Ashby Castle Day Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children enjoy their time within this exciting and enticing environment. They readily choose from the variety of activities on offer. Children are keen to be active, for example young babies are encouraged to stretch and reach for toys to build up their core muscles. Older babies are supervised as they safely crawl up slopes and down steps. Toddlers gain confidence as they jump over hurdles. Staff create additional challenge for children and place the hurdles at different heights. This supports their growing muscle strength and coordination skills.

Children are kind. They learn to care for a variety of animals within the nursery, such as rabbits and tortoises. Children listen carefully to staff who explain the rules when handling animals. To this end, children are quiet and gentle as they feed and stroke the animals.

Children are becoming confident communicators, for example older babies babble back-and-forth with staff as they talk on toy phones. Younger babies hear staff sing familiar songs and they eagerly join in the actions. Toddlers freely talk to staff during their play. Children are listened to and asked questions to extend their thinking. This helps them share ideas and develop their conversational skills.

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

• The provider has taken a positive approach in response to the last inspection. Staff have been supported to gain a robust understanding of safeguarding, including procedures to follow in the event of a concern. This ensures children are safe and secure while at nursery.
• Staff understand the impact the restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic have had upon children. They are keen to broaden children's experiences. For example, children are taken out within the local community to purchase items from shops, play at the park and visit cafés.
• Staff know their key children well. They plan appropriate next steps based on children's interests and individual needs. This ensures children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, make good progress from their starting points.
• Staff help children to understand the expectations for their behaviour. Children are reminded to share and take turns during their play. They know the routine and follow instructions from staff, for example they readily line up at the door for mealtimes. Children are learning to use manners, for example, staff say please and thank you, which babies repeat.
• Staff help children develop their small-muscle skills, for example toddlers make moon dough. Children stir the mixture carefully in a bowl. They roll it out and squeeze it in their hands to make shapes. Outside, children use felt tips to make marks on whiteboards and they colour in pictures using pencil crayons. This helps children develop the muscles they need for early writing.
• Staff support children's growing mathematical knowledge. For example, as children tip and pour water, staff use words, such as full, empty, more and less. Toddlers share that they have a yellow peg, which they have noticed matches a yellow square. Staff extend this and encourage children to match other coloured pegs to items they can find.
• Overall, children are supported to be independent. Staff help them develop key skills, such as accessing the toilet themselves. They remind children to wash hands before meals, and older toddlers wipe their face with a flannel. However, occasionally, staff can be overly helpful. Staff wipe children's nose for them when they can do it themselves. In addition, they do not allow children time to serve themselves food at mealtimes, even though children show an interest in helping.
• Leaders and managers value their staff team and care about their well-being. Staff state they feel managers are supportive and listen to them. Parents are positive about the care their children receive. They say their children have good relationships with staff and are developing their communication skills.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support staff to gain a better understanding of how to help children strengthen their independence skills during mealtimes and self-care activities.