Little Pioneers Nursery & Pre-School, Sutton

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Staff greet parents and children warmly and professionally.

Children settle quickly, arriving at nursery happy and eager to play. The manager and staff have high expectations for what all children can achieve. They plan carefully for children's learning and accurately assess where support is needed to promote their development.

For example, due to the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic, they have focused more on children's behaviour and emotional well-being. Children play harmoniously together and learn to express their needs. Parents speak positively about the nursery and staff.

They comment that they like the c...ommunication systems used at the nursery. This is used to share their children's development and to support the children's learning at home. Children develop a sense of belonging and of their uniqueness, when they look at and discuss photographs of their family.

The caring and gentle staff know the children well. They support children to be respectful, to be kind and to learn about each other. The nursery provides children with interesting activities to support healthy lifestyles and knowledge of the world.

They are offered a nutritious menu and are shown the vegetables that make their spaghetti sauce. They teach children to care for the world around them. For example, they learn to take responsibility for their environmental impact.

They recycle, learn to use less plastic and grow their own vegetables. Older children learn about fossils following on from their interest in dinosaurs. Babies delight in making the sounds of their toy animals and are skilled in stacking their bricks.

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

The manager is passionate and dedicated. She cares about the happiness and well-being of her staff. As a result, staff enjoy working at the nursery and feel valued and supported.

The manager works well with her staff team, parents, children and other agencies to evaluate the effectiveness of the nursery and identify areas for further improvement. Regular observations of practice support staff to develop their teaching skills.Staff are sensitive to all children's needs and backgrounds and work closely with parents.

This supports all children to make good progress from their starting points. This includes children in receipt of funded early education, children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who speak English as an additional language.Staff are skilled and vigilant.

This enables all children to behave well and access all activities on offer. Some children learn to communicate their feelings and needs through pictures with staff support. Staff have established effective partnership working with other professionals to ensure all children and their families get the support they need.

Children enjoy being active and using their imagination outside in the fresh air. For example, they balance on the tyres, they play football, and they enjoy making 'dinner' in the mud kitchen. Older children have the opportunity to practise their skills on balance bikes.

They zoom around skilfully. They learn to stop and start safely and understand why they need to wear a helmet.Children access a varied and rich curriculum, which builds on their interests and what they already know and can do.

Staff set challenging yet achievable next steps in learning and have good knowledge of how children like to learn. However, in the baby room, although the lunchtime activity is well meaning, it is not aimed at their stage in learning.Children develop vocabulary to communicate.

They sing a welcoming song to each other and self-register with their photo flower. Staff promote children's listening skills, such as when counting and tapping sticks to the number of syllables in each person's name. They enjoy listening carefully and guessing the sounds of the environment, which they name with glee.

Good routines in the nursery support children to understand what comes next. In the main, children are motivated to learn and show good levels of engagement. However, the organisation of large-group activity in the pre-school room does not always fully engage all children in their learning.

Children are supported well to develop a love of books. Staff have improved the outdoor area by providing a cosy and inviting reading area, where children handle books with care. Staff are skilled at capturing children's interest in stories.

Children snuggle into staff and listen intently when being read to, making predictions on what happens next.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.Leaders ensure that all staff attend regular safeguarding training and have up-to-date knowledge.

Staff knowledge is continually enhanced, for example when completing a safeguarding quiz. Staff understand the steps to take should they become concerned about children's welfare or the conduct of a colleague. Robust recruitment arrangements ensure that all staff are suitable to work with children.

The premises are safe and secure, and staff are well deployed. Older children learn to keep themselves safe. For example, they negotiate the stairs well when going into the garden.

All staff have a qualification in paediatric first aid and have regular updates. Children learn how to apply emergency first aid and how to call for help.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: review the organisation of large group activities for older children to ensure children remain engaged and learning opportunities are maximised support staff to improve the planning of routines and learning experiences in the baby room, with specific regard to lunchtime.