Quarry House

Inspection of Quarry House Quarry House, Hougher Wall Road, Audley ST7 8JA

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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

Staff create a home-from-home environment, where children feel happy and safe. Children arrive happily and are warmly greeted by cheerful staff at this small, friendly setting. Staff build strong, positive relationships with the children and their families. The dedicated staff strive to provide children with the best start in life. Staff support children to become independent, confident, and able to regulate their emotions. They are good at supporting children's emotional well-being. Staff ensure that children leave here with the skills, confidence, and self-worth to thrive in the next stage of their journey. From the start, children form extremely secure emotional attachments with the nurturing staff. Staff are especially caring and sensitive to the children's needs and personal situations. They offer limitless support to children and families when required.

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The provision is good

Staff have realistic expectations for behaviour, which are based on children's ages and stages of development. Overall, children play happily and are learning to be kind to each other. Children make independent choices of where they prefer to play. They show high levels of curiosity and a positive attitude to learning. For instance, they explore how the water changes colour when the tea bag is added, and experiment with compacting flour into different containers. Staff interactions support children to build positive relationships with each other.

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need to do better?

n The curriculum gives high priority to nurturing children's emotional security. Staff provide a calm, nurturing environment, quickly identifying children who need additional support in managing their feelings. Staff gather information from parents and use their own observations of children to provide the support children need to settle quickly into nursery life. This continues as they move through the nursery into new rooms. n Staff provide some activities that support children's physical development well. For example, children enjoy music and movement and using equipment in the garden. However, although children spend time engaged in these activities, staff do not focus on this area of development as strongly as other areas of the curriculum. Therefore, although children generally progress well in their physical development, they are not consistently challenged. n Staff interact well with the children, sitting at their level and modelling play.

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need to do better?

They frequently use repeated single words and descriptive words to enhance children's communication and language. For example, they say it is 'swirly' and 'curly' as they describe the changing shape of the pipe cleaner, as they bend it around their finger. Staff are enthusiastic and engage children well in story sessions. Babies turn pages and move flaps in sensory books to look at the variety of pictures. Toddlers sing and dance to nursery rhymes and begin to sing

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need to do better?

29 November 2024 the words. n Children benefit from many experiences that put them at the heart of the local community and broaden their understanding of the wider world. Staff help children to understand the importance of fundraising and charity work. Parents and children help to collect food for the local food bank by donating an item of food each day during December. n All staff know the children well and have a good understanding of child development and where children are in their progress. The quality of teaching is good. The education programme ensures learning for all participating. This means all children achieve good outcomes and are prepared for their transition to school. n The setting has a strong partnership with parents. Staff keep parents well informed about their children's daily routine. Parents say that they are happy with the level of care their children receive and that they are confident that their

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need to do better?

children are safe and well looked after by the supportive staff. However, leaders do not ensure that communication between the nursery and home is always effective. This means that some parents lack clear information about children's learning and development and how they can further support this at home. n Leaders and managers support staff well-being by ensuring that they have the support they need when they need it. There are robust induction processes in place, which help staff understand what is expected of them. Regular checks are completed on the quality of the practice through peer observations and supervision. n Children enjoy home-cooked, healthy meals. Staff provide ingredients for children to cook at home, and parents are supported by staff who share healthy recipes and meal ideas with parents. This promotes shared cooking experiences between parents and children, and children learn about healthy food choices

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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 strengthen the implementation of the intended curriculum to consistently extend and challenge children's physical development n enhance partnerships with parents to improve the two-way flow of information regarding children's learning and development and to support parents to continue their child's learning at home.

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Setting details

Unique reference number 2810514 Local authority Staffordshire Inspection number 10369026 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 36 Number of children on roll 35 Name of registered person Pear Tree Nursery LTD

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reference number

Telephone number 01782345998 Date of previous inspection Not applicable

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Information about this early years setting

Quarry House registered in 2024. The nursery employs 12 members of childcare staff. Of these, eight hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 2 and above. The nursery is open Monday to Friday all year round, from 7.30 am to 6 pm. The nursery provides funded early education for any eligible children.

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Inspection activities

n The manager joined the inspector on a learning walk and talked to the inspector about their curriculum and what they want the children to learn. n The inspector talked to staff at appropriate times during the inspection and took account of their views. n The inspector observed the quality of education being provided, indoors and outdoors and assessed the impact that this has had on children's learning. n The manager and the inspector carried out a joint observation. n The inspector spoke to several parents during the inspection and took account of their views. n The manager showed the inspector documentation to demonstrate 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

29 November 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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