Bloomers Day Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Managers personally greet families on arrival. They engage with children about their day ahead and have conversations with parents. This approach helps children settle quickly and feel secure in the nursery. Children form close relationships with staff due to the friendly and caring interactions. Staff have high expectations for children's behaviour and are positive role models. Children play harmoniously together, share resources and take turns. Children are well behaved.

Managers and staff design an ambitious curriculum to meet children's needs and interests, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Children are curious and enthusiastic learners. They explore the welcoming and stimulating indoor and outdoor learning environments. For example, babies crawl and practise walking with push-along toys. Preschoolers create structures with blocks and name them 'ladder', 'fire engine' and 'tower'. Children are sociable and enjoy being creative.

Staff place a strong focus on promoting children's communication and language skills, including those who speak English as an additional language. For instance, they use sign language and learn key words in children's home languages, which contributes to their development. Children are becoming confident communicators.

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

• Managers and staff aim to help children gain independence. They provide opportunities throughout the day for children to develop their independence. