Zoe’s Childcare Dallas Street

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision requires improvement When children arrive, they are greeted by staff who get down to their level, smile and say, 'Hello'. This helps children to settle and feel safe in the nursery.

However, staff do not consider younger children's emotional well-being during-large group activities, which form part of the daily routine. Children observe staff who model using good manners. This helps to encourage children to be polite.

When older children choose to copy staff to hold out their arms and stand on one leg, staff praise them for trying something new as they give them a high five. This helps to build children's confidence and self-esteem. However, ...not all staff are consistent in allowing children to make independent choices, particularly during snack time.

When staff play alongside children, they engage them in conversations and repeat the words they say. This helps children to hear the correct pronunciation of words. Staff use words and simple sign language as they talk to children, supporting their understanding and early speaking skills.

However, the support staff provide to help children learn to listen and follow instructions is less effective. For example, during tidy-up time, some children continue to play instead of following instructions and helping the staff. Outdoors, older children are encouraged to develop their knowledge of people who help us.

For example, through pretend play, staff show them the role of a shopkeeper and a customer. However, staff sometimes provide younger children with activities that are too challenging for them, resulting in them not being able to join in.

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

Staff generally support children to learn skills for the future.

For example, staff provide children with tissues to wipe their noses and encourage them to dispose of them in the bin. However, the agreed strategies to enable children to make independent choices at snack time are not implemented consistently by staff. For example, staff do not always enable children to make choices about which food they would like to eat or encourage them to pour their own drinks.

Staff have rules and boundaries in place to promote positive behaviour. For instance, they remind younger children to use their 'kind hands' when they try to take toys from their peers.The manager and staff use the curriculum to focus on supporting children's language skills.

This also includes children who speak English as an additional language. However, there are times during the day when staff do not support children to listen and follow instructions. For example, when staff ask children to tidy away toys, some children tidy toys while others continue to play.

The manager and the staff offer children a healthy range of foods, contributing to a healthy lifestyle. Children are asked to take part in making parts of their lunch, such as making carrot cake. This helps them to learn how meals are made.

Parents say that they like the range of food their children are offered. Staff help children to learn how to clean their teeth to promote oral hygiene.Children are keen to engage in the activities staff plan for them.

However, some activities planned by staff do not enable younger children to build on what they already know and can do. One example of this is when staff offer children hard modelling material to play with to help develop the muscles in their hands. Older children can manipulate the material to make a ball.

However, when staff ask younger children to 'squash' and 'squish' it, they cannot because it is too hard for their hands to model, as their muscles are not strong enough.The manager and the staff support children who have special educational needs and/or disabilities well. They work with parents and other professionals to put plans in place to support children's individual needs.

Staff use picture cards to help children understand what is happening now and what will happen next. The manager uses additional funding to help close gaps in their development. This includes enhancing staffing to help support children's speaking skills.

During some daily routines, staff do not support younger children as effectively as older children. For example, when younger children are asked to join a large group to engage in physical activities, staff do not consider how to support younger children's emotional needs. The younger children stand in a small area in close proximity to older children who tower above them.

This results in them being overwhelmed and upset.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.The manager follows a robust recruitment procedure when employing new staff.

She ensures they have the necessary checks in place to establish their suitability. This helps to ensure staff are suitable in their role. The manager and staff understand their roles and responsibilities to safeguard children.

They know where to report concerns about children's safety. This includes if children are being exposed to radicalisation. There is a secure entrance to the nursery.

Staff use safety gates to stop children from accessing certain areas unaccompanied. This helps to promote children's safety.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: support staff to carry out agreed strategies to provide children with independent choices about what they want to eat and drink at snack time help staff to find ways of helping older children to listen and follow instructions when they are asked to tidy away toys support staff to adapt some activities to more precisely meet the learning needs of the younger children strengthen staff's abilities to meet younger children's emotional needs when they join large groups as part of the routine of the day.