Tiny Tots Day Care

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Children thoroughly enjoy their time in the provision. They seek out others to join in their play and they make strong friendships. They particularly enjoy moving to music together and they hold one another's hands and laugh as they dance and twirl around.

Children benefit from opportunities to develop their own play and learning during free-play sessions as they make choices from the wide range of accessible resources. They are imaginative and they create characters as they use small-world toys. They develop communication skills as they talk with their friends about the superhero roles they are playing.

Children devel...op an understanding of mathematical concepts as they pour, empty, fill and mould while exploring the sand and building castles. They spontaneously count and identify colours within their play.Staff develop the curriculum through the use of children's interests.

Most teaching is adapted to provide effective challenge to help children to develop, practise and reinforce key skills. Staff support children's growing vocabulary well. They model language and help them to learn new words.

For example, young children who are playing with the toy doctor's set are encouraged to repeat the word 'stethoscope' and are shown what it is used for. Children are learning the sounds that letters represent through planned phonics sessions. Children who speak English as an additional language are settled and are very happy to play alongside others.

They confidently use gestures and sounds to communicate, and occasionally attempt to say simple words in English. Some staff are still building their own experience and skills to enable them to help children to learn English more rapidly.

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

Children take part in activities eagerly and play and explore freely.

They put on their coats and take their learning outdoors where they tap out rhythms on musical instruments.Staff support children who are new to the provision very effectively. The key-person system helps children to form secure attachments.

Staff encourage a calm and enabling environment so that children develop confidence to join activities at their own pace. They work in partnership with parents to provide shorter sessions to aid children's transitions into the provision.Children behave well.

They listen to instructions and readily help with the tidy-up session before the next activity can take place. They are polite and considerate. They use good manners, for example, they thank their playmates for helping them.

Staff provide ideas for parents to encourage them to continue children's learning at home. Parents are encouraged to develop children's love of reading through the sharing of 'story sacks'. Parents are very complimentary about the provision.

They appreciate the information they receive from their children's key persons to keep them well informed.Staff do not consistently use what they know about children's backgrounds, cultures and experiences to promote all children's understanding of the wider world and each other's similarities and differences.On the whole, staff have high expectations for children.

However, sometimes they do things for children that they are capable of doing for themselves. On occasions, during adult-led activities staff do not maximise opportunities for children to develop their own ideas.Staff are not confident in their use of strategies to fully support children who speak English as an additional language.

Managers are keen for staff to attend training in this area.Staff consider the ways in which children learn and they prepare the environment to enhance opportunities to develop children's knowledge and skills in all areas of learning.Staff work in partnership with teachers from the on-site school to help children make successful transitions into their Reception Year.

Teachers come into the provision to read stories so that children get to know them.Children benefit from participation in local initiatives to develop active lifestyles. For example, each day they walk around the adjacent school's field together to take part in 'Smile for a mile'.

They enthusiastically develop their physical skills as they ably manoeuvre wheeled toys around the outdoor area.The provider and the manager have a clear vision for the provision. They provide effective support for staff through regular supervision sessions and they engage with the local authority advisers to develop management practices.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.Staff benefit from external training and in-house coaching to ensure that their knowledge of child protection and the action to take to safeguard children remains up to date. The designated safeguarding lead discusses case scenarios with staff during team meetings to promote their ongoing understanding and awareness.

Safeguarding policies and procedures are implemented effectively. Any visitors to the provision are informed about the mobile phone policy to promote children's well-being and safety.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: nenhance opportunities for staff to develop their understanding of how best to support children who speak English as an additional language develop further opportunities for children to explore their own ideas and to attempt to do things for themselves support staff to use what they know about children's backgrounds, cultures and experiences to promote all children's understanding of the wider world and each other's similarities and differences in a meaningful way.

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