Care Inspectorate gives Les Enfants Nursery in Sir Walter Scott Drive in Inshes in Inverness mixed report following a recent unannounced inspection

An Inverness nursery has received a mixed report following a recent unannounced inspection by the Care Inspectorate.

Les Enfants Nursery, in Sir Walter Scott Drive in Inshes, was visited in August and the results have since been published.

The service was assessed in a total of four areas – quality of care and support, quality of staffing, quality of management and leadership and quality of environment. The first three were all rated as adequate with the latter found to be good.

In terms of quality of care and support inspectors observed some strengths, but these were outweighed by a number of weaknesses.

The report stated: “Children experienced warm, caring, and nurturing interactions from staff who supported their care needs. They offered comfort and cuddles when needed, which gave them reassurance.”

However it also said that recorded information was not always used effectively by staff to ensure consistency and continuity in care routines, adding: “For example, suggested support strategies from parents were not always implemented.

“Staff lacked awareness on the effective use of chronologies. As a result, significant information and changes relating to children’s wellbeing was not always recorded or acted on.”

Snack and mealtime opportunities were also reviewed and the report stated: “One room provided a relaxed nurturing experience which supported the needs of all children.

“However, this was not consistent, some mealtime experiences were disorganised and delivered in a task driven manner.”

While the report outlined no requirements it did suggest two recommendations for this area: the first was to ensure each child received appropriate care and support and their needs were met and the second was that the provider and manager should review the lunch time experience to promote opportunities for developing language and communication skills.

In terms of quality of staffing inspectors again found strengths were outweighed by weaknesses.

The report stated: “We saw that play and learning opportunities were not always being maximised to ensure children’s individual development needs were effectively supported.”

There were two recommendations including that staff were effectively deployed to ensure there were enough available to meet children’s needs and that staff were supported to develop their skills and knowledge of child development.

In the area of quality of management and leadership the report stated: “The registered manager was responsible for two large day care of children services. As a result, there was insufficient time for the manager to effectively lead and manage the service.

“We asked the provider to review the management arrangements to ensure good, high-quality experiences for children.”

Inspectors have recommended that, to ensure positive outcomes for the children using the service, the provider should ensure the manager has sufficient time allocated to undertake the role effectively.

There were some areas for improvement in the quality of the environment and the report said: “There had been significant investment in the nursery building to ensure the environment reflected best practice guidance. The playrooms were decorated in neutral colours, which promoted a natural and calm environment.”

However it judged the toddler room to have a clinical feel to it, lacking stimulation.

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