Cheeky Monkeys Preschool

Cheeky Monkeys Preschool

Unique reference number (URN): 2809711 Address: Bethel Christian fellowship hall, Church street, Witham, Essex, CM8 2JP Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises Registered with Ofsted: 21/01/2025 Registers: EYR Registered person: Brannan, Jacqueline

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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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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

Children learn to play cooperatively with their peers. Staff typically model the positive behaviours they expect of children. For example, staff praise children's acts of kindness they display to their peers. Staff remind children to wait their turn to go down the slide. This supports children's ability to understand and respect the needs of others. It also helps them to foster important friendship-making skills in preparation for starting school, such as negotiating turn-taking independently.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

Training that leaders provide ensures staff understand the importance of helping children to establish daily routines promptly. Staff consistently provide familiar daily routines which can help promote attendance. For example, children feel safe and secure in new environments as they begin to predict familiar routines expected of them.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Expected standard

Staff offer increased support and guidance when new children start to help them establish routines. For example, staff sensitively use Makaton to help them to understand important handwashing routines needed before eating. Children build positive relationships with staff who guide them through the whole routine and sing little handwashing songs to help them remember the process. This helps all children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, to develop some independence in self-care routines. However, at times, staff do things children are capable of such as taking their coats off for them. This reduces children's opportunities to become increasingly independent.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard

Leadership of children's welfare and wellbeing is very successful. Leaders gather information from parents and carers and any other external professionals working with the children or families before they start. This ensures leaders and staff provide high quality, safe and inclusive care for all children.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard

Generally, staff demonstrate their awareness of individual children's care needs. For example, staff provide children likely to try and eat non-food items, such as grass and dirt, with appropriate and additional support to reduce this happening. This maintains the safety and wellbeing of children, particularly those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), or any other barriers to their learning or wellbeing. Staff sit with children at mealtimes and remind them to slow down when eating to avoid choking. This demonstrates how staff support children to manage risks themselves. Staff recognise they could do more to help children practise their self-care routines outdoors, such as providing tissues for them to wipe their nose themselves when needed.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Expected standard

Children's key persons typically build positive relationships with families and regularly share information about children's development. Parents report how children are excited to attend. Parents of children with SEND express their appreciation for regular reviews and their input into children's support plans. They feel they assist them in supporting their children further at

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Needs attention

home. Children form close bonds with fun-loving staff, often initiating cuddles when they need reassurance.

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Achievement Needs attention

Due to weaknesses in the curriculum and teaching, children including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, are not making consistent progress in all areas of learning. For example, the quality of the interactions children receive from staff at the start are reduced by the lack of knowledge some staff have of new children's starting points. Consequently, the individual progress children are making is affected when staff do not consistently plan and implement learning experiences to help children build on what they already know and can do.

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Achievement Needs attention

Children develop their concentration skills as they enjoy one-to-one time with staff to help them when they progress to school. They enjoy learning with their peers in a safe and supportive environment. For example, staff are nearby to ensure children's safety as they develop their scissor skills. After gentle modelling by staff, children receive space and time to practise new skills without fear of judgement. Children show confidence in using mathematical vocabulary when counting numbers and naming shapes they see in their environments.

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Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

A new curriculum has been created since the last inspection. There are inconsistencies in how staff are teaching the curriculum. For example, staff do not use the numerous opportunities that arise to help children whose next steps is to expand on their descriptive vocabulary. This limits the progress children are making in their communication and language development.

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Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

Staff use their knowledge of children's previous experiences away from the setting to plan and sequence activities to diversify and close gaps in their learning. For example, the current topic of life cycles and growing broadens children's understanding of the natural world around them. However, leaders do not ensure staff consistently have the knowledge of children's individual starting points. This does not help staff to focus their teaching and interactions on what individual children need to learn next. This delays the progress some children make.

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Curriculum and teaching Needs attention

Children learn to follow staff's instructions as they scoop soil into their pots to grow herbs from seed. This helps them for when they progress to school. Children show they are beginning to develop empathy and compassion for living things. For example, they ask staff if they can water the seeds to help them grow. Children benefit from one-to-one teaching when they are in the setting's allotment. This ensures all children, including those who may have barriers to their learning, receive the attention and guidance they need to succeed in this area of learning.

