Dinos Nursery and Preschool

Dinos Nursery and Preschool

Unique reference number (URN): 2804102 Address: The Underwood, 83 Underwood Lane, Crewe, CW1 3JT Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises Registered with Ofsted: 19/08/2024 Registers: EYR, CCR, VCR Registered person: Dinos Nursery and Preschool Limited

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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 Strong standard

Children's attendance is high. Leaders work closely with parents to emphasise the importance of attending regularly. This ongoing focus on punctuality is successful because children are seldom absent. As a result, their learning is continual and uninterrupted, enabling them to make steady progress across all areas of development. This consistency helps to strengthen their confidence, independence and readiness for the next stage of education.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

Children know what is expected of them due to the reassuring familiarity of well-established routines and daily procedures. For instance, children line up in anticipation of outdoor play. They cooperatively help to put toys away after activities. Children are mature, cooperative and helpful because they understand clear boundaries and expectations.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

Staff are consistent across the nursery in their exemplary behaviour management strategies. For instance, staff use pictorial timetables and traffic light cards to help children understand what is happening now and next. Children's behaviour is continually harmonious.

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Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines Strong standard

Children benefit from an abundance of opportunities to be social and form lasting friendships. Children seek out their special friends to join in their games. For instance, children giggle as they collectively explore lights and materials in the dedicated sensory room.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard

Children thrive in their emotional wellbeing because they benefit from trusting relationships with superbly kind, nurturing and empathetic staff. There is a strikingly calm atmosphere in the setting, reinforced by the gentle and relaxed staff team. Children benefit greatly from these positive relationships and the tranquil environment, as they are settled, happy and confident to explore and engage in learning.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard

Leaders ensure that children's welfare and safety are central to all decisions they make. Staff reflect this cautious approach to welfare. For example, they implement risk assessments with rigour and diligence to protect children from possible harm, ensuring that children can play and learn safely.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard

Mealtimes are a sophisticated and social occasion. Tablecloths, fresh flowers and menus help create a relaxing, home-from-home atmosphere, which encourages children to eat at a leisurely pace, enjoy mealtimes and develop positive social and conversational skills. Children and staff sit together, chatting about their weekend plans, which further supports children's language development and confidence. Children have wonderful appetites and enjoy their food, contributing to their excellent physical health and wellbeing.

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Children's welfare and wellbeing Strong standard

Staff have completed safer sleep training, and resting children are closely monitored to ensure their ongoing welfare. Gentle music plays to create a sense of serenity during sleep

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Expected standard

times. Children wake rested and ready to play and learn. Routines are flexible and adapted where necessary to meet children's individual needs. For example, children with special educational needs and/or disabilities are allowed to choose when to join in, supporting their emotional wellbeing, self-esteem and confidence.

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Inclusion Strong standard

When necessary, staff take decisive action to adapt and refine their teaching to help children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) to learn better. Highly successful strategies, such as adapted resources and targeted support from specialist professionals, help to ensure that each and every child thrives emotionally and developmentally.

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Inclusion Strong standard

Leaders and staff are ambitious for all pupils and show determination that every child receives the support they need to succeed. They pro-actively and tenaciously advocate for families with wider agencies to ensure that children in their care receive the specialist expertise they deserve. Leaders take great pride in treating all children as special and unique individuals. This is a truly inclusive setting, where all children have the very best start in their lives.

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Inclusion Strong standard

Staff identify the needs of children with SEND quickly and accurately. They make frequent observations of children's progress through well-established assessment systems. These help staff to have an exemplary understanding children's individual needs and how best to help them.

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Achievement Expected standard

Children make steady progress across the curriculum, particularly in communication and language. They develop early literacy skills through meaningful, engaging experiences, such as writing shopping lists in the role-play area and recognising their names on lunchtime placemats. They make marks and begin to understand that print carries meaning, building a secure foundation for later reading and writing. Children show curiosity and understanding of the world through hands-on learning, for example caring for caterpillars and observing eggs to hatch into chicks, which develops knowledge of life cycles and living things.

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Achievement Expected standard

Babies and younger children make steady progress in physical development, exploring climbing equipment to strengthen core muscles and practise balance and coordination. Older children develop fine motor skills through cutting and building activities. Children gain confidence in using technology, supporting early digital skills and readiness for life in modern Britain.

