Second Steps Day Nursery

Second Steps Day Nursery Unit 5, Sharp House, Arterial Road, Laindon, BASILDON, Essex SS15 6DR

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Inspection date 26 February 2019 Previous inspection date 6 August 2015

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This inspection: Good 2

Previous inspection: Good 2 Effectiveness of leadership and management Good 2 Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good 2 Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good 2 Outcomes for children Good 2

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This provision is good

n Children are happy in the nursery and enjoy their play. Staff ensure that children form close relationships with them and make good friendships with each other. Children learn to take care of their friends and help each other. n Staff are vigilant and ensure that children are safe and well supervised. They have good systems for managing children's behaviour and share these with parents. This ensures consistency in practice and helps children to feel secure. n Staff build on spontaneous child-led play to extend children's learning. They are skilled at expanding on children's ideas as they gently guide them towards their next milestone. Staff encourage children to use their imaginations and make decisions in their play and learning. n Partnerships with parents are strong. Staff provide parents with regular information about their children's progress. They ensure that parents are fully involved in their

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This provision is good

children's development and help them to continue their learning at home. n Managers and staff evaluate children's activities and their learning outcomes. They take account of the views of parents and other professionals when making plans for the development of the nursery. Staff evaluate their practice to ensure they provide a good standard of teaching to help all children to reach their full potential. n Staff do not always provide enough opportunities to fully support all children who prefer to learn outdoors. n Staff provide fewer opportunities for children to explore and use information and communication technology.

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What the setting needs to do to improve further

To further improve the quality of the early years provision the provider should:

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What the setting needs to do to improve further

n increase opportunities for all children to access outdoor learning, particularly for those who prefer to learn outside n provide more opportunities for children to explore and experiment with information and communication technology.

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What the setting needs to do to improve further

Inspection activities n The inspector observed the quality of teaching during activities indoors and outdoors, and assessed the impact this has on children's learning. n The inspector carried out a joint observation with the manager. n The inspector held a meeting with the manager and spoke to staff and children. n The inspector took account of the views of parents by speaking with some of them during the inspection. n The inspector looked at relevant documentation, including suitability and qualifications of staff, children's developmental records, policies and procedures.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

Management of the nursery is strong. Staff supervision is fully effective and staff receive individual support from the manager. Staff have access to an ongoing programme of professional development and training to help them to acquire new skills and keep up to date with changes in procedures. Arrangements for safeguarding are effective. Staff have a good understanding of the signs that could indicate that a child is at risk. They are fully aware of the procedures to follow if they have a concern about a child's well- being. Staff recruitment follows safe practice and staff suitability is regularly checked. New staff receive a full and useful induction into the policies and practices of the nursery. Staff communicate well with parents, and parents say they feel fully involved and are informed of any changes that happen.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

All children make good progress in their learning. Staff understand their individual needs well. They consult with parents if they notice any gaps in children's learning and seek appropriate support from other professionals to help children make progress. Staff promote children's communication and language development well. They talk to them constantly and encourage conversation. Children are confident and active learners. They respond intelligently to staff's questions. Staff help children to understand numbers and counting. For example, younger children count the cars they push down a tube. Older children do simple sums and add numbers together correctly. Children enjoy chopping vegetables and weighing them on scales. They use weights to find out which are the heaviest and lightest.

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare are good

Staff are very nurturing and kind. They are sensitive to children's needs. For example, they know when the youngest children need to rest and when they are hungry. They support parents with potty training and children learn from a young age to be independent. Young children learn to share and take turns with their toys. Older children enjoy helping. For example, they tidy up before lunch, moving small chairs and tables, and cleaning up their messy play activities. Staff provide a lot of natural materials for children to explore. Children use their imaginations as they enjoy the sensory feel of soap, water and flowers. They make potions and ask each other to smell them. Children learn about the importance of exercise and eating healthily. They play with fruits and vegetables and find out how they feel and smell. Younger children paint their hands and make handprints. Staff show them how to blow bubbles and they chase them and squeal

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Outcomes for children are good

Children make good progress in readiness for school. They learn how to hold tools such as pencils and scissors. They develop good hand control and practise their early writing. Children share books with their friends and enjoy listening to stories. They develop good physical skills as they ride tricycles and build sandcastles. Children learn about people who are different from themselves and about different festivals and traditions. Younger children play with toy animals. They repeat their names and the sounds they make.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY435901 Local authority Essex Inspection number 10063029 Type of provision Childcare on non-domestic premises

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Registers

Early Years Register, Compulsory Childcare Register, Voluntary Childcare Register Day care type Full day care Age range of children 0 - 4 Total number of places 33 Number of children on roll 30 Name of registered person Sharon Watson and Lorraine Griffith Partnership

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reference number

Date of previous inspection 6 August 2015 Telephone number 01268 543 170

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reference number

Second Steps Day Nursery registered in 2011. The nursery employs five members of childcare staff. Of these, three hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 3 and one at level 2. The nursery is open all year round from 7am until 7pm, Monday to Friday, except for bank holidays. The nursery provides funded early education for two-, three- and four-year-old children.

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reference number

This inspection was carried out by Ofsted under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 on the quality and standards of provision that is registered on the Early Years Register. The registered person must ensure that this provision complies with the statutory framework for children's learning, development and care, known as the early years foundation stage.

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reference number

procedures set out in the guidance Complaints procedure: raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted, which is available from Ofsted's website: www.ofsted.gov.uk . If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children's social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children's services, and inspects services for looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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