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Inclusion Needs attention

Leaders gather in-depth information about children from parents and carers and other settings children go to or have previously attended. However, there are inconsistencies in how leaders share this information successfully and swiftly enough with children's key persons. Consequently, staff do not always recognise how they can plan and help build on what individual children already know and can do from the start. This impacts on the progress that some children make, including those who may face barriers to their learning. Staff do plan some learning opportunities around children's individual interests and stages of development.

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Inclusion Needs attention

Leaders are working closely and effectively with children, parents and external professionals, such as health visitors, when decision-making about extra support for children. Leaders support parents to access any appropriate funding available to them. Additionally, they seek their views on how funding for eligible children is spent. For example, leaders use funding enhance staff ratio. This means children with special educational needs and/or disabilities have appropriate support to promote their wellbeing and personal achievements.

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Inclusion Needs attention

Leaders and staff work closely with parents to support and maintain children's attendance. For example, leaders are flexible and will adapt sessions they offer where possible to best support changing needs of the children and families.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

Leaders recognise that with recent changes to the curriculum and leadership roles, staff need more support and training. Leaders are committed to providing staff with this support. For instance, personal development days are already planned for next month. At present, supervision meetings are not thorough enough to give staff specific and constructive feedback on their practice and teaching. Consequently, staff do not identify the weaknesses in their practice to help them improve their teaching.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

Parents and carers express that the communication at the setting is effective, particularly for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. They appreciate how leaders ensure meetings to discuss their children's progress are convenient with them and always go ahead. Parents explain how regular assessments of their children's progress helps them to further support children's learning at home.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

Occasionally, leaders do not share information with staff about their new key children swiftly enough. This is particularly apparent when unforeseen circumstances mean staff have not met parents before children start. Consequently, staff do not always plan precise and well- sequenced next steps to help all children achieve and progress right from the start.

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Leadership and governance Needs attention

Staff feel highly valued in their role and report high levels of wellbeing. They welcome mentoring and feedback on their practice, to improve the quality of their teaching and help children make attainable progress of which they are capable.

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

Since the last inspection, leaders have sought input from staff and the local authority to design a new curriculum that encompasses all areas of learning. However, leaders do not always ensure that all staff are confident in delivering and implementing it continuously well. Children do benefit from some planned activities and experiences, generally based around topics that are overall interesting and enticing for children. However, weaknesses in staff teaching and interactions means children are not consistently making the continual progress they are capable of.

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

Resources are high quality and inclusive. Leaders are dedicated to improving outcomes for children. They have recently created and introduced learning tools. These tools aim to help staff to plan precise and well-sequenced next steps for children, to help them to build on what they already know and can do. However, their actions that have been taken are at an early stage and are not yet having a consistent impact on children's learning and development.

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

Children benefit from their welfare and wellbeing being consistently prioritised. Information gathered from parents and carers ensures that any extra support children need are provided, such as one-to-one support from staff. This means all children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, have their care needs met from the start enabling them to flourish. Children benefit significantly from plenty of outdoor play. They can run, jump and balance, learning to control their bodies movements while exploring an extensive range of resources.

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

Children feel a sense of belonging and feel safe and secure at the setting. They show excitement and pride when they spot a photo of themselves on their place mat at mealtimes. Children develop their independence skills and staff understand how to promote this. Staff gently guide new children through important daily routines, such as handwashing. Children establish positive hygiene routines swiftly. This can impact greatly on children's attendance, reducing time off due to illnesses caused by poor hygiene routines.

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Next steps

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

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Address:

Bethel Christian fellowship hall Church street Witham Essex CM8 2JP

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Address:

Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises

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Action Completion Date

ensure all staff understand and implement a curriculum that clearly identifies the intentions for individual children's learning, so all children are offered appropriately engaging activities and experiences from the start 26/06/2026

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Action Completion Date

improve the effectiveness of staff supervision sessions to ensure they have a clearer understanding of their roles and responsibilities and receive training, support and coaching to improve their personal effectiveness 12/06/2026

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About this inspection

The inspector spoke with leaders, staff, the special educational needs and/or disabilities coordinator, parents and carers and children during the inspection.

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About this inspection

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. Register(s): EYR

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About this inspection

Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 09:00 - 14:45

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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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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

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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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