Tiddlywinks Nursery Ltd

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Children who attend this setting receive a nurturing settling-in process.

Staff take time to get to know children and their families by offering a home visit. This allows staff and parents to meet and discuss children's development and early experiences. Children enjoy this valuable time to form attachments with their key person.

When they join the nursery, children settle well and feel safe with familiar staff. Children behave well and show that they are happy. Staff teach them to follow routines and treat one another with respect.

Children learn to share resources and accept the needs of others. When playing... with play dough, children share resources with others as they join them.Staff have high expectations and support all children to develop new skills.

They identify that babies need more support to feed themselves. Staff provide them with engaging sensory activities where they explore the texture of cereal in a tray with spoons. They learn to hold a spoon in their hand and bring it up to their mouth.

Older children develop their fine motor skills. Staff provide scissors and paper for children to practise their cutting skills. They sit with children and teach them how to hold scissors safely.

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

The owner and manager have created a warm and inviting nursery that nurtures children's interests. They have invested heavily in providing children with a rich and varied curriculum. Professionals from outside agencies work with children to deliver enriching activities.

For instance, children learn to count in Spanish and French while taking part in dance sessions. Older children explore ball skills to enhance their balance and coordination. Younger children benefit from listening to music from different cultures and develop core strength through ballet activities.

The inclusive curriculum provides children with opportunities to learn more about the world around them.The development of communication and language is a priority in the nursery. Staff encourage children to choose a story for the week.

Children become absorbed in the story and develop a wide vocabulary through repetition of words and phrases. Older children begin to act out familiar stories. The engaging staff read stories to children without a book, encouraging them to develop their imagination.

Children listen and actively engage in interactive story times, playing the part of characters and anticipating what will happen next.Parents are happy with the care and education that their children receive. They feel supported by the caring staff.

Staff invite parents and carers to join in special events, such as sports day. Parents are grateful for the advice and support that staff provide around physical development. Staff encourage children to take books home each week to share with their families.

This helps to involve parents in their children's learning.Children are developing skills to help them become independent learners. They feed themselves and attend to their own toileting needs.

After lunch, babies and toddlers go to lie down on individual sleep mats. All children in the nursery take part in daily toothbrushing. They sit together to brush their teeth for two minutes while listening to music.

Staff teach children about the importance of good oral hygiene.Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities receive additional support from the attentive staff. The special educational needs coordinator puts strategies in place to support children with speech and language difficulties.

She liaises with other agencies, such as speech and language therapists, to complete screening tools. Children make good progress with the support of the knowledgeable staff. However, sometimes, staff do not always identify gaps in children's development fast enough to make best use of intervention strategies.

Staff feel that they are well supported and that their well-being is a priority. The owner and manager have routine systems in place for the supervision of staff. They meet with staff at regular intervals to discuss their development needs.

However, managers do not yet make best use of supervision activities to reflect on practice precisely enough to consistently improve teaching.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.The manager and staff have a very good understanding of their safeguarding responsibilities.

They know the signs and symptoms of abuse and what to do if they have concerns about a child's welfare. All staff know who the designated safeguarding leads are and what their roles are in the nursery. There is a robust recruitment system in place to ensure the suitability of staff in the nursery.

Staff complete appropriate daily risk assessments to check the safety of the premises. They support children to manage risk as they learn to use scissors safely and negotiate their way around outdoor climbing equipment.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: strengthen assessment procedures, so that gaps in development are identified rapidly and intervention strategies are put in place make better use of supervision with staff to identify areas of development and strengthen teaching further.