Small Wonders Day Care Nursery and Enhanced Activity Centre

Inspection of Small Wonders Day Care Nursery and Enhanced Activity Centre Sunbury Street, St Helens, Merseyside WA10 3RE

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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

Children are greeted with warmth and enthusiasm by staff when they arrive at the nursery. Staff take time to find out about how children are feeling and ask parents about what they have done at the weekend. Children share news and talk about their family with attentive staff during the day. Children feel comfortable to explore their environment. Babies show particularly close bonds with the staff who care for them. They seek staff out for cuddles.

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The provision is good

Staff take a consistent approach to teaching children about the boundaries for their behaviour at nursery. They talk to children in an appropriate way and encourage sharing and taking turns. They discuss in detail different levels of volume in their voices and when it is appropriate to use these. Children enjoy participating in the sensory and creative opportunities that are available to them. The youngest babies explore sand with their whole bodies, developing their exploratory play skills. Toddlers experience foam and water while learning about the seaside. Children are given a wide range of experiences. This helps to ensure children make good progress from the start.

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The provision is good

Children and staff have good relationships and staff know children well. This enables staff to plan experiences that are tailored to meet children's individual learning needs and interests. The rooms where children play and learn are well considered. This helps to ensure that children have access to a wide range of exciting opportunities and supports them in making choices about their own learning.

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need to do better?

n Leaders and staff support families very well. They identify children who may require additional support in order to make good progress from the start. Staff work closely with families and outside agencies to implement bespoke strategies that support children. They have created areas in the nursery which allow parents to discuss sensitive matters or collect information through leaflets and posters. This helps to provide a consistent approach for all children. n Leaders have a clear intent for what they want children to learn. Overall, staff demonstrate a good knowledge of child development. However, there are occasions when staff do not precisely identify the knowledge and skills they intend children to learn during activities. This means that, occasionally, children are not supported to make the very best progress. n Interactions between staff and children are very good. Staff understand the importance of repeating, modelling and demonstrating language. This supports

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need to do better?

children's language acquisition well. For example, children playing with minibeasts learn different types, such as scorpion and centipede. They extend

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need to do better?

3 July 2023 their learning further by talking about which insects sting. As a result, children are confident talkers and develop good skills to support future learning. n Staff provide choices for children such as what resources they would like to play with. They follow children's interests and extend this learning through play experiences. For example, children have an interest in the story 'Goldilocks and the Three Bears'. Staff encourage children to recall the story by providing figures, different sized beds and chairs. Children enjoy acting out Goldilocks moving to the different sized beds and use language, such as 'big, medium and small'. This consolidates children's learning and introduces mathematical concepts. n Staff promote children's health and well-being throughout the nursery day. For example, they encourage children to put on their own shoes and wipe noses. The setting are aware that some families need help with understanding the

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need to do better?

importance of good dental hygiene. They have supported parents to find local dentists and share with children the impact of too much sugar in certain drinks and how this affects their teeth. This supports children to understand the importance of good hygiene from an early age. n Parents are happy and comment on the 'good vibes' the staff and leaders create. They feel well informed about their child's progress and talk about the different development skills they are working on. They celebrate the progress their child has made throughout their time at nursery. The staff share information on topics such as toilet training and how to promote communication at home. This encourages consistency and reaching the best possible outcomes. n The leadership team is passionate and dedicated and staff share their enthusiasm. Staff benefit from effective support and supervision sessions. This helps staff to develop confidence. It also supports the high morale and positive

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Staff have a thorough understanding of the signs and symptoms of all forms of abuse. The leaders and staff access regular training and they understand the correct procedures to follow if they have a concern about a child. Leaders have a good understanding of the services available to families should they need it. They signpost families to these services should it be necessary. The staff assess risks daily, both indoors and outdoors. Staff are paediatric first-aid trained and have a clear understanding of managing accidents within the setting.

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should:

n support staff in how to identify more clearly what they want children to learn as

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should:

3 July 2023 they plan and provide opportunities and experiences.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY421911 Local authority St Helens Inspection number 10295441 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 84 Number of children on roll 74 Name of registered person Small Wonders Day Care Nursery Limited

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reference number

Telephone number 01744603785 Date of previous inspection 5 December 2017

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Information about this early years setting

Small Wonders Day Care Nursery and Enhanced Activity Centre registered in 2011. The nursery employs 12 members of childcare staff. Of these, 11 hold appropriate early years qualifications, including three staff members who hold a qualification at level 6, seven at level 3 and one unqualified. 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 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 The area manager, manager and inspector completed a learning walk together of all areas of the nursery and discussed the early years curriculum. n The inspector spoke to children, to find out about their time at the setting. n The inspector talked to staff at appropriate times during the inspection and took account of their views. n The special educational needs coordinator spoke to the inspector about how they support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. n The inspector carried out joint observations of group activities with the manager and area manager. n Parents shared their views of the setting with the inspector. n The inspector looked at relevant documentation and reviewed evidence of the

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Inspection activities

suitability of staff working in the nursery.

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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 July 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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