Acorn Family Centre

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy and settled at this friendly nursery. They are greeted by warm and caring staff. Activities that children enjoy are provided, which helps children to settle quickly. For example, children enjoy listening to stories and staff sing songs. Children's behaviour is good. Staff kindly remind children to say 'please' and 'thank you'. This helps children to learn good manners from a young age.

Young children enthusiastically explore stimulating activities. For instance, staff prepare a tray with animals and interesting materials. Children eagerly stomp the animals through crackers and cereals, listening to the crunching sounds. Staff help to expand children's language skills as they do this. For example, staff repeat words such as 'crunch'. Children are inquisitive to feel a selection of textures and smell the scents of herb plants. They learn to use their senses to understand and explore their activities and environment.

Children demonstrate confidence when practising their physical skills. For example, they competently play on the ride-on toys. Staff teach children to do things for themselves whenever possible. For example, they help young children to wash their hands for snack and teach children to put their own coats on for outdoor play. Staff help to prepare children well for future transitions.

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

• Clear procedures are in place for the safe recruitment and vetting of staff. Staff are well qualified in their roles. They have individual discussions with the manager and attend regular team meetings. This helps to develop staff's effectiveness in working with children and helps to improve their teaching skills. Management ensure that they are always available to listen to staff. Staff well-being is of extreme importance.
• The management team is committed to continuous improvement. It reviews the quality of the provision and accurately identify priorities for development. For example, staff have reflected on snack times in the nursery and have provided a more homely environment. This helps children to feel more settled.
• Staff update their knowledge in a range of areas. For example, staff have developed their understanding of children's emotional health and well-being. They identify training that they feel will have a positive impact on the families who attend. There are plans in place to further develop staff's understanding of the way children learn.
• Staff observe and assess children's development effectively. They use children's next steps in development to plan activities to engage children. For example, staff plan music sessions from external agencies, which help to develop children's language and creativity skills. Children enjoy listening to songs and smile at the monkey and crocodile puppets. On some occasions, learning intentions when children choose to access the outdoor area are less focused on strengthening children's learning. Nonetheless, children are highly curious and enthusiastic learners overall.
• On entry, staff ask parents for a range of information about their children. This helps them to find out about individual needs and uniqueness. For example, staff gather key words for children who speak English as an additional language. Staff use a range of information to plan to meet children's individual needs from the outset.
• Parents comment that their children enjoy attending and staff know them well. They feel that staff provide a welcoming environment. Staff have recently introduced groups for the parents to attend. for example a cooking club. This helps to involve parents in their children's care and learning in the nursery.
• Children's understanding of healthy lifestyles is supported well overall. For example, they are offered healthy fresh food and access daily fresh air. Children enjoy occasional trips to supermarkets, parks and other open spaces. However, methods used to increase children's knowledge of the importance of good oral health and the care of their teeth are not yet embedded to fully support children's learning.
• Children benefit from playing with a wide range of high-quality, well-organised resources which are easily accessible to them. Staff provide children with opportunities to extend their literacy skills. For example, they encourage children to make marks on paper.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• plan and implement the curriculum more effectively, particularly when children choose to learn outdoors
• strengthen opportunities offered to help to develop children's understanding of the importance of oral health.