Royal Docks Learning & Activity Centre

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

This provision meets requirements The setting offers a welcoming environment, where children feel happy and confident. Children are settled and form positive bonds with adults and their peers. This helps them feel secure and supports their emotional well-being effectively.

Children behave very well. They are caring and considerate to one another. Staff are good role models to children.

Children take turns, share resources, and respect the feelings of others. Children are aware and follow the setting's rules. They let staff know when they are moving between rooms and indoors and outdoors.

This supports staff to know where children are and helps kee...p them safe. Children give each other gentle reminders of how to behave, such as remembering to walk inside. Staff know and understand children's individual needs and interests.

They use information from children and parents to plan exciting and interesting activities. Children are curious and motivated and choose between a range of activities they enjoy playing with. Children have lots of opportunities to play outdoors and develop their physical skills, they enjoy running, jumping, and playing games with one another.

This supports children to develop their physical skills and learn how to lead healthy lifestyles.

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

Staff receive guidance and support from leaders and managers. Leaders carry out regular supervisions with staff to reflect on their practice.

This supports leaders to identify training needs. For example, all staff have recently attended safeguarding training, and this has had a positive impact on keeping children safe. Leaders have put steps in place to ensure staff's well-being is supported.

This helps staff to feel valued about the work they do.Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those from disadvantaged backgrounds make good progress. Staff work in partnership with parents and teachers at the schools where children attend.

They share information to provide continuity of care.Staff are caring and nurturing and provide lots of opportunities for children to develop their confidence. For example, children are encouraged to participate in small-group activities, where they work as a team.

Outdoors, they play team games and celebrate their achievements together by saying 'well done, good job' and 'look, we've done it.' Children are independent in their self-care; they know to wash hands regularly and tidy away after themselves. They understand that this helps to keep them and their friends safe.

Children learn about being healthy by having regular daily exercise.Staff provide children with a healthy meal shortly after their arrival at the club. Children enjoy this and use this time to discuss what they have learned at school that day.

However, during this time, staff serve children meals, and this does not support children to be fully independent and make choices about what and how much they want to eat.Parents speak positively about the setting and comment how friendly and caring the staff are. They appreciate the daily feedback and flexibility the setting offers to book places for childcare.

Parents of children who speak English as an additional language report that their children have become more confident and have made good progress in their understanding and speaking.Leaders speak to parents to find out their views of the setting. They have used this information to provide children with more outdoor experiences, such as going on trips in the school holidays.

Children are kind to one another, and they help each other with tasks. Older children support less able and younger children to join in with their play. This helps to build trust and respect between one another.

The premises are secure, and leaders have recently reviewed risk assessments, so the setting is safe. These are followed by staff. Children cannot leave unsupervised and unexpected visitors cannot gain access.

Children wear high- visibility clothing on outings, so they are easily identified.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.Staff demonstrate a secure understanding of procedures to keep children safe.

All staff, including those with lead responsibility for safeguarding, have completed relevant training. They know the signs which may indicate a child at risk of harm and how to act. Staff understand what to do if an allegation was made against them or a member of staff.

Leaders have effective systems in place to ensure staff working with children are suitable. Staff closely supervise children and provide a secure environment to ensure children remain safe. Staff follow policies and procedures to ensure the setting runs safely.