Hillside Childcare - Queen Street

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Children arrive content and thoroughly enjoy their time in the nursery. They happily leave their parents on arrival and quickly engage in play. Children feel safe and secure, knowing their needs will be met.

Children develop secure relationships with their key person. They confidently go to them for support with activities, reassurance and a cuddle when needed. Children are familiar with the routines of the day.

They know what is expected of them and respond well to praise. Children show good manners and remind each other if they forget these. As a result, children's behaviour and attitudes are wonderful.

Staf...f follow children's current interests and needs to create exciting and stimulating activities for children. For example, children enjoy making bird feeders. They slot cereals onto straws as they discuss how birds fly and how big their nests are.

Children carefully position their feeders for the birds to eat. Children are developing their physical skills. They use large spades to move stones in the construction area.

They learn to balance by moving across the beams and riding the bikes. Children join in a song as they stomp loudly outside.

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

Staff use different ways to promote children's speech and language skills.

When sharing stories, they use props to enhance children's experience of the books. Staff repeat words and ask children to recall words and their meaning. This helps staff to understand what children have learned.

For example, when talking about birds' beaks, staff show the children a book about woodpeckers making holes with their beaks. As a result, children are learning new words and are able to use these in their play.Staff know the children well and confidently talk about where they are in their learning.

Staff are currently supporting babies and toddlers with their social interactions following the COVID-19 pandemic. Staff regularly assess children's learning. This helps them to understand what children know and can do, and what they can learn next.

For example, a current interest for children is pirates. Children collect their treasures into a chest and bury it in the garden. They create old treasure maps using tea bags and water.

However, there is not always a clear curriculum intent within the nursery, which would support staff to strengthen children's learning.Staff support children to be independent learners. Children are learning to put on their shoes, coats and hats.

They access the toilets independently and wash their hands. Children can choose where and what they play with. However, staff do not always consistently ensure that children make choices and promote their independence at snack times.

For example, staff give children their fruit chopped up in a bowl and pour their water when children could do this for themselves.The special educational needs coordinator (SENCo) is highly experienced. She has the skills and knowledge to identify children that require targeted support.

The SENCo works with other agencies to ensure the correct help is put in place for children and their families. Additional funding is used to meet children's needs and support their learning. As a result, children with special educational needs and/or disabilities are making good progress in their learning and development.

The management team has a positive attitude to improving the nursery. Staff's well-being has high priority to ensure staff are motivated and eager to improve. A robust training plan is in place to support staff's professional development.

Regular staff supervision sessions enable staff to discuss any concerns or areas for improvement. Management mentor staff to ensure they have the skills and knowledge to support children's learning and development.Parents comment on the excellent relationship that they have with the nursery.

Staff keep parents up to date about their child's learning and development via daily conversations and an electronic app. Conversations with parents and written statements demonstrate that they are very satisfied with the level of care provided. They are particularly happy with the nurturing environment that the setting provides.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.The management team and the staff have a strong understanding of how to safeguard children, including knowledge of local and wider safeguarding issues. They know how to recognise and respond to signs and symptoms of abuse.

Most staff hold a paediatric first-aid certificate. Staff know how to treat children in the event of an accident. The management team follows safe recruitment procedures to check that staff are suitable to work with children.

Children are learning how to keep themselves safe. For example, they discuss how to move safely over balance beams and climb the hill in the garden.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: review how staff promote children's choice and independence at snack and mealtimes, to ensure consistent opportunities in the daily routines find ways to strengthen the setting's curriculum intent, so that staff understand this and use it to enhance children's learning and development.