Orchard Early Years

Inspection of Katies Kids Nursery Unit 2 Hartley Business Centre, Monkmoor Road, Shrewsbury SY2 5ST

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Overall effectiveness Good

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

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The provision is good

Staff at this unique and nurturing nursery help children to settle quickly by providing them with personalised settling-in sessions. Children develop strong attachments to their key person and other staff in the nursery. This supports children's emotional well-being and a sense of belonging.

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The provision is good

The management and staff work together to create a unique and ambitious curriculum that focuses on the individual starting points of children. The curriculum promotes key skills for children to develop as they progress through their nursery journey. For instance, by the time children leave the nursery, they are able to follow a recipe when baking. Babies start by exploring textures with their hands and mixing ingredients. Older children take part in regular cooking activities where staff teach them how to follow a recipe. Children recognise and name numbers as staff point to the list of ingredients.

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The provision is good

Staff are positive role models. They communicate with each other with care, kindness and compassion. Children behave well and learn to share with their friends with the guidance of the caring staff. Staff and children role play together. Children explore their imaginations, practising different voices as they play with dolls. They join in with activities for extended periods of time, demonstrating a positive attitude to learning.

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need to do better?

n Children are immersed in a communication-rich environment. Staff get down to children's level and promote positive eye contact as they communicate with them. Children develop their language and vocabulary through repetition of the nursery core books. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) join in with the repeated refrains of familiar stories. As a result of this, children develop a love of books and increase their language skills. n Staff celebrate children's unique achievements and share these with families. They use their excellent knowledge of children's development and interests to plan inviting activities that promote awe and wonder. Babies explore paint with their hands and create vertical lines using chalk on the blackboard. Older children are highly focused as they make play dough. They explore the scent of lavender and use scissors to cut petals into their mixture. However, staff do not

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need to do better?

always differentiate their teaching to ensure that they offer consistent stretch and challenge to most-able children. n Children attending this caring nursery receive dedicated care routines that support their health and well-being. Staff provide children with calming massage sessions before sleep time, and explain to children that they are relaxing their muscles to help them sleep. Children respond positively to this and settle quickly

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need to do better?

8 August 2024 in the tranquil sleep room. Staff promote healthy eating by providing a well- balanced menu that includes an abundance of seasonal vegetables. Babies and older children feed themselves with confidence. n The nursery team is passionate about creating a family ethos within the nursery, where families are supported and are partners in their child's education. Families are welcomed into the nursery each morning and parents are invited into the rooms for personal handovers with their child's key person. Parents are grateful for the welcoming environment that they say helps their child to flourish socially and emotionally. n Staff and management have put appropriate systems in place to ensure that children are safe. They teach children how to keep themselves safe through exploration and learning to manage their own risks. For example, children build their own obstacle courses with natural resources that they find in the

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need to do better?

environment. Staff observe and support them by holding their hand as they climb and balance on what they have made. Older children develop their fine motor skills as they cut up potatoes to make potato soup in the outdoor kitchen. n Staff feel supported and valued. They receive an effective induction period that provides them with an appropriate understanding of the policies and procedures of the nursery. Staff have a secure knowledge of their safeguarding responsibilities. They receive regular supervision from the dedicated manager. However, this does not yet consistently focus on improvements to teaching. This means that staff are not fully aware of their professional development needs and how they can improve.

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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 consider how to extend learning opportunities to fully challenge the most able children n strengthen supervision systems to monitor staff teaching practice, and support staff to identify areas for professional development that enable them to raise the quality of their practice even further.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY478071 Local authority Shropshire Inspection number 10351334 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 56 Number of children on roll 108 Name of registered person Katies Kids Limited

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reference number

Telephone number 01743 358463 Date of previous inspection 25 October 2018

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Information about this early years setting

Katies Kids Nursery registered in 2014 and is located in Shrewsbury. It is open each weekday from 7.30am to 6pm, all year round, except for one week at Christmas and bank holidays. There are 24 members of staff. Of these, 20 hold appropriate qualifications at level 2 or above, including five who hold early years qualifications at level 6. 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 nursery 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 joined the inspector on a learning walk and talked to the inspector about their curriculum and what they want their children to learn. n Children spoke to, or communicated with, the inspector during the inspection. n The inspector talked to staff at appropriate times during the inspection and took account of their views. n The inspector spoke with the nominated individual/registered individual about the leadership and management of the nursery. n The special educational needs coordinator spoke to the inspector about how they support children with SEND. 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.

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Inspection activities

n The inspector carried out a joint observation of a group activity with the manager. n Parents shared their views of the nursery with the inspector. n The inspector looked at relevant documentation and reviewed evidence of the 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

8 August 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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