Kiddies Kingdom Day Care

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children arrive happily at this welcoming nursery. They are greeted by the friendly team and quickly settle at activities with their friends. Children develop positive relationships with their key person and other staff in the setting. This helps them to develop a strong sense of security. Staff are positive role models. They are attentive to children's needs and offer clear communication around the nursery rules and routines. Children frequently use good manners and demonstrate kindness towards their friends. Staff recognise the importance of supporting children's emotional well-being. They offer mindfulness activities, where children can explore different ways of relaxing their bodies. Children enjoy periods of rest, where they listen to calming music before beginning their afternoon activities.

Significant improvements have been made since the last inspection. Leaders plan a curriculum that provides a secure foundation for teaching and learning. Staff work together to plan for children's individual needs. They focus children's learning on health, experiences, relationships and language. Children play happily together and demonstrate high levels of concentration.

Children enjoy exploring the outdoor environment. They discover different ways of moving through climbing equipment and practise walking along the balancing beams. Staff offer support to children that are less confident. They hold their hand as they negotiate obstacles and celebrate their achievements.

What does the early years setting do well and what does it need to do better?

• Children confidently join in with group activities and follow instructions well. They collect their coats and develop their independence as they practise putting them on. The supportive staff encourage children to pull up their zip and praise them for their excellent efforts. At snack times, children pour their own drinks and make selections from a variety of fruits.
• Staff invite children to take part in activities, where they can explore different ways of manipulating dough. Children demonstrate positive behaviour as they share dough among their friends. Staff show children how to roll and stretch their dough and use mathematical language to compare sizes. Children engage in activities for extended periods of time.
• Staff promote a communication-rich environment. They understand the ways in which children learn and ensure that they speak clearly and offer repetition of language. Children enjoy joining in with stories and rhymes. They identify characters and objects in stories and demonstrate fascination as each page in the story is revealed. However, staff do not always recognise how to extend children's vocabulary and deepen understanding fully.
• Children learn how to live healthy lifestyles. They understand the importance of hygiene and wash their hands before every meal. Staff sit with children while they eat and monitor their safety as they talk about the foods that they enjoy eating. Children take part in discussions with staff about foods that are healthy and unhealthy.
• Children's safety is prioritised in this nursery. Leaders create effective risk assessments that are frequently reviewed and updated. Staff closely monitor and engage with children while exploring the outdoor environment. They support children to use the climbing equipment safely and begin teaching them how to manage risk.
• Staff carry out effective assessments of children. They get to know children very well and work closely with parents to find out children's unique starting points. Leaders take swift action when they have concerns about a child's development. They liaise with other agencies and make necessary referrals to ensure that children receive effective learning interventions. Children make good progress from their starting points.
• Partnership with parents is strong. Parents speak highly of the team and the care and education that they provide to their children. Staff share children's individual learning targets with parents and provide weekly ideas about how they can support these at home. Parents enjoy working towards these targets with their children and feel included in their learning journey.
• Leaders are committed to driving improvement in the nursery. They invite staff to take part in regular supervision meetings. Staff speak highly of the support that they receive for their well-being. They attend regular training to enhance their professional development and discuss new learning as a team. That said, staff do not always receive individually focused targets to enhance their teaching skills further.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• enhance opportunities for children to expand their vocabulary and deepen their understanding of language
• target professional development more sharply to help staff develop their teaching skills further.