Barking Riverside Nursery School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children flourish at this welcoming nursery. They arrive with big smiles, eager to start their day. Children are greeted warmly by familiar staff. They receive lots of attention throughout the day. This helps them to feel secure and settled. Children play happily indoors and outdoors. They thoroughly enjoy their time at the nursery. Older children learn to respect and care for the natural environment during outdoor activities. This includes growing food and learning about sustainable energy at a nearby community 'food forest'. Toddlers experience a variety of social situations on local outings, such as to a café. Afterwards they are keen to extend their learning, by cooking some of the foods they have seen.

Staff aspire for all children to be successful learners. The environment and resources are carefully planned, to promote children's natural curiosity and eagerness to learn. Babies use their senses to explore the colours and textures of collage materials. They develop their own ideas as they arrange them creatively. Children are motivated and keen to join in. Older children eagerly enjoy simple science experiments. They display a good range of skills and knowledge as they count, pour and recognise colours. Children confidently predict what might happen if they add milk or water to coloured sweets. They speak articulately about the sweets becoming smaller as the colours 'melt' and create 'rainbows'.

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

• The nursery has a strong leadership team. Leaders constantly reflect on the provision, to provide high-quality care and learning. Staff say that they 'love their work'. They feel well supported by leaders and say there is a great sense of teamwork. Staff describe excellent access to training. They speak confidently about how they use what they have learned. For instance, staff have found additional ways to foster babies' resilience, to help them become confident and independent learners.
• Leaders and staff create a broad and ambitious curriculum, to prepare children for school and for life within wider society. Staff quickly identify where children require support to make good progress. They work closely with parents to develop focused plans and seek support from other professionals when needed. The provider uses additional funding to help children access the full curriculum. This early intervention helps all children make good progress from their starting points. This includes children who have special educational needs and/or disabilities and children who speak English as an additional language.
• Staff support children well, overall, with the skills they need for the next stages in their learning. They encourage children to lead their own play and to become independent with their personal care. Staff plan a good range of activities and the quality of education is good. However, sometimes staff do not consistently support children's communication and language skills to their highest level. For instance, they occasionally use sentences which are too long and complex or do not explain the purpose of activities clearly to children.
• Children's behaviour is very good. They listen to adults and learn to follow instructions and routines. Children begin to understand the 'golden rules' of the nursery. They play happily alongside each other and older children develop good friendships. Where children struggle to control their emotions, staff help them to develop useful techniques, such as controlled breathing. They share these strategies with parents, to provide consistency for children.
• There is a strong focus on supporting healthy lifestyles for children. This includes admirable support for children's mental well-being. For example, children of all ages take part in yoga and sessions to promote mindfulness and relaxation. Children develop good strength and fitness from vigorous exercise, in the nursery garden and on outings to nearby green spaces. The nursery provides healthy meals, and staff encourage children to make positive choices about food.
• Partnerships with parents are extremely effective. Parents comment on the exemplary support for children's learning. This includes schemes which allow children to take home books and activities to share with their parents. Parents describe the 'brilliant communication'. They say staff maintained regular contact with families when the nursery closed during the COVID-19 pandemic. This sustained the close and caring bonds between staff and children.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• extend opportunities for children to develop their communication and language skills to their highest level.