Squiggles Day Care & Activity Club

Ofsted rating for Squiggles Day Care & Activity Club

Last inspected 14 November 2024

What it's like to attend

• Children build strong bonds with their key person and enjoy their time at this friendly, family-run nursery.
• Staff know all the children and show genuine interest in them; on arrival, children quickly find interesting activities and confidently explore.
• New children settle well with the staff's caring and attentive support.
• Staff ensure that areas are safe, security procedures are implemented, and children are closely supervised.
• Staff form the curriculum from their observations of children, recognising their achievements and outlining what children need to learn next.
• Children are motivated successfully by age-appropriate experiences, including exploring coloured spaghetti and building confidence with different materials.
• Leaders work with staff to adapt areas to the needs of the children, swapping age groups and adding indoor equipment for physical development.
• Staff develop children's knowledge of the world through local community trips, teaching them about people who can help and exploring differences between themselves and others.
• Children's care needs are appropriately supported, with staff assisting toddlers with potty training and helping children change after water play.
• Children learn to take turns with toys and develop responsibility through tidy-up routines.
• Staff join children in imaginative play, weaving in useful discussion and learning, encouraging thinking about risk and safety.
• Children gain confidence and skills to express themselves, with staff encouraging conversations and clear speech to help them learn new words.
• Staff have good relationships with parents; leaders improve information sharing with a new online communication app and regular meetings.
• Leaders conduct regular staff meetings, maintaining high morale and supporting training and qualifications.
• The arrangements for safeguarding are effective, with an open and positive culture.
• Parents appreciate the nursery's new online communication app.
• The setting provides government funded places.
• The nursery operates from 7.30am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, all year round.

• 1Occasionally, staff are not successful in helping older children to manage their emotions and learn to interact appropriately with their friends, cooperating effectively.
• 2Not all adult-led activities and routines in the younger age groups are thoroughly planned and implemented. At times, staff do not minimise distractions for their focused group times and ensure that daily routines are well-coordinated to fully support children's attention, engagement and learning.
• 3Leaders do not ensure that senior staff have the confidence to lead the newer and less experienced staff in their team. This leads to inconsistencies in the teaching and support children receive.