Barn Owls Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy and feel they belong to a community of learners. They form close, trusting relationships with staff who make them feel safe and secure. Babies, young and older children play and learn alongside one another, fostering a nurturing environment. Staff support children in growing in confidence and independence. They entrust children with responsibilities and encourage mutual respect. Older children often take the initiative to guide younger children to make marks and draw colourful pictures on a large chalkboard. Their enthusiasm motivates everyone to get involved and enjoy the learning process.

Leaders have developed a curriculum encompassing all areas of learning. In the mud kitchen, for example, children use multiple skills and recall previously learned knowledge. They read and follow recipes, apply mathematics to measure ingredients, and use social skills to negotiate sharing equipment while they make 'mud pancakes'.

Children benefit from spending much of their time in the outdoor environment. They are physically active and routinely build strength and precision in the control of their bodies as they balance, climb, crawl and build throughout the day. Children behave well. They listen and follow instructions from staff. Children know the rules of the setting and know how to keep themselves safe, particularly when playing on outdoor equipment.

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

• Leaders have developed a cohesive curriculum that sequentially builds children's confidence and communication skills. Their approach focuses on preparing children with the necessary skills and knowledge for future learning and school readiness. For instance, children learn to understand that words and marks have meaning by regularly drawing and writing their own ideas. They use clipboards placed around the outdoor area to write, draw and make marks. Children create treasure maps and eagerly dig in the sandpit to look for their imaginary treasure of golden chocolate coins.
• Leaders and staff are good at supporting children's emotional well-being. They have high expectations while entrusting them with genuine responsibilities, promoting their sense of ownership. Children enjoy the task of maintaining and replenishing equipment. They use wheelbarrows to collect fresh sand for the sandpit and soil for the mud kitchen. Staff show appreciation for their contributions, and children feel valued and respected. They quickly notice when children struggle to manage and regulate their emotions. Staff take action when things do not go as children had hoped and talk about their experiences, helping children understand how their actions can make other people feel. Staff make a special effort to acknowledge when children have made the right choice and tell them what they did that was successful.
• Leaders and staff know children well. They accurately assess children's starting points and are aware of the necessary steps to support their individual development, especially for those with identified special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Staff collaborate closely with parents to communicate children's achievements and any areas of concern. In addition, they offer families resources and ideas to try at home to enhance children's learning in the nursery. Staff ask children questions. However, occasionally, these are not always effective at deepening and extending children's thinking and learning, so some children do not always know how to improve their work or creations.
• Staff model language well. They tell stories to children and engage them in imaginative play by introducing letters written by characters from stories such as 'We're going on a Bear Hunt'. Children go on adventures around the setting, recalling key language from books while encountering different scenarios. For instance, they exclaim, 'Oh no, a sandpit. We can't go around it, we'll have to go through it!' Children also sit under a tepee and enjoy stories that staff read to them throughout the day.
• Leaders and staff have developed good partnerships with parents. Staff invest in building relationships with parents and their children, developing trust and fostering a culture of inclusion to ensure that every child feels safe. Staff proactively involve parents in their child's development.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support staff to use questioning more effectively to consistently extend and deepen children's thinking and learning.