Star Kids Children's Nursery

Inspection of Star Kids Children's Nursery 31 - 33 Hythe Street, Dartford DA1 1BE

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Overall effectiveness Inadequate

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

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The provision is inadequate

Children's safety is compromised. The risk assessment for newly recruited staff, whose suitability has not been checked, is not robust. In addition to this, staffing arrangements do not ensure all children's needs are being met all of the time. This puts children are risk.

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The provision is inadequate

Children are offered a light breakfast when they arrive. They stay together in the same room until more staff come on duty and can take older children and babies to their dedicated rooms. During this time, children play with the resources available. Babies are given toys to play with while in high chairs while staff carry out tasks, such as cleaning and answering the door. This leaves few staff to tend to the children's needs and means children are offered limited focused learning opportunities.

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The provision is inadequate

Generally, children are happy and behave well. They explore the resources that are on offer and engage in the activities that staff provide. However, these are not always challenging for the age of the children. Nonetheless, children share and play alongside their peers. For example, older children use rolling pins and cutters to create shapes out of play dough.

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The provision is inadequate

Children join in with group singing at the start of the day. Staff use finger puppets to engage younger children when singing rhymes. Older children greet each other at registration time.

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need to do better?

n Arrangements to safeguard children are not robust. New staff who have not had all their checks completed are able to take children to the toilet without challenge. This compromises children's safety. n Staffing arrangements do not consistently support the needs of all children, at all times. At the start of the day, babies and young children are left with limited interaction while staff prepare breakfast and answer the door. This does not ensure all children's needs are met at this time. n The manager carries out regular supervision with staff to discuss their practice and any training needs. Staff understand their roles and responsibilities and report that they feel supported in their role. n Staff wear aprons during the day to prevent cross contamination. However, they do not consistently change these after changing nappies and before supporting mealtimes. In addition, children are not consistently encouraged to wash their

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need to do better?

hands before and after meal times. n Children have access to an outdoor area and have set times that they are taken outside. This enables them the space they need to practise their physical skills.

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need to do better?

23 May 2022 Staff do not always fully utilise this space. However, children visit the local library, occasionally, and go to other local amenities. n Generally, children behave well. At times, some children need support to manage conflict. Staff support children to understand the rules of the setting. For example, staff assist younger children when sharing small world cars. They give them a car each and encourage them to play together. Staff praise children for their efforts. n The organisation of the day requires improvement. Staff do not manage daily routines well enough, particularly when preparing and tidying up at mealtimes and nappy changes. This has an impact on how well the curriculum is implemented, particularly for younger children. Staff are too busy carrying out daily tasks, which means that they spend little time teaching children new skills. n Staff teach older children about shapes and children are able to recall what they

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need to do better?

have learned. However, the curriculum is not ambitious. Staff do not extend children's knowledge to maximise their learning. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are given limited time for focused support. The manager and staff rely on external agencies to provide the additional support children require. This has an impact on the amount of progress children with SEND make. n Children enjoy taking part in activities to develop their fine motor skills. Staff give children directions to explain what to do and encourage them to have a go. For example, children are told how to spread the glue on paper and push leaves down onto the glue. However, the interaction is limited and opportunities to learn more about the natural environment are not developed. Children are not given the time to fully explore the materials they are using before being given the next instruction. As a result, children miss out on meaningful learning

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need to do better?

experiences. n Parents are happy with the care that their children receive. They feel they are kept up to date about the activities their children take part in. The manager is in the process of starting parent meetings to support partnership working.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are not effective.

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Safeguarding

The recruitment procedures are not robust. Arrangements for protecting children from staff who have not had their suitability checks are not consistently followed. This puts children at risk as well as those who have not had their suitability checked. Despite this, the designated lead for safeguarding and all staff are aware of what they need to do if they were concerned about a child's welfare. They know how to identify the signs of abuse and how to refer their concerns on. Staff are aware of what to do if they have concerns about an adult working in the setting.

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Due date

ensure adults whose suitability has not been checked are not allowed unsupervised contact with children being cared for 13/06/2022

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Due date

ensure staff are effectively deployed at all times, and children are appropriately supervised to meet their individual needs. 13/06/2022

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should:

n improve the hygiene arrangements for children, particularly at mealtimes n improve how routines are managed to ensure the implementation of the curriculum is not impacted n develop staff knowledge and understanding of the curriculum intent to improve the learning opportunities for children, particularly children with SEND n improve staff interactions to ensure children benefit from meaningful learning experiences.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY481842 Local authority Kent Inspection number 10237539 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 35 Number of children on roll 69 Name of registered person Star Kids Club Limited

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reference number

Telephone number 01322293920 or 07960654380 Date of previous inspection 3 October 2018

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Information about this early years setting

Star Kids Day Nursery and Pre-School registered in 2014 and is located in Dartford, Kent. The setting employs 12 members of staff. Of these, eight hold appropriate early years qualifications. The nursery opens from Monday to Friday, from 8am to 6pm and they are in receipt of early education funding for children aged two, three and four years.

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Inspection activities

n This was the first routine inspection the provider 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 provider. n We carried out this inspection as a result of a risk assessment, following information we received about the provider. n The manager joined the inspector on a learning walk and talked to the inspector about their curriculum and what they want their children to learn. n Staff spoke to the inspector during the inspection. n The inspector observed the interactions between staff and children. n The inspector spoke to several parents during the inspection and took account of their views.

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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

23 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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