The Little School Daycare Ltd

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision requires improvement Leaders worked tirelessly to meet actions set during the previous visit.

For example, they improved deployment of staff to ensure children's safety during mealtimes. They ensured that staff, including leaders, fully understand their roles and responsibilities in monitoring children's welfare. This helps to keep children safe.

Staff warmly greet children, who then quickly settle into their chosen activity. Staff know children well and plan activities that reflect their interests. For example, staff help children to wash toy cars and vehicles, as they discuss their experiences from outside the nursery.

Leaders are ...clear about what children need to learn and why. They ensure that staff understand learning intentions behind each activity. However, this does not always transfer into practice, and teaching is variable.

For example, interactions between some staff and children are not of a consistently good quality, which hinders the delivery of the curriculum. Despite this, children demonstrate they feel happy, safe and secure. They form positive relationships with staff and their peers.

Staff model positive behaviours, such as encouraging the use of good manners. Children share resources, at times with some support from staff. They share space safely, for example, as they use scooters in the outdoor area.

Children know and understand the expectations and follow these well.

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

The nursery recently has undergone some changes with regards to the leadership team. Leaders work closely with the staff team and are aware of some areas for development.

Leaders offer staff some support and guidance. However, focused professional development is not yet in place to embed changes in practice and to enhance staff teaching skills. This aims to help to raise quality of education to a good level for all children across the nursery.

Staff introduce new vocabulary, read stories, and sing songs and rhymes with children. However, at times, staff ask too many questions in quick succession. Children are not always given enough time to hear, think and respond before the next question is asked.

Furthermore, staff do not always provide children, who are less confident to speak, with high quality interactions. This hinders the progress children make in their communication and language area of learning.Although staff understand children's next steps in learning, they do not always use these to guide their teaching.

This does not help to promote consistency in children's learning, especially in the absence of their key person.Staff plan learning opportunities to support children to develop their physical skills. Children develop their hand-to-eye coordination and fine motor skills as they connect small parts during construction activity.

They strengthen their small muscles as they explore with sand and kneed play dough. Children develop their gross motor skills by balancing on tyres, running, jumping, climbing up steps and sliding down the slide. This supports children to make good progress in their physical development.

Staff promote children's independence in personal care routines, including toileting. Children hang up their jackets when they come to the nursery. Staff encourage children to serve their food and clean away their plates after lunch.

These activities help to prepare children for the routines they will experience in school.Staff support children to develop their mathematical knowledge through everyday play. For example, as children explore with play dough, they name the shapes they cut out.

Furthermore, some children look for shapes in the environment.Staff reinforce rules and boundaries with children at the start of the morning. They support children's understanding of feelings and emotions in different situations.

For example, they explore scenarios of what to do if someone takes a toy another child is using.Staff promote children's understanding of healthy lifestyles well. Children benefit from nutritious meals.

Leaders put measures in place to ensure children with dietary requirements and allergies are kept safe. Children learn about practices that support their health, including their oral health.Parent's comments are very positive.

Parents appreciate the care and attention their children receive, and they feel well informed about their child's learning. They say that they believe staff prepare children well for their move to school.

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 provide focused professional development to help staff enhance their teaching skills and interactions with children, so that the quality of education is consistently good or better.31/08/2024 To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: build on staff awareness of strategies and consistently implement the curriculum for communication and language to develop children's skills even further strengthen staff knowledge of children even further to ensure they continue to make progress, including in the absence of their key person.

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