physical development. Staff use age-appropriate language to describe and comment on children's actions to explain what is happening.

Children develop a love of singing and books. Babies easily help themselves to books, which they hand to staff, and snuggle up as staff read to them and talk about the pictures. Older children sit in the garden with staff, sharing books.

Children around the nursery can be heard singing with staff. Children know the routine as older children know to sit for circle time. Staff have high expectations for children's behaviour.

They follow simple instructions well and know the golden rules, which staff remind them about.

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

The provider has carefully considered the needs of the community and developed the nursery to support this need. For example, they now provide places for babies, which parents greatly need.

The new nursery team is committed to their work. It is supported well by the provider to improve its knowledge. For instance, she provides training opportunities to further develop staff's skills and expertise.

Hence, staff understand their roles and responsibilities.Children are supported to learn about healthy eating and choices. For example, staff teach the children about what makes them healthy as they talk about 'healthy me'.

Staff implement a rolling snack bar, where children are encouraged to try a range of fresh fruits and vegetables. Children know to wash their hands before they sit to eat. Staff provide parents with helpful information, such as recipes children enjoy that they can try at home.

Parents are also supported regarding children's oral hygiene and visiting the dentist. In the main, this approach supports children to learn about healthy lifestyles.Overall, staff plan an ambitious curriculum for children.

They provide children with varied activities that are based on children's interests and next steps in learning. However, some adult-led activities are not carefully thought through to ensure that what staff intend children to learn is implemented and enhances children's learning effectively.Staff provide a range of exciting activities to support children's physical development, both inside and outside.

For example, staff encourage babies to develop their small hand muscles as they roll and squeeze dough. While older children skilfully use mark-making tools and balance-bikes to develop their core strength. Staff gently remind children how to keep themselves and others safe, for instance how to move around safely.

Staff ensure that the environment is clean and organised, including sleeping arrangement. However, staff do not always follow the procedure that is in place to ensure that the facilities for nappy changing in the younger age group is kept consistently clean. This does not continuously enhance children's good health and well-being.

Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities are supported well. Staff work in partnership with other professionals. They monitor children closely to help them progress from their starting point.

However, this can be further improved by focusing more on children who are learning English as an additional language.The provider works hard to make improvements and ensures the nursery grows. Staff's well-being is supported well.

For instance, their workload is regularly evaluated. Staff report they feel valued and supported in their role.Children's behaviour is good.

Staff provide lots of praise and encouragement to children when they share and take turns.Parents praise staff for their warmth and working in partnership with them. They say that they are provided with good support for their children to get them prepared for their next stage of education.

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 further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: provide further support for staff to carefully plan and implement focus activities more thoroughly to build on children's learning continue to build on monitoring staff's practice to ensure that a routine task, such as nappy changing in the baby group, is consistently implemented to enhance children's good health and well-being focus more on the needs of children who are learning English as an additional language and identify ways to support their learning further.