Little Explorers Day Nursery

Inspection of Little Explorers Day Nursery Little Explorers Day Care Centre, 20 St Annes Road, Cradley Heath B64 5BS

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Overall effectiveness Inadequate

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

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The provision is inadequate

Leaders have not assured children's safety. They have failed to identify and remove all possible risks to children. Leaders and staff do not have a good enough knowledge of the signs and symptoms, which may cause concern in relation to child protection. This compromises children's welfare.

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The provision is inadequate

Support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) is weak. They do not consistently receive the precise support they need to meet their learning and development needs. Staff do not have a clear intent or justification for activities they provide to children. Staff have a general understanding of what children like to play with. However, they do not closely link activities to children's learning needs.

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The provision is inadequate

Children behave well. They have plenty of opportunities to be physically active outdoors on a daily basis and enjoy healthy snacks and meals provided by staff at the nursery. Babies and toddlers have fun while they climb over soft-play equipment and roll around in the ball pit. Parents do not enter the premises currently, due to changes in the nursery's procedures because of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, children arrive happily and enter the nursery confidently.

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need to do better?

n Overall, leadership and management of the nursery is poor. Leaders do not monitor staff practice effectively to ensure staff are fully capable of fulfilling their roles and responsibilities. They do not ensure the safety and welfare of children who attend. n Risk assessment is inadequate. Leaders do not ensure that the premises and equipment are safe. They have not taken steps to remove known hazards. For example, children can trap their fingers in a door in a playroom area. The radiators in the baby room and pre-school room, which children have access to, are too hot to touch and present a risk of burning. When staff turn the radiators off, the rooms become too cold for children. Leaders do not provide suitable sleep and rest facilities. For example, due to a limited number of cots, some older babies sleep in bouncer chairs which are not suitable for their age and physical stage of development. Staff are not suitably trained to ensure children's

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need to do better?

safety. For example, food served to babies is not appropriately prepared, putting them at risk of choking. n The manager does not ensure that staff support those children with SEND. Arrangements for these children, when their key person is absent, are inadequate. Leaders do not ensure there are staff who know SEND children well enough to consistently support them. For example, staff do not match activities to their current interests and abilities and they do not receive the focused

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need to do better?

3 December 2021 support they need. Consequently, these children spend much of the time wandering around and do not play or take part in activities. This means they are at risk of falling further behind in their development and results in them not feeling emotionally safe and secure. n Leaders have devised a curriculum that is broad and covers all areas of learning. However, staff do not understand this or implement it well within the nursery. Staff plan activities in all rooms but they do not precisely match these to all children's learning and development needs. Some staff are unsure of what the next step in learning is for their key children, including for two-year-olds who the provider receives funding for. Consequently, staff do not move children on to their next stage of learning promptly. This means that children do not make the progress they are capable of in readiness for future learning, including their

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need to do better?

move on to school. That said, children do learn to do things for themselves such as putting on their wellington boots to go outside. n Staff working with babies do not have a good enough knowledge of child development to plan a curriculum that meets children's individual needs. They are not clear about ways to promote young children's learning and development, including toilet training. Staff say they would appreciate training to update their knowledge and skills. n Self-evaluation of the nursery is not effective because leaders fail to identify key weaknesses. n Parents report that they receive information about their children's day at nursery, through the online application used by the staff. n Staff manage children's behaviour well. Children share resources and play cooperatively. n The focus in the pre-school room on promoting children's communication and language is good. Staff work on building children's vocabulary and adding

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need to do better?

interesting words to the narrative while they play. Two-year-olds enjoy using different resources to mould, roll and cut dough. This helps to promote their small-muscle skills.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are not effective.

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Safeguarding

The manager does not ensure that effective risk assessments are undertaken to identify and remove hazards to children. In particular, with regard to the risk from hot radiators, choking, trapping fingers and sleeping arrangements for babies. Leaders and staff, including the designated lead for safeguarding, do not know how to identify the possible signs and indicators of abuse, such as grooming and girls at risk of harm from certain cultural practices. This further compromises children's safety.

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Due date

ensure that the risk assessment process is effective in identifying and removing all potential hazards 24/12/2021

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Due date

ensure that the premises and equipment used for the purpose of childcare are safe and suitable 24/12/2021

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Due date

ensure that the temperature in areas of the nursery used by children is maintained at an appropriate level to meet their needs 24/12/2021

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Due date

ensure that staff working with children under two-years-old are sufficiently trained and supervised to help them to meet the needs of children in this age group, particularly when feeding them and during sleep times, so that the children remain safe in the nursery 06/01/2022

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Due date

ensure that the lead practitioner for safeguarding is suitably trained to identify, understand and respond appropriately to signs of possible abuse and neglect 06/01/2022

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Due date

train all staff so that they are aware of their roles and responsibilities with regard to identifying and responding to children who may be at risk of harm from abuse, including grooming and female genital mutilation 06/01/2022

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Due date

implement an effective key-person system so that all children, in particular children with SEND, are cared for by staff who have a good knowledge of their care and learning needs, so children's individual needs are met 06/01/2022

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Due date

accurately identify all children's next steps and plan effectively for their individual learning and development needs 06/03/2022

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Due date

3 December 2021 improve the monitoring of practice, support and coaching for staff, to ensure they have a secure understanding of how to make accurate assessments of children's learning and plan activities that precisely link to their next stage of learning. 06/03/2022

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY467957 Local authority Sandwell Inspection number 10203246 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

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inspection

Total number of places 50 Number of children on roll 107 Name of registered person Little Explorers (West Midlands) Ltd

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reference number

Telephone number 01384 412197 Date of previous inspection 2 June 2017

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Information about this early years setting

Little Explorers Day Nursery was registered in 2013. It is situated in the Cradley Heath area of Birmingham. The provider employs 17 members of childcare staff. Of these, 15 hold appropriate early years qualifications from level 2 to level 6. The nursery opens from Monday to Friday for 51 weeks of the year. Sessions are from 7.30am until 6pm. The provider receives funding to provide free 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 pandemic began. The inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with the provider and has taken that into account in their evaluation of the setting. n The manager and deputy manager led the inspector on a learning walk and told her what they wanted the children to learn at the nursery. The manager and the inspector carried out a joint evaluation of an activity together. n The manager and the inspector observed the quality of teaching during activities and assessed the impact this had on children's learning. n The inspector held discussions with the provider, manager, deputy manager and staff throughout the inspection. She looked at relevant documentation, including qualifications and first-aid certificates, and checked evidence of the suitability of those working with children. n The inspector took account of the views of parents spoken to on the day.

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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

3 December 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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