Ash Green Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children flourish and have immense fun in this safe and inspiring nursery, which gives them the best possible start in life. Highly skilled leaders and staff have superior aspirations for all families and an in-depth understanding of their unique needs. All children make significant progress from their starting points on entry. This is because staff work tirelessly to remove barriers to children's learning. They place inclusion at the very heart of their first-class curriculum and care practices.

Most children transition to the local primary school's nursery when they are aged three years. They leave with the fundamental skills and foundations that support their future learning. Children are happy, inquisitive, independent and eager learners. They quickly settle and thrive on the loving greetings which they receive from staff, who they are very attached to. This helps children to develop high levels of emotional well-being. Children behave extremely well because of staff's excellent role modelling.

Babies curiously explore nursery-crafted resources, such as plastic bottles filled with different materials. They beam as staff sing songs and model how to shake the bottles. Toddlers investigate shaving foam and shiny objects with intrigue. They squeeze pom-poms into the transformed tissue box, which is something that staff have made as a result of toddlers' interest in posting objects. Two- and three-year-old children are engrossed as they mould dough into a snowman. They use craft materials to create facial features and clothing, such as a tinsel scarf.

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

• Staff meticulously plan a challenging and expansive curriculum. They diligently monitor children's progress, achievement gaps and areas of developmental delay. This leads to swift referrals, intense early support interventions, including speech and language programmes, and first-rate partnership working.
• Staff actively encourage families to access early education funding and promptly secure other early intervention and inclusion funding. This has a significant impact on the outcomes for all children, who are superbly included, including children with complex needs.
• Staff provide excellent outdoor opportunities in response to the needs of families. For example, children engage in enriching activities as part of the developing forest school initiative, which actively involves parents. Children create water rapids, weave materials through the fence, explore nature and re-enact stories.
• Staff inspire parents to support children's learning. For example, there are limitless information-sharing forums that include ideas for no-cost activities. Staff plan family activity sessions. They have recently consulted with male family members about future sessions, to increase their engagement and promote inclusive practice.
• Staff promote children's healthy lifestyles superbly. For example, they take part in award schemes and plan excellent menus. Children harvest food and take home seeds to grow peppers and herbs on their windowsills. Children receive a new toothbrush and toothpaste each term to take home. Staff make the daily toothbrushing routine fun as they sing songs and model this using visual aids.
• Staff expertly support children's communication skills. They create a language-rich environment and burst into song as children play. Staff use stories to enhance interactive multicultural displays and areas of play, and they explore sensory books with babies and toddlers. Staff inspire parents to ignite children's love of books through the lending library and 'Bookstart' programme. Staff model storytelling during family activity sessions.
• Staff carry out initial home visits to develop trusting relationships with families and gather comprehensive information to meet each child's needs. Staff create safe and cosy spaces to support children's continued emotional well-being.
• Staff prepare children for nursery school superbly. For example, they work in excellent consultation with school staff each term to devise a 'key skills' list, and they actively involve parents.
• Children have excellent opportunities to develop their large- and small-muscle strength. Toddlers pull themselves to standing using the ballet bar. Two- and three-year-old children pour drinks using small jugs, use safety scissors and chop wooden vegetables that form part of a puzzle.
• Children develop essential social skills. For example, two- and three-year-old children take turns to choose an item out of the song basket. Staff create reward charts with parents to support children through significant stages of development, such as toilet training. This helps to build children's self-esteem and confidence.
• Staff's qualifications and first-class continued mentoring, coaching and training contribute significantly to their motivating high-quality teaching. Staff receive excellent support for their well-being.
• Systems for reflecting on and improving practice are exemplary. Parents share their views through parents' evenings, consultations, surveys and 'catch the comments' forms. Their feedback is exceptionally complimentary.