Hilltop Day Nursery

Inspection of Hilltop Day Nursery Unit 3 Hilltop Business Centre, Coalpit Hill, Talke, Stoke-On-Trent, Staffordshire ST7 1PW

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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 Not applicable

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The provision is good

Children of all ages benefit from the welcoming environment that the kind and professional staff provide. Staff create a warm, nurturing atmosphere where children feel safe and secure. Children arrive happy and ready to learn. They form good relationships with staff who care for them. This helps them to quickly settle in. Parents leave children at the door as they are not allowed into the nursery due to the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic restrictions.

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The provision is good

Children are curious and show a willingness to have a go and try new things. For example, children delight in mixing coloured paints to decorate their large 'fish' picture together. They learn to recognise familiar colours and notice the changes when paints are mixed. Children are creative learners. For instance, they enjoy spending time combining ingredients to make dough and proudly show their 'cookies'.

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The provision is good

Staff support children's learning well. Children make choices about what they want to do, and express their ideas during activities. Staff encourage counting during children's play, model speech clearly, and encourage children to think and problem- solve. Older children speak confidently and use a broad range of vocabulary. Children of all ages develop a love of books. They listen closely to staff as they enthusiastically read stories. Children join in with familiar words and phrases, and they enjoy action songs and rhymes.

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need to do better?

n Staff understand the importance of promoting children's physical development. Children have daily opportunities to go outdoors, be active and benefit from fresh air. They enjoy making a 'vehicle run', transporting pipes and tyres down a ramp. Children develop their physical skills as they run back and forth and they are keen to see how fast their vehicles go. They enjoy climbing into the large wooden boat, where they can build sandcastles and explore the properties of sand and water. n Children engage busily and eagerly in their play and learning. They enjoy drawing and writing their names, creating with dough and building spaceships with bricks. Staff join in with children as they play. They ask good questions and engage in conversations with the children. However, on occasions, noise levels become too high. This affects children's learning and their ability to listen and respond to staff and their peers.

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need to do better?

n Children behave well and know what is expected of them. They follow simple instructions given by staff as they help to tidy away toys and resources. Children play well together. They have learned about the importance of sharing and taking turns. Older children gain positive attitudes and key skills to support the

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need to do better?

26 August 2021 eventual move to school. n Staff make ongoing assessments of children's achievements and understand what children need to learn next. Staff plan activities based on children's interests and ideas. This helps motivate the children in their learning. However, the manager has not yet embedded sharply focused monitoring systems that help to analyse information about the progress made by different groups of children. n Children benefit from the strong partnerships that staff develop with their parents. These partnerships help staff to give children the individual care and attention they need in order to thrive. Parents state they are extremely happy with the service they receive. They report how much they value the support that the staff offer to them and their children. Parents value the daily feedback they receive about their child's day. Staff provide regular updates on progress and give parents good opportunities to support children's learning.

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need to do better?

n Staff show passion and enthusiasm for their work and they love being part of the team. They regularly access training and talk positively about the support they receive during supervision meetings. The manager clearly places an importance on staff well-being and recognises the benefits to children of a happy, motivated workforce. The manager regularly monitors the quality of teaching and provides staff with feedback about how they can further improve their practice. She continually reflects on the provision to identify further ways to build on good practice.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Senior staff understand their role as designated safeguarding lead practitioners. They attend relevant training to keep their knowledge updated. There are robust procedures to ensure the suitability of all staff. Staff are aware of safeguarding issues which might affect children in their care. They are vigilant and understand the possible indicators that a child may be at risk of harm. This includes the risk from neglect and from wider safeguarding issues, such as extremist views. Staff know the actions to take to report any concerns, and understand the procedures to follow regarding allegations made against staff.

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should:

n consider ways to reduce the indoor noise levels to help promote speech and language development and support children's learning more effectively n review the arrangements for comparing the progress made by different groups of children, to help to ensure that all children receive the support they need to achieve at the highest possible levels.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY562028 Local authority Staffordshire Inspection number 10191425 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 19 Number of children on roll 42 Name of registered person Hilltop Tots Day Nursery Ltd

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reference number

Telephone number 07835 995945 Date of previous inspection Not applicable

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Information about this early years setting

Hilltop Day Nursery registered in 2018. The nursery employs nine members of childcare staff. Of these, five hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 3, two hold level 2 qualifications and one holds an appropriate qualification at level 6. The nursery opens from Monday to Friday, for 51 weeks of the year, except for bank holidays. Sessions are from 7.30am until 6pm. The nursery provides funded early education 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 her evaluation of the setting. n The inspector and the nursery manager completed a learning walk across all areas of the nursery to understand how the early years provision and the curriculum is organised. n A joint observation was carried out by the inspector and the nursery manager. n The inspector held discussions with staff, children and parents at appropriate times during the inspection. n The inspector looked at a sample of the nursery's documents. This included evidence about staff suitability and training. n A meeting was held between the inspector and the nursery manager.

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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

26 August 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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