Little Cubs Academy Honor Oak

Little Cubs Academy Honor Oak

Unique reference number (URN): 2574630 Address: 25-27 Boveney Road, London, SE23 3NP Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises Registered with Ofsted: 13/01/2020 Registers: EYR Registered person: Little Cubs Academy Ltd

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Safeguarding standards met

The safeguarding standards are met. This means that leaders and/or those responsible for governance and oversight fulfil their specific responsibilities and have established an open culture in which safeguarding is everyone's responsibility and concerns are actively identified, acted upon and managed. As a result, children are made safer and feel safe.

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How we evaluate safeguarding

When we inspect settings for safeguarding, they can have the following outcomes:

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How we evaluate safeguarding

Met: The setting has an open and positive culture of safeguarding. Not met: The setting has not created an open and positive culture of safeguarding. Not all legal requirements are met.

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Achievement Expected standard

Children enjoy meaningful learning and enjoy their time at the setting. The youngest children sit with huge smiles as they eat with their peers. They develop their small-muscles skills and their hand–eye coordination. Staff are next to them to safely develop this skill. Generally, all children demonstrate how to show kindness to their friends. For example, children like to sing songs and share resources as they play fishing games together in the outdoor water tray. Older children manage their self-care skills, such as dressing themselves. This promotes their physical skills in preparation for school.

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Achievement Expected standard

All children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, learn within environments that have fun resources that support their interests. Young and toddler-age children joyfully manipulate sand. For example, some children squeeze dry sand and push it through their fingers. They learn about the texture of sensory materials. Older children enthusiastically learn how plants grow. They talk about which plants require watering. Children learn some early mathematical skills as they compare the size of the growing plants. Children are able to access learning that builds on interests and what they need to learn next. Generally, all children make steady progress from their starting points.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard

Leader ensure care practices are reviewed regularly and implemented well. They put children's welfare and wellbeing at the centre of their curriculum. The key-person system works effectively and leaders ensure staff working closely with children with special educational needs and/or disabilities know them well. Staff typically respond quickly to all children's individual care needs and support their care routines well. For example, they adapt feeding and weaning practices sufficiently to each child's stage of development.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard

Leaders and staff support healthy eating. They help children to learn about healthy food choices and the importance of washing their hands before they eat. It is clear that staff place an importance on supervising children when they eat to ensure they are safe. All children delight in mealtimes and some of the youngest children attempt to feed themselves. This benefits children's health, including their self-care and hygiene practices.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard

Children's sleep routines are adapted in line with parents' and carers' wishes and children's needs. This supports children's long-term health and physical growth. In the main, children are thriving in this setting.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Generally, the curriculum ensures children receive high-quality learning. Staff understand what the youngest children in the baby rooms to the oldest children in the pre-school need to learn next. They find out about children by interacting and observing them. The information gathered by staff ensures they enrich the curriculum with experiences that spark children's interests. This enables children to move steadily through the curriculum. In the baby rooms, children move freely around the environments, accessing learning that meets their individual needs well. Staff take pleasure in reading books that the children show an interest in. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities receive learning that is adapted, when needed, to meet their changing needs. Children in the toddler room, sculpt, press and shape play dough as they learn about minibeasts.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Leaders have developed a structured approach to physical development. They work with specialist coaches to guide the sessions in collaboration with staff. This approach ensures all children develop their small- and large-muscle abilities appropriately.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Leaders have initiated links with local schools to help children prepare for school. For example, they have invited teachers from the local school to visit the setting. Staff teach children early mathematical skills. For example, they sing number rhymes and talk about sizes of objects. However, leaders have not considered how to improve the curriculum further in mathematics. This does not consistently enhance children's knowledge of early mathematical concepts.

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Inclusion Expected standard

Leaders and staff provide a caring and learning environment, where all children develop well. Leaders understand the importance of identifying children's needs quickly. This helps them to put appropriate interventions in place to enhance the support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). For example, some children with SEND need support to work with their peers, staff have used vehicles to encourage children to learn together as it is a shared interest. Leaders understand how to use early years pupil premium. They would work in collaboration with parents and carers. They reflect together on the learning needs of children to ensure resources support children's learning and development further.

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Inclusion Expected standard

Typically, staff who work with children who have barriers to their learning, including children with SEND, participate in training provided by the external agencies, such as the local authority. This helps staff to have sufficient understanding of how to develop effective and targeted learning experiences for the children. Leaders also ensure key persons, who support young children who are settling into the setting, have time to get to know them. They listen to parents to get a deeper understanding of their children. In the main, this demonstrates that staff value children's individual learning journeys.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

The setting has had some recent significant changes, such as a new leadership team is in place. Leaders demonstrate motivation to continue to create an ambitious rich curriculum. They are aware of the setting's strengths and its weaknesses. Leaders have taken some action to improve. For example, there is an action plan that includes training to address the weaknesses around staff practices to support children's understanding of positive behaviour. Training in this area has begun, but some staff do not have the skills yet to support children's positive attitudes to learning further. Leaders are working with staff. This weakness is evident in the pre-school room and it is not throughout the setting. However, it has an impact on some children's listening and social skills.

