Shooting Stars Nurseries Kings Norton

Inclusion: Needs attention

Leaders can explain their clear vision for inclusion and state that they want all children to be seen and heard. However, this vision is not reflected in practice. For example, staff do not always recognise when children become upset or disengaged in their learning, nor do they respond appropriately to support them. As a result, some children do not benefit from activities or routines. However, when leaders identify this, they act promptly to help children re-engage. For example, they support children to take part in outdoor play, where they play alongside their peers, showing enjoyment and improved engagement.

Leaders have not ensured that all staff know children well enough, including children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those from disadvantaged backgrounds. For instance, not all staff are aware of which children receive targeted support. Consequently, staff do not consistently adapt their teaching or interactions to meet children's individual needs. This limits the support children receive and undermines leaders' inclusive intentions.

Leaders identify children who would benefit from additional support. They meet with parents and carers and external professionals to agree appropriate strategies, which together they monitor. Leaders secure inclusion funding and purchase resources in advance, enabling children to access support without delay. Staff report that these resources positively support children's behaviour. Parents value staff's feedback about their children's learning and experiences. They say it helps them to better understand and support their children's feelings at home.

Curriculum and teaching: Needs attention

Although leaders' intentions for the curriculum are clear and appropriate, not all children receive the same opportunities as their peers to access a broad and ambitious curriculum. This leads to children's experiences being variable. Staff do not consistently adapt routines to reflect children's interests. For example, snack time takes precedence over some children's needs, despite the clear distress the rigid routine causes them. This does not promote children's emotional wellbeing.

Some staff who work directly with children do not have secure knowledge of child development or what children already know and can do. As a result, teaching is not always well planned or appropriately matched to children's stages of development. For instance, some mathematical activities focus on counting skills that children are not yet developmentally ready for. This limits children's success and engagement.

The baby room is a strength of the setting. All staff understand what babies need to learn and how to support their early development. For example, staff support babies to roll cars along tracks while modelling simple words to promote early language development. Children engage well with books and activities that intentionally support their language and physical development, such as singing songs that have actions.

Achievement: Needs attention

Not all children are prepared for their next stage of learning because staff do not consistently implement the curriculum well. For example, some children are seen walking around aimlessly without focus or purposeful interaction. When children walk around upset or lie on the floor crying because staff have not responded to their needs or preferences, this directly affects the progress they can make. Children become anxious, which does not help them to engage in the activities on offer. There are some staff who do not know children well enough to support them effectively, and, therefore, teaching is not always tailored effectively to children's stages of development. For example, there are some children who have limited language. However, staff encourage these children to say complex words before they have securely developed basic words and sounds. This negatively impacts children's communication development.

Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines: Needs attention

Leaders do not do enough to enhance the quality of teaching so that every child is supported to remain highly engaged in their learning. For instance, staff do not always identify those children who are wandering around, nor do they respond effectively to promote their engagement. When staff notice children who appear unsettled, they hold out their hands to offer comfort. However, when children walk away, staff turn around and continue to engage with the other children. This shows that they do not always adapt their responses to meet children's emotional needs. This can impact children's positive sense of belonging and their relationships with staff. Leaders do identify children who are not fully engaged or who appear upset, and they intervene promptly. As a result, children are later seen to be more settled and engaged.

Staff are not always flexible in adapting routines to support children's individual interests. For example, when children show a clear desire to go outdoors alongside their peers, staff do not support children to make this possible. This results in children becoming upset. Leaders identify that staff do not always engage children well during changes in routine. They are working to strengthen practice in this area.

Leaders ensure that parents and carers are aware of the available funding and support them with funding applications. They work closely with parents and the local authority to overcome funding barriers. This helps to promote children's attendance.

Children's welfare and wellbeing: Needs attention

Leaders do not have sufficient oversight of how staff support children's welfare and wellbeing. Consequently, some staff do not respond appropriately or adapt routines to meet children's individual needs. For example, when children say they need to use the toilet, some staff tell them that they have just been and delay their opportunity to go. Although they eventually allow children to go, the challenge causes children distress. Staff do not always identify children who are upset. However, leaders are quick to identify those children who are unsettled and respond swiftly to meet their emotional needs.

Where practice is stronger, staff meet children's needs well. For example, when babies become tired, staff respond promptly by offering them comfort. Children learn to independently pour their own drinks, and staff support them to take turns with their peers. Children say 'my turn' when their peers have finished, demonstrating their understanding. Staff praise children by saying 'good job', acknowledging their efforts. This positively supports children's emotional wellbeing and sense of achievement. Children enjoy engaging socially at mealtimes, including babies who sit at the table together with staff who supervise them accordingly. This helps to keep babies safe. Children sing a song when using the stairs, which helps them to remember to hold the handrail. This helps to promote children's safety and independence.

Leadership and governance: Urgent improvement

Breaches of requirements have a significant impact on children's safety and wellbeing. Although leaders demonstrate a reflective and responsive approach and show a willingness to improve, weaknesses in current practices and procedures place children at risk of harm. For example, leaders do not follow essential safeguarding procedures when children make safeguarding disclosures. They do not always make referrals to the appropriate agencies to safeguard children. Furthermore, leaders do not maintain clear safeguarding records that show actions taken or decisions made. Leaders have not ensured that all staff, including agency staff, can clearly explain the procedures for reporting safeguarding concerns or the actions they should take if leaders do not respond appropriately. These breaches place children at ongoing risk of harm.

Leaders have not ensured that staff consistently identify or respond to children's needs, such as when children become upset or disengaged in their learning. Staff do not yet adapt routines sufficiently to meet all children's interests, wellbeing and learning needs. For older children, the curriculum is not well sequenced or delivered in a way that ensures they build securely on prior learning. Additionally, not all staff know children well enough, including those children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. This has a negative impact on children's learning that is not always planned well and is, at times, incidental.

Leaders recognise that staffing pressures affect the smooth running of the setting. They hold regular staff meetings with staff to discuss practice and provide staff with some training opportunities. Parents and carers speak positively about the setting and the support staff provide to their children, including the interventions in place to support children's behaviour. For example, staff have introduced a mini figure for children to care for. This helps to promote children's independence and provides them with a sense of responsibility and ownership.