Chestnut Nursery

Inspection of Chestnut Nursery Chestnut Centre, 2a Chestnut Street, Huddersfield, West Yorkshire HD2 1HJ

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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 happily enter the vibrant and richly resourced nursery. Staff greet children with enthusiasm, love and affection, which helps children to feel safe and secure. Children settle quickly after placing their photograph on a coat peg, and are eager to start playing. Babies and toddlers babble and smile at staff's nurturing interactions. Staff give them the confidence to explore tactile activities and practise their developing mobility using physical equipment. Staff celebrate everyone's uniqueness. This helps the culturally diverse families and staff team to feel respected, valued and included.

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The provision is good

Overall, staff plan very effective educational programmes that meet children's often complex needs and help children to make good progress. This includes children who enter below developmental expectations, those in receipt of additional funding and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities. For example, staff put in place intense interventions and work in excellent partnership with other professionals.

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The provision is good

Staff effectively prepare older children for going to school. Children are keen learners and highly sociable as they create a habitat together for the frog they find in the garden, for instance. Staff support them to follow the nursery rules and enjoy tasks, such as setting up for lunch. As they do this, staff build on their early mathematical skills. Children aged two enjoy learning physical skills, such as stepping across plastic crates. They enjoy singing, which builds on their early language. Staff use activities, such as planting, growing and cooking sessions with the nursery chef, to help children learn about healthy eating.

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need to do better?

n Staff support new children starting nursery extremely well, for example, through stay-and-play sessions and home visits. They gather extensive information about each child and create an exceptional home-from-home environment to help children settle in. Staff monitor children's progress at nursery closely. They swiftly identify and address any developmental delays, including those arising from the pandemic, to help children to catch up. n Staff plan a wealth of exciting activities that, largely, engage children well. However, care practices and the curriculum, which includes whole group carpet time, do not consistently fully align with two-year-old children's developmental stage. Staff do not always recognise when children require increased adult support to engage and develop their language, and manage self-care skills. n Children love playing outdoors, which they freely access. They develop confidence and physical skills as they whizz around on wheeled toys and use the

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need to do better?

natural environment, such as trees, to build a den using scarves.

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need to do better?

15 May 2024 n Children learn amazing facts about the world around them. For example, during a bug hunt, they find what they think is a worm. Staff share in children's excitement and explain that although it looks like a worm, the insect has lots of tiny legs and is, in fact, a centipede. n Children develop excellent small-muscle strength and hand-to-eye coordination. For example, they use different resources to make marks, pour drinks, serve home-made chilli and rice and explore limitless tactile media that ignites their curiosity. Babies squeeze sponges and toddlers scoop foam using metal measuring spoons. Children aged two enthusiastically knead play dough while making pretend pizzas. Older children dress dolls, use pipettes and twist jar lids on and off. n Parents and carers access a wealth of services that help them meet their children's needs, such as workshops and sessions with healthcare professionals.

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need to do better?

Staff plan events, such as multicultural celebrations, a seaside trip and community trails, initially set up during the pandemic. They encourage parents and carers to access rhyme time and use the library facility to support children's language and literacy skills. n Staff use a wide variety of methods to communicate with parents and carers, including sharing children's assessments and next steps in learning electronically. However, information is not consistently shared with those less confident in the use of technology, to ensure they receive the same key messages to support children. n Overall, staff's qualifications, and further training, positively impacts their practice. They expand children's learning through their enthusiastic interactions. For example, as children develop imagination skills in the exciting small world dinosaur swamp, staff explain that a 'herbivore' eats plants. n The passionate leadership team reflect on and improve practice in many ways,

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need to do better?

such as through accreditation schemes. They continue to focus on strengthening the coaching and mentoring of staff, especially those less qualified or experienced. n The provider has not followed the correct process for promptly notifying Ofsted of an additional director. However, relevant forms had been submitted before the inspection. The impact on children is minimised as this individual has been subject to a Disclosure and Barring Service check and was known to Ofsted under a different role.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

There is an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts children's interests first.

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should:

15 May 2024 n focus teaching and the curriculum more precisely on younger children's individual care and learning needs, to fully engage them and help them to make the best possible progress n extend the strategies for sharing information with parents and carers about children's learning and how they can support children further at home.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY558629 Local authority Kirklees Inspection number 10339350 Type of provision Childcare on non-domestic premises

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Registers

Early Years Register, Compulsory Childcare Register Day care type Full day care

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inspection

Total number of places 94 Number of children on roll 106 Name of registered person Ls2y Nurseries Ltd

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reference number

Telephone number 01484543978 Date of previous inspection 11 July 2018

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Information about this early years setting

Chestnut Nursery registered in 2018, it is operated by a private limited company, and is located in Huddersfield. The nursery employs 18 members of childcare staff, 11 of whom hold appropriate early years qualifications: 10 are at level 3 and one is at level 5. The nursery opens from Monday to Friday, all year round, except bank holidays. 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 leadership and management team and has taken that into account in their evaluation of the nursery. n The inspector observed the safety and suitability of the premises. She also observed the quality of education indoors and outdoors, and assessed the impact of this on children's learning. n The inspector carried out a learning walk with the leadership and management team. This helped her to understand how they organise the early years provision and curriculum. n The inspector carried out a range of observations of activities taking place with the manager. n The inspector spoke with staff, children, parents and carers during the inspection. She also viewed written feedback from parents and carers, including their comments from questionnaires. n The inspector held a meeting with the leadership and management team. She

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Inspection activities

looked at various documents, including those related to the suitability of staff.

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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

15 May 2024 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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