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Needs attention

Leaders value the staff team and work closely with them. Leaders meet staff in a timely way to complete coaching and mentoring with them. Overall, leaders are developing the staff team. They receive knowledge to carry out their roles and responsibilities sufficiently. Leaders ensure staff complete training to support better learning outcomes for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Staff who work predominately in the baby rooms complete specific training. This supports staff to develop the skills they need to support the youngest children. All staff complete mandatory training, such as paediatric first aid. Leaders give staff induction and ongoing training to benefit children's safety, health and wellbeing.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Needs attention

Leaders have put some behaviour strategies in place, such as a 'zen den' and an area for children to 'stomp' with the intention of enabling children to express some of their feelings. However, staff do not use the strategies well. They do not support older children sufficiently to understand the setting's expectations for their behaviour appropriately. At times, children display unwanted behaviours, such as throwing cushions during story time and walking over books. Staff alongside them do not intervene to help them learn how to regulate their emotions and support a more engaging and focused attitude to learning. This is seen primarily with the oldest children and does not help them to develop the skills to support their transition to school or other settings. Staff do not teach children about how some behaviours have a poor impact on themselves and their peers.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Needs attention

Staff encourage all children, including those with special educational needs and or disabilities, to age appropriately follow instructions. They show calmness and offer praise as they gently ensure all children have opportunities to benefit from the learning on offer. For example, there is a programme of physical education that is part of the established routine of the setting. Older children take on the responsibility of being monitors. They clean and set the tables for lunch in the pre-school room. They demonstrate their growing self-assurance and build their confidence too. Leaders take pride in building professional partnerships with parents and carers. They have effective approaches in place to promote and monitor children's attendance and punctuality.

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What it's like to be a child at this setting

Children, specifically the older-age children in the setting, are not well supported by staff to manage their behaviour well. This means that leaders and staff limit children's ability to regulate their emotions and promote children's positive attitudes to learning at all times.

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What it's like to be a child at this setting

Children are happy and settle well in this welcoming setting. Staff greet them at the door, helping them to settle for the day. Children are familiar with the routine. They greet their peers then begin to engage in their learning. Babies explore sensory material with excitement as staff interact with them. Younger children enjoy using large tweezers as they take part in activities to develop their creativity. Children benefit from an engaging curriculum that encourages them to be curious.

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What it's like to be a child at this setting

Children typically achieve well and make steady progress through their learning. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities receive effective support. This is because ongoing observation and assessment help staff to plan experiences that build on children's starting points. Generally, children develop well from their individual starting points. Children benefit and gain from staff knowing and following their interests. Experiences are planned to extend children's understanding and to ignite new interests.

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What it's like to be a child at this setting

All children receive sensitive and gentle interactions with hugs and reassurance if they become upset. Staff respond sensitively to children's needs. Children have supportive relationships with key persons, who ensure all children feel confident and safe. Children receive encouragement from staff to actively join in with everyday experiences, such as singing, rhymes and stories using props and actions. Babies enjoy listening to staff sing songs to them. They move their bodies rhythmically and smile. Most story time sessions support children's communication and language skills.

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Next steps

To meet the requirements of the Early years foundation stage the provider must take the following action by the assigned date:

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Action Completion Date

provide training and guidance to help staff to implement appropriate and consistent behaviour management strategies to help children regulate their behaviour 01/07/2026

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About this inspection

The inspector spoke with leaders, staff and parents and carers during the inspection.

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Address:

Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises

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Address:

Registered person: Little Cubs Academy Ltd

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Address:

Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 08:00 - 18:00

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Facts and figures used on inspection

This data was available to the inspector at the time of the inspection.

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0 to 4

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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Exceptional

Practice is exceptional: of the highest standard nationally. Other settings can learn from it.

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Strong standard

The setting reaches a strong standard. Leaders are working above the standard expected of them.

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Expected standard

The setting is fulfilling the expected standard of education and/or care. This means they are following the standard set out in statutory and non ‑ statutory legislation and the professional standards expected of them.

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Needs attention

The expected standards are not met but leaders are likely able to make the necessary improvements.

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Urgent improvement

The setting needs to make urgent improvements to provide the expected standard of education and/or care.

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Urgent improvement

services providing education and skills for children and learners of all ages, and inspects and regulates services that care for children and young people.

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Urgent improvement

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Urgent improvement

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Urgent improvement

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

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