Fledglings Nursery & Preschool

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision requires improvement Children show that they feel safe and secure in this well-organised and exciting environment. Babies receive nurturing cuddles from staff when they become tired.

Children benefit from an ambitious curriculum that focuses on embedding new knowledge. However, a weakness in leadership and management has meant that Ofsted has not been informed of all company directors.Children are eager to engage in activities that are appropriate for their age and stage of development.

Babies smile with delight as they immerse their hands in paint and discover making marks on different surfaces. Staff introduce younger children to mathematic...al concepts, such as floating and sinking. Children work out, through trial and error, how to soak a sponge in water and immerse it in the deep tray so it will sink.

Staff foster children's love of books. They read with great enthusiasm, which captures children's attention. Older children demonstrate a good understanding of the content of stories.

They learn about the importance of keeping safe while using the internet at home.Staff are positive role models. They provide children with gentle reminders about the consequences of their behaviour, such as flicking water.

This influences children to be respectful towards each other. Older children are beginning to regulate their own behaviour. Children develop a deep understanding of the natural world through regular walks in the extensive grounds surrounding the setting.

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

The provider has failed to respond to requests from Ofsted for information about all directors. This means that suitability checks have not been completed by Ofsted to ensure that every individual is suitable for their role. However, they do not have unsupervised contact with children or sole responsibility in making decisions that affect children's well-being.

Staff implement a rich and varied curriculum that is well sequenced and supports children to build on what they already know and can do. Staff regularly assess children's knowledge and adapt activities to make them increasingly challenging over time. All children make good progress.

Overall, children's communication and language are supported well. Babies listen intently to the songs that staff sing, the words that they model, and stories that are read to them. However, staff do not leave gaps during their interactions with babies to embrace opportunities for them to practise their emerging language skills.

Nonetheless, younger children are confident communicators. They choose which songs they would like to sing and respond to staff's questions. Older children use complex sentences to share previous experiences with visitors, such as a visit to the zoo, and learn the meaning of new words, such as 'valuable'.

Staff work in partnership with parents. There is a strong two-way flow of information. Staff embrace the information they receive from parents about their children's experiences and interests out of the setting.

Staff expertly weave these throughout their planning to help children embed and build on new knowledge and skills. For example, following some children's experiences of going on holiday abroad, staff have transformed the role-play area into an airport. This stimulates children's imagination as they pretend to be an airline operative.

Staff share ideas for how parents can support their children's learning at home. Parents are keen to provide feedback about the setting. They appreciate how staff consider the individual needs of their children.

Parents describe the staff team as 'nurturing', and feel that their children are well cared for in a safe environment.Most children develop their independence skills that support them to be ready to manage their own personal needs in readiness for school. For example, older children confidently use a knife and fork to cut up the nutritious meals they enjoy.

However, staff do not consistently support all children to be independent individuals, such as managing their own outer clothing or wiping their nose.Children behave well. Staff sensitively support babies to take turns with musical instruments.

Class rules are shared every morning to support children's awareness of the importance of positive behaviour.Staff ensure that children benefit from maximum time outdoors in the fresh air to support their overall well-being and develop good physical skills. Babies build the core strength in their legs to prepare them for walking as they pull themselves up on sturdy equipment.

Older children assess their own risks and grow in confidence as they climb and balance on raised platforms.The manager and deputy manager are committed to supporting their staff team. They regularly observe staff skills and undertake supervision meetings with staff to support them in their role.

Staff training needs are prioritised. New knowledge and skills obtained from training are shared with the whole team to support a consistent approach.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

There is an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts children's interests first.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To meet the requirements of the early years foundation stage and Childcare Register the provider must: Due date ensure that Ofsted is provided with the necessary information to enable suitability checks to be carried out for all directors.01/07/2024 To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: support staff to develop their interactions that enhance opportunities for babies to practise their early language skills guide staff to encourage children to do more for themselves to further develop their independence.