Stepping Stones Nursery and Woodland Adventures

Inspection of Stepping Stones Nursery and Woodland Adventures Manor Farm, Upper Slaughter, CHELTENHAM, Gloucestershire GL54 2JJ

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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

p.1

The provision is inadequate

The manager/owner has failed to provide a safe and secure environment for children. There are several breaches relating to the safeguarding and welfare requirements, which places children at significant risk of harm.

p.2

The provision is inadequate

The quality of teaching and care is poor at this nursery. The manager does not provide staff with relevant training, supervision and ongoing support to enable them to promote children's safety and offer meaningful learning experiences.

p.2

The provision is inadequate

Despite staff having built bonds with their key children, they are unable to identify children's next steps in learning due to insufficient planning, observation and assessment. As a result, staff do not provide targeted support to address children's learning needs. This means that children fail to make the progress they are capable and they are not prepared well enough for the next stage in their learning.

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The provision is inadequate

The provision for babies and young children is particularly poor. Staff in the baby room do not hold the relevant qualifications to care for babies and young children. Furthermore, due to a recent turnover of staff, the manager has failed to recruit new staff to ensure the safe running of the nursery. She continues to accept new babies without putting in place suitable staffing arrangements to meet the required staff-to-child ratios. This means that due to the lack of adequate staffing, the manager is unable to deploy her staff team effectively. She relies on other administrative staff, including the nursery cook, to help supervise the children. This compromises the quality of care and experiences for babies and young children.

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The provision is inadequate

Children are well mannered and polite. They are respectful to adults and kind to their friends.

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need to do better?

n The manager does not provide a broad and balanced curriculum that builds on what children already know and can do. Staff are not able to explain what they want children to learn and how they embed this through their planning. Despite staff providing some interesting activities, such as weekly music sessions, children's learning experiences are not enriching and at times, overly directed by adults. For example, during the inspection, pre-school children joined staff for a planned craft activity to make a pretend pond for creatures. However, despite staff using open-ended questions to capture children's interests, they did not encourage children to actively participate. Some children sat back and watched staff draw and cut out animal pictures, while other children lost interest. Additionally, due to insufficient planning, children did not have access to resources, such as scissors, pens and paper, so they could join in. This meant

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need to do better?

9 May 2022 that children were unable to extend their learning, such as practising their early mark-making and scissor skills. n The manager does not have sufficient arrangements in place to assess and monitor children's progress. Despite some staff using a 'tracking sheet' to identify if children are meeting developmental milestones, staff comment that they do not find this helpful and refer to it as a 'tick box' process. Consequently, staff are not familiar with children's next steps in learning and there are gaps in monitoring children's ongoing progress. n Parents do not receive continuous information about their child's progress. Although staff help children to settle in and exchange information with parents about their child's daily experiences, parents state that they do not receive information about their children's progress. They are unsure about their child's next steps in learning and how to promote this further.

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need to do better?

n The manager does not ensure the premises are safe and secure to prevent unauthorised individuals from entering the nursery or prevent children from leaving unnoticed. During the inspection, the nursery front door which leads directly to the pre-school room, was left open on two occasions. Furthermore, the kitchen door overlooking a public car park, and which leads directly into the nursery, was left open with no adult supervision. This places children at significant risk of harm. n Staff do not protect young children's right to privacy during intimate care routines. During the inspection, parents were invited to enter the nursery to collect their children from the baby room. This meant that they had to walk through the toddler room to gain access. During this time, staff failed to protect the privacy of toddlers, such as when removing their clothing to use the potty. There are insufficient safeguards in place during nappy changing and toilet

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need to do better?

training routines to protect children's dignity. n The nursery caters for children with varying dietary and medical needs. Children enjoy freshly cooked meals, including a range of fruits and vegetables. Children have access to the nursery woodlands where they have opportunities to develop their physical coordination skills, such as running, balancing and climbing. n The manager has failed to provide staff with appropriate training and support to foster a culture of mutual support, teamwork and continuous supervision. Consequently, staff do not receive the support they need to ensure children's safety and staff morale is low. Staff comment that they do not receive regular one-to-one supervision meetings and feel unsupportive. Staff have limited opportunities to access further training to address gaps in their knowledge, such as how to plan and assess children's learning, and to broaden their safeguarding

