Polly's Day Nursery

Inspection of Polly's Day Nursery The Lodge, Victoria Park Road, Tunstall, Stoke On Trent, Staffordshire ST6 6DX

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Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Outstanding

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The provision is good

Children enter the nursery excitingly as they begin their day welcomed by friendly staff members. The relationships between staff and children are good. Children engage in the activities provided by staff, which cover different areas of learning. Older children develop their understanding of patterns and colours as they find and peg the matching pairs of socks onto a washing line after listening to an engaging story. Babies sit and listen well as the staff member energetically reads a book to them. Older babies interact with the staff member by helping to turn the flaps when instructed. Children show excitement as they notice the snowflakes fall past the windows. They discuss with each other what they plan to do as they go outdoors. Outside, children are happy as they look at the footprints they have made in the snow. Staff further develop children's learning as they explore the marks they make in different materials, such as sand, gel and cream. Children feel

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The provision is good

secure in the safe environment and they receive lots of praise from the staff. Staff support children to be physically active; the babies laugh and move as they try to catch bubbles. Children are ready for the next stage in their learning.

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need to do better?

n The manager and staff have created a learning environment where children can explore and learn in enjoyable and exciting ways. Staff incorporate mathematics alongside communication and language in all the activities. For example, during snack time, older children declare how proud they are at being able to count the 12 cups without the support of the staff member. n Staff create positive relationships with children. Key persons know their children well and can confidently support their development. For example, during lunchtime, staff feed the younger babies. They also encourage them to 'have a go' at feeding themselves and hold their own cup. Children become confident within the environment as they follow the nursery routines. n Staff demonstrate secure knowledge on how to support the development of children in all areas of learning. The manager provides staff with additional support and training to strengthen their knowledge. Recently, staff attended a

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need to do better?

course to better enable them to develop the experiences they provide for children. As a result, the children are encouraged to explore the history of the surrounding area. n The manager is reflective and creates evaluative plans to support future improvements. The manager seeks and considers the views of parents well. For example, she sends out questionnaires which focus on a specific subject, such as healthy eating within the nursery. n The manager and staff form good partnerships with parents. The parents say they are happy with the progress their child has made since starting, and they also remark on how staff keep them informed through daily communication.

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need to do better?

10 February 2020 When children first start staff assess their starting points. This process can be further developed by gathering detailed information about children's level of development from parents. n The curriculum children receive is well structured. Children make good progress in their development, including those who are eligible for additional funding. Staff link planning to what children individually need to develop and have a topic-based approach which enables them to offer children a variety of activities. Some staff challenge children's critical-thinking skills by asking challenging questions. For instance, they ask children to think about what it would be like in space and provide children with time to confidently share their thoughts. However, this practice is not consistent with all staff, as some do not provide children with enough time to respond and provide answers for them. n Staff provide children with activities that create a better understanding of the

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need to do better?

world. For example, older children curiously handle interesting resources, such as old cast irons and washing boards. Children are able to listen to the staff well and follow the instructions when given. However, how staff manage children's behaviour is not consistent as staff do not always set out expectations of behaviour before the activities.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Management and staff attend regular safeguarding training. There are robust policies in place which ensure everybody understands their roles and responsibilities to protect the children in their care. They carry out daily risk assessments of the inside and outside environment. Staff can identify signs of abuse and know what to do should they have a concern about a child's welfare. The manager keeps detailed records and documentation. The management team follows effective recruitment, vetting and induction procedures to ensure staff working with children are suitable to do so.

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should:

n ensure all staff consistently give children time to think and respond to questions to help them to share their thoughts and ideas to support their critical-thinking skills n provide children consistently with age-appropriate behaviour expectations during activities, to increase their level of engagement even further n develop partnerships with parents further to share more information about children's development and learning, and fully support a shared approach for promoting children's progress.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY359684 Local authority Stoke-on-Trent Inspection number 10116298 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 to 4 Total number of places 29 Number of children on roll 46

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Name of registered person

Mrs Sarah Meakin and Mrs Susan Bourne Partnership

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reference number

Telephone number 01782 790790 Date of previous inspection 10 October 2013

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Information about this early years setting

Polly's Day Nursery registered in 2004 and is located in the Tunstall area of Stoke- on-Trent. The nursery employs eight members of childcare staff. Of these, the manager holds qualified teacher status, one member of staff holds a qualification at level 5, three members of staff hold early years qualifications at level 3, and two members of staff hold early years qualifications at level 2. The nursery is open from Monday to Friday for 50 weeks of the year. Sessions are from 7.30am to 5.30pm. The nursery provides funded early education for three- and four-year-old children.

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Inspection activities

n The inspector and the managers had a tour of all areas of the nursery to understand how the early years provision and the curriculum are organised. n The manager and the inspector carried out a joint observation of a planned activity. n The inspector held discussions with parents and staff, and held a meeting with the nursery management team. n The inspector observed the quality of teaching during activities. She assessed the impact this has on children's learning. n The inspector looked at a sample of documents, including evidence of the suitability of staff.

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Inspection activities

We carried out this inspection 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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Inspection activities

10 February 2020 regulates and inspects to 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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Inspection activities

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Inspection activities

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Inspection activities

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Inspection activities

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