Rabbit Patch Day Nursery

Inspection of Rabbit Patch Day Nursery Willow Cottage, Handcross Road, Plummers Plain, Horsham RH13 6NX

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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 Requires improvement

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The provision is good

Children are confident and settled at this caring, friendly nursery. Staff know all children well and are sensitive to their individual needs. They took great care to stay in touch with children who did not attend due to COVID-19 (coronavirus) restrictions, including through zoom calls and activities online. This helped children to return to nursery happily and to settle well.

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The provision is good

Children quickly become more independent and even the youngest confidently explore the environment, particularly outdoors. Their behaviour is good. Staff respond to children calmly, and gently help them resolve any disputes. Children show care and concern for each other. They ask their friends what the matter is when they notice they are upset and try to help them feel better. Older children show high levels of cooperation as they play. They include younger friends in their games when they are playing outside. Younger children enjoy copying them, which helps them practise new skills. For instance, they eagerly helped the older children scoop water from a puddle with a bucket.

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The provision is good

Staff have high expectations for all children's learning. Children who need additional help or who have special educational needs and/or disabilities make good progress in their development. Staff throughout the nursery understand their needs and how to support them. This helps staff to provide a highly consistent approach.

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need to do better?

n The management team have worked hard to make a number of important changes since the last inspection. This has had a positive impact on the quality of children's experiences. Staff throughout the nursery now consistently guide and support children to help them behave well. Managers have implemented an effective system to ensure all staff receive appropriate training, support and guidance to develop their skills. They ensure any issues with staff performance are addressed promptly. n Staff regularly monitor and assess children's progress. They observe children to find out about what they already know and can do, so that they can plan for what they need to learn next. Staff are clear about the skills and knowledge they want children to gain over their time in each room. This helps prepare children for the move to a different room and for starting school. For example, babies begin to feed themselves with spoons in the baby room, and in the toddler room

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need to do better?

they learn to use forks and drink from an open cup. In the pre-school room, children handle tools and cutlery confidently and pour their own drinks. n Children have excellent opportunities to develop their physical skills outdoors. They benefit from a large, secure garden where they can climb up and down

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need to do better?

18 May 2021 slopes, carry logs and sticks, balance on planks and build with large construction. All children move confidently around the garden. They have great fun splashing in puddles or working together to mix potions in the mud kitchen. n Staff provide effective support to children to help them become confident communicators. They encourage pre-school children to express their ideas and broaden their vocabulary. In the toddler room, staff focus on building children's skills such as encouraging them to ask for help when they need it. Babies enjoy songs and listen very attentively when staff read them stories. Children who are learning English as an additional language benefit from hearing greetings and singing songs in their home language as well. n Although parents now drop their children off outside due to the pandemic, staff still make sure they have time to talk to them and share information at the door.

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need to do better?

Parents feel well informed about their child's progress, which helps them continue their learning at home. Staff offer resources, such as story bags, to take home, which are very popular with parents and children. n Children are familiar with the daily routine. For instance, they understand that they need to wash their hands before mealtimes. They develop their self-care skills well and learn to manage handwashing on their own. However, during the lunchtime routine, staff working with toddlers are sometimes busy with tasks such as laying tables and setting out beds, rather than prioritising children's needs. Children wait for long periods and become unsettled and noisy. n The manager ensures that children receive any additional funding they are entitled to. However, staff do not always consider how additional funding for some children, such as those from disadvantaged backgrounds, can be best used to support their individual learning needs. They do not routinely check to

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need to do better?

make sure that the funding has helped close any gaps in learning and had a positive impact on children.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

The staff team and managers understand their responsibilities towards the children in their care. The manager regularly checks staff knowledge of child protection issues and the procedures to follow. This helps to ensure staff are confident about what to look out for and that they know what to do if they have concerns about a child or an adult. Managers follow robust recruitment and vetting procedures to ensure that staff are suitable to work with children. Staff understand the importance of keeping children safe. They check the environment regularly and supervise children closely.

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should:

18 May 2021 n review the organisation of daily routines, such as mealtimes, so that the needs of all children are considered and the length of time children spend waiting is reduced n use additional funding more effectively to help close any gaps in individual children's learning, and measure the impact on children's progress more closely.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY547352 Local authority West Sussex Inspection number 10114520 Type of provision Childcare on non-domestic premises Registers Early Years Register Day care type Full day care

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inspection

Total number of places 46 Number of children on roll 72 Name of registered person Rabbit Patch Day Nursery Limited

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reference number

Telephone number 07591725103 Date of previous inspection 13 June 2019

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Information about this early years setting

Rabbit Patch Day Nursery registered in 2017. It operates from a purpose-designed building in Plummers Plain, Horsham, East Sussex. The nursery is open from 7.30am to 6pm each weekday throughout the year. It closes for one week at Christmas. There are 13 members of staff. Of whom, 11 hold relevant qualifications at level 2 and above. The nursery is in receipt of funding for two-, three- and four- year-old children.

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Inspection activities

n This was the first routine inspection the setting received since the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic began. The inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with the setting and has taken that into account in their evaluation of the setting. n The manager explained the nursery curriculum during a learning walk with the inspector. n The manager and the inspector completed a joint observation of an activity together and discussed the quality of teaching and learning afterwards. n The inspector held discussions with the manager, the provider and staff at appropriate times throughout the inspection. n A number of parents provided feedback about the nursery through discussions with the inspector.

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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

18 May 2021 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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