Scallywags Child Care Centre

Inspection of Scallywags Child Care Centre Wey Valley Campus, Dorchester Road, WEYMOUTH, Dorset DT3 5AJ

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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

Staff provide a warm and welcoming environment where children arrive happy and settle quickly. The curriculum is broad and ambitious, based on children's interests and next steps in learning. As a result, children are interested and engaged. Children who prefer to learn outdoors have many opportunities to play in the well- planned gardens. They use bats and balls to develop their hand-eye coordination and ride on scooters and bicycles. They enjoy water and sand play, learning about volume and measurement as they fill and empty containers of different sizes.

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The provision is good

Children behave well and have a positive attitude to learning. Children share, close relationships with the staff, who get to know them well. This helps to build strong attachments and ensures that children feel safe and secure. Babies confidently explore the environment, for example, moving train carriages around a track. Toddlers enjoy playing in the mud kitchen, mixing mud, leaves and flowers using their senses to explore. Older children engage well with one another and staff as they try out their ideas for moving around outside.

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The provision is good

Partnerships with parents are strong. Parents comment that staff go above and beyond to support their family. They are kept well informed about their child's progress and appreciate the ideas to extend their child's learning at home.

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need to do better?

n Staff support older children well to develop their communication and language skills. They read stories and engage children successfully in conversation about their play ideas. Staff sound out letters and initial sounds, while encouraging children to recognise letters in the environment. n Children use their imagination well. They use trowels and pretend cement to build towers with bricks. Staff encourage children to use their senses and describe what the mixture feels like. Children use words such as 'sticky' and 'gloopy', demonstrating a wide vocabulary. n Staff use praise and encouragement successfully to build children's self-esteem. As a result, children are well motivated to learn, confident and independent. Children's behaviour is excellent. Staff act as good role models, and children follow their lead. Consequently , there is a calm and harmonious atmosphere throughout the nursery, which is conductive to lots of learning. Children show a

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need to do better?

strong understanding of right from wrong, and older children are exceptionally patient. For example, they serve themselves lunch and wait until every child is ready to start before eating their meal. n Staff know the children well. They know what they can do and what they want them to learn next. They plan a broad range of learning experiences to support children's development and monitor and assess this effectively. This enables staff

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need to do better?

17 December 2024 to quickly address any gaps in children's development when necessary. As a result, all children make good progress from their individual starting points. n Babies practise making sounds and speaking. They have opportunities for repetition as they join-in with action songs and rhymes and eagerly wait to see 'what's in the bag?' However, at times, staff are busy with tidying away or other routine chores and are not available to support children in developing their speech and language consistently. n Toddlers enjoy manipulating and rolling out play dough and cut out Christmas tree shapes. They use their imagination well as they pretend to bake these in an oven and develop good social skills as they share and take turns. However, staff do not always encourage children to count and use numbers in their play to further enhance their mathematical knowledge. n Staff support children to develop a good understanding of the importance of a

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need to do better?

healthy lifestyle. Children benefit from lots of physical exercise and fresh air. They enjoy a broad and varied diet provided by the on-site cook. They engage in conversation with staff who extend their knowledge about healthy eating and good oral health. n The provider supports staff to extend their skills. They encourage them to attend training that enhances their knowledge and interactions with children. Consequently, this has enhanced the provision for all children to incorporate ideas, such as 'the attention bucket', to develop children's listening and understanding. n The provider and the staff are reflective of their practice and are constantly looking at what is going well and what needs to be improved to benefit the children and their families. They place a strong emphasis on staff's well-being. As a result, staff feel well supported and the nursery is a happy place to be. This has a positive impact on children's well-being and learning outcomes.

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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 ensure that staff in the nursery room deploy themselves effectively, particularly at transition times, so that they are available to support children in their chosen activities n provide more opportunities for toddlers to hear and use number in their play to further support their understanding.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY384987 Local authority Dorset Inspection number 10375168 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 78 Number of children on roll 268 Name of registered person Scallywags Childcare Centre Limited

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reference number

Telephone number 01305813038 Date of previous inspection 29 May 2019

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Information about this early years setting

Scallywags Child Care Centre registered at its current premises in 2009. It operates from a purpose-built, single-storey premises situated in the grounds of the Wey Valley School Sports College Campus in Weymouth, Dorset. The centre is open Monday to Friday, from 7.30am to 6pm, all year round. They are in receipt of funding to provide early education for children aged two, three and four years. They also care for children over the age of eight years during school holidays. There are 30 staff who work directly with the children. Of whom, one holds early years teacher status, two hold qualified teacher status, 21 are qualified to level 3 and four are qualified to level 2.

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Inspection activities

n The manager and the deputy manager joined the inspector on a learning walk and talked about their curriculum and what they want children to learn. n The inspector carried out a joint observation of a group activity with pre-school children with the manager and the deputy manager. n Parents share their views of the setting with the inspector. n The inspector looked at relevant documentation and reviewed evidence of the suitability of staff working in the nursery. n The inspector spoke to children and staff during the inspection at appropriate times.

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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

17 December 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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