Zeeba - Royal Arsenal

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Children are extremely confident and happy in the setting. Changes made to arrival procedures due to COVID-19 (coronavirus) mean that parents are no longer able to go inside the setting, but staff have successfully supported children to adapt to this change in routine. Children settle quickly on arrival, and eagerly explore the activities and resources available to them.

They are inquisitive and enthusiastic to learn.The emotional well-being of children is highly nurtured in the setting. Children are extremely well supported with their transition into the setting, between rooms and to school.

Staff work extremely well ...with parents to discuss and plan the transitions. They provide children with picture booklets to take home to help them to get familiar with the new environment and staff.The dedicated manager and staff share consistently high expectations for every child.

They are committed to providing an inclusive environment, where all children and their families are welcome. They have photos of familiar adults on activities for the children to play with in every room. This has greatly helped babies to settle into the nursery and older children to learn about different family compositions.

The manager ensures that staff are happy, respected and feel valued. This reflects in their practice as staff are passionate and enthusiastic about what they do. They are good role models, and provide clear explanations to support children's understanding of positive behaviour.

As a result, children behave well, take turns with others during play, and are well mannered.

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

The new manager has worked tirelessly since the last inspection to make sure the quality of the setting continually improves. She puts huge emphasis on building strong and effective parent partnerships.

Parents speak highly of the setting and emphasise how staff maintained strong partnerships with them during the national lockdowns. Staff stayed in touch to find out about the families' well-being, and provided a range of information for them. Consequently, children deepen their learning.

Staff have a clear understanding of their role as key person to the children. They work closely with parents from the start to find out about children's interests and what they can do on entry. This helps them to plan a rich curriculum according to children's interests and ability.

Staff use different tools for their teaching, such as visual cards and body language, to support all children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).They engage with other professionals to ensure that children receive the support they need to close any gaps in learning. Children develop the skills needed for their future learning.

Children have daily access to outdoor play. They are excited to participate in forest school sessions where they readily share their knowledge of the rules and how to stay safe. Children talk about the importance of putting tools away and why it is not a good thing to touch worms.

They learn about boundaries and how to use natural resources to make art. Children enjoy pressing flowers to create pictures on paper, using their coordination skills and imagination.Overall, staff support children to develop good communication skills.

They talk to children during activities and listen to what they have to say. However, staff do not always use questioning effectively to initiate dialogue with children to help them enhance their communication skills, including extending their vocabulary. For example, when younger children take an interest in leaves, staff point to the plants and say 'green leaves'.

This does not excite children to enter into conversation. Staff talk about the colours of leaves, but do not extend this learning by asking meaningful questions or encouraging children to feel the leaves.The manager has worked with staff on increasing and strengthening their skills.

She closely monitors the quality of education and care that staff provide, and regularly observes staff teaching. This helps her to evaluate their practice effectively and give them helpful feedback to support their future performance. Staff keep their knowledge up to date and attend regular and beneficial training.

For example, key persons who care for children with SEND receive specific training to support those children even more effectively.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.Leaders and staff teams ensure that the learning environment for children is clean, enabling and safe.

They supervise and observe the children effectively, and continuously evaluate and adjust the learning environment. Leaders and staff are confident in their safeguarding knowledge. They have a good understanding of the signs and symptoms that may indicate a child is at risk of harm.

They know where to report any concerns that they have about a child in their care or a member of staff. The manager ensures that staff attend regular child protection training to ensure they keep their knowledge up to date.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: nencourage staff to use questioning to initiate dialogue and enhance children's communication skills, including extending their vocabulary.