All Children Great And Small

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children thoroughly enjoy their time in this setting. They relish learning in the outdoor provision. For example, children develop their coordination and muscle control when they join in with den building, making potions and exploring the woodland. Children feel safe and well cared for. For instance, they learn to keep themselves safe in the woodland area that they play and learn in. They show high levels of curiosity and engagement. Children are offered purposeful and rich experiences. The setting has strong links with the community. For example, children attend weekly sessions at the local library. These are designed to develop children's communication and language skills and to encourage parents to use this facility to support their child. Staff listen to children's interests and plan exciting learning opportunities. For instance, children took part in an 'act of kindness activity' where local businesses received gifts made by the children.

Staff form strong links with parents. They gather information from parents as part of children's inductions and share information through handovers and an online system. Managers and staff use this information as well as carefully observing and rigorously tracking children's progress to plan exciting environments. Staff continually review the impact these have on children's independent learning. For example, children are encouraged to develop their oral hygiene by taking part in activities such as singing songs and practising brushing teeth.

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

• Staff know their key children well. They have strong induction procedures to help children settle smoothly into the nursery's routines. Staff gather detailed information from parents to ensure that they know children's individual interests and needs, to plan for their future learning. Staff provide a range of activities to engage and support children. For instance, when children showed an interest in farming, the local farmer visited the setting, allowing the children to explore a tractor.
• Staff support children to develop strong communication skills. They ask children thought-provoking questions and provide opportunities for children to develop their language. For example, children describe what the different plants in the outdoor area look like.
• Staff support children to develop a strong understanding of healthy lifestyles effectively. This includes discussions and activities focused on oral hygiene. Children eat healthy lunches and are able to identify types of healthy foods. For instance, they make pretend meals and, when pretending to brush their teeth, they name vegetables that are healthy for their teeth.
• The manager and deputy manager take an extremely active role in the setting. They support staff very well indeed. Staff speak enthusiastically about the managers and are dedicated to their roles. They have participated in a wide range of training to further update their already excellent skills and knowledge. For example, following recent training on questioning, staff have refined the ways in which they interact with children. This has been particularly effective in developing children's problem-solving skills.
• Parents fully recommend the setting and hold it in high esteem. They comment on the regular communication that they receive about their children's progress. Parents comment that they find the weekly update outlining what their children have been learning about and how they can support their children at home very useful. They found these activities especially useful when some children could not attend due to the COVID-19 restrictions.
• Children make strong progress in their physical development and are challenged physically. They are encouraged to take risks, which they manage effectively as a result of the resources that are available and staff's strong modelling. For example, children swing on and climb trees. They climb and crawl on apparatus, including tunnels and swings. Children enjoy being outdoors in all weathers.
• Literacy development is a strength at the nursery. Staff have thought carefully about the range of books that children have access to. For example, due to the effect of the COVID-19 restrictions, staff read stories about feelings and emotions and how to manage these. Children are able to identify a range of feelings and emotions. They have high levels of engagement and their behaviour is exemplary.