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Achievement Expected standard

Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, those who are disadvantaged or facing other barriers, are supported through inclusive practice and close partnership with parents and professionals, ensuring that they make meaningful progress from their starting points and are well prepared for the next stage of learning, including school.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

The curriculum builds in complexity over time to ensure that children experience appropriate and increasing challenge. Leaders have created a high-quality, well-designed curriculum. Learning is carefully sequenced, taking account of assessment and tracking records, to ensure that children build and develop their knowledge. Children are well prepared for the next stage of their learning. Key skills, including physical and social skills, are mastered, alongside personal attributes, such as independence and confidence.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Teaching prioritises children's speech and language skills. Staff are well trained and consistently model language. For example, they often introduce new vocabulary during play to extend children's understanding. Books are read aloud in an animated and engaging way, immersing children in language during story sessions. Children are captivated as staff use different voices to depict book characters' personalities. Children speak with increasing fluency and confidence, supported by excellent teaching in this area of the curriculum. Furthermore, children benefit from a dedicated library space, which has been carefully designed to nurture a love of storytelling and early literacy skills in a calm language-focused environment.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Staff regularly observe children and track their progress. They use this professional assessment to celebrate children's achievements and address any gaps in skills promptly. Assessment systems are simple and effective.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Overall, children make progress from their starting points, and, in some areas, such as speech and language, they achieve rapidly. However, staff are less confident in extending and enhancing children's mathematical skills. As a result, children do not always benefit from sufficient challenge to achieve the highest level of development in this area.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

Leaders are aspirational and demonstrate an unwavering commitment to offer families a high-quality service. They regularly meet to discuss and reflect upon the successes of recent activities and practice. They have a secure oversight and know what they do well. An extremely detailed action plan, which is updated frequently, helps to drive timely and ongoing improvements.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

Staff have immediate access to a wealth of training and development courses through an online professional development system. They access training to extend their skills, such as recent training on safer sleep and behaviour management. However, training opportunities are not always targeted to narrow gaps in staff's practice or knowledge.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

Partnerships with parents are well established. Parents receive daily updates, via convenient online communication methods, about their children's experiences and progress. Well-attended 'stay and play' sessions offer opportunities for parents to come into the nursery, fostering positive relationships with home. A newsletter is published each month, providing timely updates about nursery business. Parents comment that they feel part of a 'big family', and children benefit greatly from this open and regular communication between the nursery and home.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

Leaders have a good oversight of children's progress. They monitor the quality of teaching to assure themselves that standards are consistent.

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Compulsory Childcare Register requirements

This setting has met the requirements of the compulsory part of the Childcare Register.

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Register

When we check if settings meet the Compulsory Childcare Register requirements, they can have the following outcomes:

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Voluntary Childcare Register requirements

This setting has met the requirements of the voluntary part of Childcare Register.

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Register

When we check if settings meet the Voluntary Childcare Register requirements, they can have the following outcomes:

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

This is a tranquil and calm nursery where staff carefully and considerately meet children's needs through attentive and responsive interactions. Children's interests are understood and consistently incorporated into the programme of play. They frequently giggle and show enjoyment as they explore freely, engage in imaginative play and demonstrate confidence, curiosity and a strong sense of belonging. Staff support children to make independent choices, fostering decision-making, resilience and sustained engagement in their learning. Children are inspired to investigate and explore breathtaking activities, designed to ignite their curiosity and spark a sense of awe and wonder about the world around them.

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

Staff invest time in planning and preparing purposeful activities that sustain children's concentration and focus. Resources and games are thoughtfully presented to encourage exploration and discovery, helping children to develop problem-solving skills, creativity and critical thinking. Children settle quickly and immediately engage with activities.

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

Children benefit from daily opportunities for fresh air and exercise. A carefully designed timetable ensures that each age group has safe, uninterrupted access to the outdoor space, supporting the development of coordination, balance and gross motor skills. Children confidently negotiate space, take appropriate risks and practise physical skills through structured and self-directed activities.

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

The curriculum is further enhanced by regular visitors and hands-on experiences, such as recent fire brigade and farm visits, which enrich children's knowledge of the wider world and help make learning memorable. Children are highly motivated and engaged because the experiences are relevant, purposeful and enjoyable. As a result, children make steady progress across all areas of learning. They develop essential life skills, confidence and independence, alongside secure foundations in communication and language. The purposeful environment, skilful interactions and carefully sequenced curriculum ensure that children are well prepared for the next stage of their education.

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Next steps

Leaders should further support staff to strengthen the implementation of the mathematics curriculum, ensuring that a broad range of learning experiences consistently extend children's counting and numeracy skills to the highest level through play. Leaders should ensure that professional learning opportunities are precisely matched to gaps in staff's knowledge to raise skills and confidence in areas of less assured practice.

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About this inspection

The inspector spoke with leaders, parents, staff 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

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Address:

The Underwood 83 Underwood Lane Crewe CW1 3JT

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Address:

Type: Childcare on non-domestic premises

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Address:

Registered person: Dinos Nursery and Preschool Limited

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Address:

Operating hours: Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday,Friday : 07:30 - 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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1 to 4

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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