Kids Planet Stafford

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision requires improvement Babies receive warmth and affection from staff. They go to staff for cuddles and are comforted, which helps them to settle quickly. Babies have many opportunities to move around their environment and develop their physical skills.

They crawl and push themselves forwards and backwards to reach toys positioned around the room. Babies who are pulling themselves up have lots of opportunity to practise this skill, which helps them to be able to walk independently. Children access a wide range of materials throughout the nursery.

Older children create pictures using different coloured pens and play with spaghetti and real kitch...en utensils in the role-play area. However, the curriculum is not yet fully embedded across the nursery. Teaching is variable, as not all staff understand how to implement the curriculum to ensure that children benefit from the best learning opportunities.

Children especially enjoy their time outdoors. They have multiple opportunities to develop their physical skills. They use different materials for climbing and building.

They push vehicles around and access a mud kitchen area where they develop their imagination and practise skills such as pouring, filling and stirring. Children develop their confidence as they become adept at using their physical skills to navigate space and create structures with different resources.

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

Children are generally keen to take part in the activities on offer.

They play with water and construction toys, and babies watch inquisitively as mirrors spin around a wooden carousel. Staff plan activities based on children's interests and recent experiences. However, the teaching across the nursery is not consistent.

Some staff do not yet understand the curriculum intent fully, which means children do not make as much progress as they could.Children follow well-established routines across the nursery. They know what to do at different times of the day, such as preparing an area for lunchtime.

However, the organisation of the environment during some parts of the routine means that children do not fully benefit from the learning opportunities being offered. For example, as children listen to a story after lunch, they are interrupted by other children close by who are playing with role-play resources.Staff mostly enjoy working at the nursery.

They generally feel supported by leaders and have regular meetings to discuss any concerns they have. They receive updates from leaders about any changes in the nursery and have opportunities to access further training. Permanent staff understand the nursery policies and procedures and know how to follow them.

However, some agency staff are not as secure in their understanding of what they need to do in some situations. This means there is a risk of some procedures not being followed correctly.Older children develop their independence in readiness for their transition to school.

They serve themselves food and drinks at lunchtime and help staff to clean up after lunch. They enjoy helping to wipe tables and sweep the floor. They fetch paper towels to dry the floor when they notice areas that are wet after cleaning.

In general, parents comment positively about the nursery. They comment on the friendliness of staff and the pleasure their children show when attending. Not all parents, however, are aware of who their child's key person is.

They comment that communication from staff is not always sufficient to inform them of how their children's day has been or what they have been learning. This means that some parents find it difficult to plan their evening routine or support their child's learning further.The leadership team has identified a number of weaknesses in the nursery.

They have devised plans to take action to improve experiences for children. Given changes in the staff team and the recentness of development plans, there has not yet been sufficient time for these to be implemented across the nursery. Therefore, children are not yet consistently experiencing high-quality learning opportunities.

Children follow behaviour expectations. Staff are role models for using manners, and children repeat these throughout different routines in the day. They show respect to staff and their peers and show an understanding of how their behaviour affects others.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.Staff understand their responsibilities to keep children safe. They know the signs that may indicate a child is at risk of harm.

They accurately describe the procedures they would follow if they were concerned about a child. They receive regular training to keep their knowledge updated. Leaders and staff know what to do in the event an allegation is made against a member of staff, and they understand the importance of sharing information with relevant agencies.

Risk assessments are carried out daily, and any hazards that are identified are quickly acted on to reduce any risk to children.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To meet the requirements of the early years foundation stage, the provider must: Due date improve induction arrangements for agency staff so that they fully understand the policies and procedures they need to follow.04/09/2023 To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: nimprove staff knowledge so they fully understand how to consistently implement the nursery curriculum and offer quality learning experiences for children strengthen the organisation of daily routines to help older children gain the most out of their learning strengthen information-sharing with parents to ensure all parents know their children's key person and receive information about their child's daily experiences and what they are learning.