Shelford Day Nursery

Inspection of Shelford Day Nursery 3 High Green, Great Shelford, Cambridge CB22 5EQ

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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 Not applicable

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The provision is good

The highly ambitious manager creates a curriculum that puts children at the heart of all they do. Each element of the setting has been carefully thought out to support children's learning and development. Children's personal, social and emotional development are key to it all.

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The provision is good

Staff take time to get to know children. From the moment children start at the setting, staff embed a clear key-person system. This provides children with an adult who they feel safe and secure with. Children actively seek out their key person for comfort when needed. For example, in the baby room, when children become unsettled with unfamiliar adults, they look for their key person. Babies are comforted by their key person's company, allowing them to explore the room while knowing they are close by.

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The provision is good

Staff create a calm environment for children to learn and develop in. Increased staff numbers ensure that staff provide children with good levels of attention. This leads to exemplary behaviour by the children. Staff plan activities that not only meet the learning and development needs of the children but also their interests. Staff effectively embed science, technology, engineering and mathematics into activities to build on children's learning.

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need to do better?

n From the moment children start at the setting, they are at the forefront of everything. The environment is arranged to offer invitations of play for children to explore and investigate. Children enjoy exploring independently and as part of a group. Staff are knowledgeable of children's learning needs and create activities to support them. However, staff do not always know how to implement the intended learning during activities. This means that children do not always benefit from the best-quality teaching and learning. n Children are encouraged to create healthy lifestyles. Staff help them to develop an understanding of how to keep themselves healthy. For example, children participate in a 'boot camp' every morning. Staff talk to children about how they can move their bodies in different ways and what happens to their bodies as a result. The nursery cook creates healthy meals for all the children to enjoy. At

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need to do better?

mealtimes, children sit in the same seat each time, together with their friends and key person, simulating a family mealtime. This encourages children to build friendships and develop their social skills. n Staff promote children's communication and language skills well. They sing songs and read stories to the youngest children, exposing them to a wide range of language. Across the setting, staff narrate activities. They strategically ask children questions and encourage them to think independently. This develops

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need to do better?

26 June 2024 children's cognitive skills. Staff expose the oldest children to a wide range of vocabulary. For example, they introduce them to words such as 'symmetry', which they later use in their own play and learning. n Staff regularly revisit learning with children. They encourage children to think about what they have already learned, before building on this further. For example, children explore cornflour in the pre-school room. Staff talk about how they mix the cornflour before adding balls. Children experiment with how quickly they can make the balls move across the water. However, staff do not always stretch and challenge the most-able children's thinking during these activities, so that they learn even more. n Parents speak very highly of the setting and praise the experiences they have had. Parents of children with special educational needs and/or disabilities comment on the rapid speed in which concerns are raised and support plans put

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need to do better?

in place for their children. Parents comment on the high levels of communication they receive from the setting. This makes them feel part of their child's nursery day. n The knowledgeable manager is passionate about her role and has a highly ambitious vision for the setting. The leadership team models excellent practice to all staff. They demonstrate how to effectively teach children and encourage them to learn. Staff feel highly supported by the manager and leaders. Effective supervisions and appraisals allow for continuous professional development. This ensures that staff make progress in their own learning and continue to develop the quality of the nursery.

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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:

n support staff to further develop their interactions to implement the highly ambitious curriculum and engage and extend the most-able children's learning consistently.

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Setting details

Unique reference number 2666119 Local authority Cambridgeshire Inspection number 10344419 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 64 Number of children on roll 65 Name of registered person Kanit Limited

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reference number

Telephone number 01223 857 129 Date of previous inspection Not applicable

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Information about this early years setting

Shelford Day Nursery registered in 2022 and is located in Great Shelford, Cambridge. The nursery employs 23 members of childcare staff. Of these, 20 staff hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 2 or above, including the manager who holds early years professional status. The nursery opens from Monday to Friday for 50 weeks per year. Sessions are from 7.30am until 6pm, Monday to Friday. The nursery receives funding for the provision of early education for two-, three- and four-year-old children. The nursery adopts a science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) approach.

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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 manager and the inspector completed a learning walk together of all the areas of the setting and discussed their curriculum and what they want children to learn. n The inspector observed the quality of education being provided, indoors and outdoors, and assessed the impact that this was having on children's learning. n The inspector carried out joint observations of group activities with the manager. n The inspector spoke to parents during the inspection and took account of their views. n The inspector talked to staff and children at appropriate times during the inspection and took account of their views. n The inspector looked at relevant documentation and reviewed evidence of the

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Inspection activities

suitability of the manager and staff team.

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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

26 June 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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