Monkey Puzzle Day Nursery Watford

Inspection of Monkey Puzzle Day Nursery Watford 36, The Avenue, Watford WD17 4NT

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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 Good

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The provision is good

Staff provide a warm and caring environment for children. They recognise the cues of babies and younger children, such as when they become tired. Babies respond positively to the gentle reassurance of staff and settle quickly to sleep, demonstrating that they feel safe and secure in their surroundings.

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The provision is good

Children behave well and enjoy the activities on offer. The oldest children demonstrate good levels of focus and concentrate on the tasks they complete. For instance, they sit and mix ingredients together to make dough for lengthy periods of time. Staff deal with any minor disagreements swiftly, gently reminding children of the need to be kind to one another. Children respond well to this support and form strong bonds with those around them.

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The provision is good

Children across the nursery develop their language and communication skills. Staff speak to babies, who babble back to staff in turn. This builds on their emerging understanding of how to use and control their voices. Toddlers build their vocabulary as they play imagination games in the garden with staff. Children who speak English as an additional language hear the correct pronunciation of words as staff repeat words back to them clearly. This helps them to become effective communicators.

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need to do better?

n Leaders have a clear vision for all children's learning, and this is relevant to each child's individual age and stage of development. They quickly identify children who may require additional support and monitor them closely. Staff plan appropriate activities for children, using what they know about their interests and abilities. This helps them to provide children with meaningful opportunities to build further on their learning. n Staff promote children's independence from a young age. They encourage babies to use age-appropriate cutlery to begin to feed themselves. Toddlers receive appropriate support in dealing with their personal care needs. For instance, they wash their hands independently. This helps to prepare them for the next stage in their learning. n Leaders and managers work hard to ensure that there are sufficient staff on site to always meet children's needs. However, on occasion, staff are not deployed

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need to do better?

as effectively as possible. For instance, during breakfast time, staff are busy completing tasks and some children are left to play without adult interaction. This means that children are not able to fully benefit from the strong interactions of staff at all times throughout their day. n Staff well-being is important to leaders, and staff speak highly of the support they receive. Leaders demonstrate their appreciation for the hard work that staff

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need to do better?

23 May 2023 complete. For instance, they provided lunch for staff during the recent Mental Health Awareness Week. Leaders recognise the recent changes to the staff team and have planned opportunities for team-building. This helps staff to feel appreciated and motivated in their roles. n Parents are happy with the care the nursery staff provide. They speak about the range of information that staff gather from them before children start. They speak positively about the visits children make before they start attending. This helps children to settle in. Since the last inspection, there has been a high turnover of staff, including room leaders and a newly appointed manager. These new staff members have not yet had the opportunity to build meaningful professional relationships with parents. This means that information-sharing about children's learning and development is not yet as strong as it could be. n Staff receive an appropriate induction into their roles. This helps them to

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need to do better?

understand what leaders expect of them. They have regular supervision meetings with the manager and have access to appropriate training. Staff take the initiative to complete training. For instance, when they move rooms, they complete training to refresh their knowledge of working with a different age range of children. This helps them to carry out their roles effectively.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

The safeguarding knowledge of staff is strong across the nursery, and staff are aware of how to raise concerns regarding children's welfare. The staff team is aware of how to share information regarding children with other professionals should it need to. Leaders know the process to follow should they have concerns about a staff member or a child. Staff complete relevant training to help them identify the possible signs of abuse and neglect. They are aware of wider safeguarding issues, such as how to identify a child who may be at risk of exposure to extreme views or behaviours.

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should:

n review staff deployment to help staff make the most of all opportunities to build on children's learning n support newer members of staff to develop professional relationships with parents to promote the already good sharing of information about children's learning and development even further.

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Setting details

Unique reference number 2546682 Local authority Hertfordshire Inspection number 10291456 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 72 Number of children on roll 82 Name of registered person Buds And Blooms Limited

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reference number

Telephone number 07429047978 Date of previous inspection 19 August 2022

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Information about this early years setting

Monkey Puzzle Day Nursery Watford re-registered in 2019. The nursery employs 16 members of childcare staff. Of these, 10 hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 2 or above. The nursery opens from Monday to Friday, all year round. 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 The inspector discussed any continued impact of the pandemic with the provider and has taken that into account in their evaluation of the provider. n The inspector viewed the provision and completed a learning walk with the owner. They discussed the early years curriculum provided. n Parents spoke to the inspector and shared their thoughts and views of the nursery, which the inspector took account of. n Staff and children spoke to the inspector at appropriate times during the inspection. n The inspector and owner jointly observed staff interacting with children. They discussed the impact of these interactions on children's learning and development. n The inspector viewed a range of documentation, including staff suitability records.

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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 2023 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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