Playroom Day Nursery

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision requires improvement Children are happy, settled and show they feel secure as they confidently leave their parents and carers on arriving at the nursery.

Staff are warm and friendly towards children, further promoting their emotional well-being. Children have access to a range of activities and resources. However, these are not always well matched to their individual needs.

Some children lack engagement in their play and learning. Children are keen to play outside. They enjoy stretching and pulling themselves up on the climbing frame, using a nearby tree to push off from the rope swing and digging in the mud to find worms.

Children u...se number recognition to count different items and practise their imaginative skills in the role-play kitchen. However, the curriculum for children's communication and language skills is not effective. The manager does not support staff to gain the required knowledge and skills.

As a result, teaching is inconsistent, and children do not make the progress they are capable of. Children behave well. They play cooperatively and disagreements are quickly resolved, often without the need of support from staff.

Children are growing in their independence. They enjoy tackling the task of cutting up their dinner with their knives and forks and pouring their own drinks.

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

There have been some positive changes since the last inspection leading to a small number of improvements across the nursery.

The new leadership team demonstrates the capacity to continue to make improvements. However, due to gaps remaining in leadership and management, the impact of this is not evident across all areas of the nursery.Staff are aware of children's next steps in learning and understand how to help children progress.

However, staff do not always plan effectively to help children reach these next steps. For example, the activities set out to capture children's interest are not well matched to what children need to learn next. Children do not make good progress in their learning.

Support for children's communication and language is poor. Some staff talk to children frequently and ask questions. However, this is not carefully considered.

For example, staff call out instructions from across the room meaning children cannot hear, or they fail to give children time to think and respond to questions asked. As a result, children are not developing the necessary skills in this area of their development.Children begin to learn some mathematical concepts.

They make sausages from dough and compare the lengths as they say, 'it's a long one!' Outside, they enjoy counting during novel activities. They count to five and explore different number representation. This helps to provide children with sound foundations for later mathematical development.

Staff promote children's health well. Children enjoy a nutritious lunchtime meal and learn about how the jam on their pancakes at snack time is a 'treat'. This helps children to learn how to make healthy decisions about their own diet.

Children have daily opportunities for outdoor play, further promoting their good health.Support for children's independence is a strength at this nursery. Staff consistently encourage children to do things for themselves.

Overall, children are motivated to carry out a range of tasks independently, supporting their confidence well.Despite the manager's accurate assessment of weaknesses in staff practice, she does not take effective action to address the weaknesses identified. As a result, staff do not receive the coaching, support and guidance necessary to help raise the quality and effectiveness of their practice.

The manager has provided staff with some training opportunities in response to actions raised at the last inspection. However, this is largely focused on safeguarding and fails to address weaknesses in the quality of education. As a result, staff are not supported to gain the skills and knowledge required, and teaching is inconsistent.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.All staff are trained in safeguarding and demonstrate a firm understanding of their role in keeping children safe. Staff are alert to signs that a child is at risk of abuse and know who to refer their concerns to.

The designated safeguarding lead oversees safeguarding well. She is aware of reporting procedures, including allegations against staff. The setting is secure, and children are supported well in promoting their own safety.

Outside, they learn to safely navigate the tall, climbing equipment and how to be aware of others when on the tree swing. Visitors to the setting undergo thorough identification checks, further promoting the safety of children and staff.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: consider more precisely the individual needs, interests and development of each child when planning so that resources, activities and interactions from staff are more closely linked to what children need to learn next strengthen the curriculum for children's communication and language and improve the quality of the way it is taught respond to evaluations from monitoring of staff teaching and practice and take swift action to address gaps in the quality of the provision provide staff with training and professional development opportunities that are more focused on specific needs of staff and children to ensure they offer quality learning and developmental experiences for children that continually improves.