Alverbridge Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children enjoy spending time in this highly stimulating environment, where staff carefully plan exciting opportunities for children to move their learning forward. Staff use the broad and carefully considered curriculum to inspire children and support their curiosity in all areas of their learning. For example, staff teach children how to safely use a range of tools to develop their woodwork skills and create something using a range of different materials. This provides a wonderful opportunity for children to manage risk and develop a range of skills that will support all other areas of learning.

Staff know every child exceptionally well and use this knowledge to build strong attachments with them. For example, skilled staff spend focused time in the nurture room with children who need extra emotional support. This provides excellent opportunities for children to begin to learn how to regulate their emotions and understand their feelings. Staff have carefully developed a 'support bag' resource library for families to borrow. These assist parents and children to find out more about different themes, including wearing hearing aids, glasses and toileting.

Behaviour is exemplary and staff praise children regularly to acknowledge this. For example, children are taught to treat resources respectfully and take turns with their friends during a tabletop game. This supports children's independence and builds self esteem and confidence.

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

• Children are taught a stimulating and varied curriculum that supports all areas of development. Staff consistently provide excellent learning opportunities that are fun and exciting for every child. For example, pre-school children learn about numbers by rolling toy cars down a wooden ramp and predicting which chalked number they will stop on when they reach the ground. This enables children to learn about number and sequencing and provides a fun way to predict what they think might happen next.
• Children make extremely fast progress in their communication and language. Staff skilfully identify children who need extra support in this area of development and engage children with fun activities during a focused session for younger children. Children thoroughly enjoy taking part in singing and using sign language, which has an extremely positive impact on their progress.
• Staff superbly support children to be confident and make their own choices, and they are involved in many of the decisions throughout the setting. For example, children vote for the snack of the week by posting a token into a pot after choosing which is their favourite. This makes each child feel valued and an important member of the group.
• The entire staff team works tirelessly to ensure that all children are given the same opportunity and no child is left behind in their learning, including those children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Staff use their superb knowledge of every child, along with excellent partnerships with parents, to support children to achieve their full potential. For example, staff are aware of local community needs, and where relevant, they have developed supportive groups for children and their families to feel part of and access advice when needed.
• The setting has an extremely strong community feel. Leaders have worked exceedingly hard to build and maintain relationships with local services, including the library, barbers and pet shop. For example, children are invited to the dentist to check their teeth and register with their parents. This provides valuable opportunities for children to develop their confidence and supports parents to make connections with local services that will benefit their families.
• Parents explain how their children are making excellent progress in all areas and how they feel fully informed in what their children are learning and their next steps. Parents value the time staff take to share information and provide support on how they can extend their children's learning at home. This means they feel very much a part of their child's education.
• Leaders are highly reflective, and planning in partnership with staff is sharp and focused. Staff feel exceptionally well supported and say how much they love working in the setting. Leaders recognise the individual strengths staff bring to the setting and utilise these to ensure excellent practice is shared across the team in order to provide an outstanding offer for all children.