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need to do better?

knowledge. The manager recognises that staff have not received regular supervision and states this is due to her being unavailable as a result of managing staff cover. n The manager/owner does not have a secure understanding of her role to meet legal requirements and does not reflect on the quality of the provision. She has failed to take action to report an allegation made against a member of staff to the Local Authority Designated Officer. Furthermore, she does not understand the requirement to notify Ofsted of significant events affecting her suitability.

p.3

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are not effective.

p.4

Safeguarding

The manager/owner has failed to understand her responsibility to keep children safe. She has not followed the procedure of her local safeguarding partnership by reporting an allegation made against a staff member. Furthermore, as the designated safeguarding lead person, she has not completed the required child protection course to support her role. Staff have some understanding of the signs of abuse and neglect and how to report a welfare concern about a child. However, not all staff are familiar with other safeguarding matters, such as the 'Prevent' duty. Staff cannot recall when they last attended safeguarding training. The manager does not assess the environment to identify and address risks to keep children safe, such as to prevent unauthorised persons for entering the premises. Staff are not deployed effectively to ensure the adequate supervision of children.

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Due date

provide staff with effective training and support to help them understand their role and responsibility to keep children safe 23/05/2022

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Due date

ensure that staff are deployed effectively, to keep children safe and to meet their individual care and learning needs 23/05/2022

p.4

Due date

adhere to the required ratio and qualification requirements by ensuring at least one member of staff working with children under two years holds an approved qualification at level 3 as well as suitable experience 23/05/2022

p.4

Due date

implement the allegations management procedure by informing the Local Authority Designated Officer and Ofsted of concerns about adults working with children 23/05/2022

p.4

Due date

9 May 2022 ensure the designated safeguarding lead attends the relevant child protection training and supports staff to identify child protection concerns and take appropriate action 23/05/2022

p.4

Due date

provide suitable facilities for young children who are in nappies and those who are toilet training by ensuring that you protect their privacy during intimate care routines 23/05/2022

p.5

Due date

improve arrangements for monitoring the security of the premises, to ensure management and staff are aware of persons entering at all times 23/05/2022

p.5

Due date

improve knowledge and understanding of the requirement to notify Ofsted about significant events that affect the suitability of the provider's health. 23/05/2022

p.5

Due date

plan and provide a broad curriculum that builds on what children already know and can do, to help them make good progress in their learning 06/06/2022

p.5

Due date

monitor staff's practice to ensure that they are aware of the next steps that each child needs to take and are able to extend children's learning at an appropriate level 06/06/2022

p.5

Due date

keep parents up to date about their children's progress, including any targeted support, to ensure continuity in their learning and care. 06/06/2022

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY301590 Local authority Gloucestershire Inspection number 10239657 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 75 Number of children on roll 53 Name of registered person Wilson, Claire Louise

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reference number

Telephone number 01451 820345 Date of previous inspection 13 February 2017

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Information about this early years setting

Stepping Stones Nursery and Woodland Adventures registered in 2005. The setting is based in Gloucestershire. The nursery is open each weekday from 8am to 6pm for 51 weeks of the year. The provider receives funding for the provision of free early education for children aged three and four years old. There are 11 members of staff working with the children. This includes the owner/manager who holds a childcare qualification at level 4, four staff who hold relevant qualifications at level 3, two hold relevant degree qualifications and four staff are unqualified.

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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 setting and has taken that into account in her evaluation of the setting. n We carried out this inspection as a result of a risk assessment, following information we received about the provider. n The manager and inspector completed a learning walk together of all areas of the nursery and discussed the early years curriculum. n The inspector observed the quality of education being provided and assessed the impact that this was having on children's learning. n The inspector looked at relevant documentation and reviewed evidence of the suitability of staff working in the nursery. n The inspector took account of parents' views through their verbal and written feedback. n The inspector carried out a joint observation with the manager. n Discussions were held with the staff, parents and children at appropriate times

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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

9 May 2022 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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