345 Pages Lane

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are warmly welcomed into this homely and nurturing nursery. Staff know the children well and greet them with affection and care. Children have a sense of belonging. The routine is set out clearly, and they know exactly what they need to do. Staff support children in their choice of where to play, and children get busy straight away. The environment has been designed and planned extremely well and with the children in mind. It is exciting, organised and reflects children's interests.

Staff have a clear vision for the day and know what they want children to learn. They are excellent role models for communication and language. They settle children with ease and engage in conversation, speaking clearly and using a broad vocabulary. Children are confident communicators; they share information about their home life and holidays with the staff and their friends. They cannot wait to tell them important things and share what they are thinking about.

Staff are highly skilled at engaging children in their play. They guide children's own ideas and use strategies that scaffold learning and extend their understanding in all areas of the nursery. In the role-play area, staff help children's imagination and language flourish. As they arrive at nursery, staff guide them to find their special name card and help them make marks to represent it. The way the staff support children's mathematical development is embedded into every part of the curriculum. Children are encouraged to count insects accurately and find the right numeral to represent the amount.

Relationships are strong, and children make secure bonds. Staff have high expectations of children's behaviour and continuously promote positive attitudes, mutual respect and kindness. Children show compassion towards one another. They express their feelings, showing excitement when friends arrive. Children help each other and are consistently kind. When collecting a magnifying glass for themselves, they get one for their friend.

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

• Staff consistently foster independence, and children respond well to this. They follow instructions and select resources that are needed to continue their play and use their own ideas. Children are confident. They do things for themselves and are ready for the next stage of education. They show such pride in their achievements, and staff enjoy watching children and praising them as they overcome challenges and succeed.
• Children are making excellent progress, and they thrive in this calm nursery. They are listened to and feel valued and safe. Children have the freedom to explore and benefit from sessions of uninterrupted play and high-quality staff
• Inspection report: 345 Pages Lane 25 April 2024 2 interactions. Staff give the children plenty of opportunity to make choices and decide what they would like to do. At song time, children sit together and all join in. They demonstrate excellent listening and attention skills as they sing favourite songs that are written by staff and enjoy choosing song stones from the basket.
• Children have well developed gross motor skills, and their physical development is a priority. Children are busy and active all day. They navigate climbing equipment with ease and enjoy jumping through tyres and balancing on stepping stones. The outdoor area is carefully planned and resourced. Funding is used well to ensure that this area is effective, and children are making the most of their time outside.
• Staff know children well. Children have a personalised induction and a settling-in process, which enables them to have clear starting points and enables staff to build on what children already know. Where children have special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), staff implement strategies and champion the children to get extra support. They work closely with other professionals and ensure that all children make progress and have the best possible outcomes. This is a real strength.
• Learning is exciting. Children experience a broad and diverse curriculum. This supports children's attitudes towards learning. They demonstrate high levels of concentration and motivation to learn. Children maintain attention and are so eager to find out more. They spend long periods of time in the garden, investigating under logs to see what insects they can find. Children use magnifying glasses to spot a centipede and look at its legs. They learn new facts and vocabulary and, in the moment, say they have found the 'longest' worm.
• Parents speak so highly of this nursery and the staff team. They are delighted with how well their children settle and the amount of progress they make. They feel informed about their children's learning and development and know what they are working on and how they can support them at home. Parents receive regular feedback and communication about their children's day. Staff share children's achievements and offer advice and support for parents, children and the whole family.
• Managers are passionate and lead the nursery with integrity, ensuring that all children in their care access quality early years experiences. They are ambitious in their vision and want all children to thrive and be ready for what comes next. Managers focus on giving children the skills and confidence to manage situations, express themselves and understand how to keep themselves safe. They are always reflecting on their practice in staff meetings and supervision sessions and discussing individual children, in order to meet their needs.
• Staff are well supported by their managers and benefit from focused training and professional development to enhance their skills. For example, staff recently trained in using Makaton to support children's language development, particularly for those who speak English as an additional language. Other staff completed woodwork training to enhance the curriculum even further and provide exciting opportunities for children to use real tools and manage risky play.
• Inspection report: 345 Pages Lane 25 April 2024 3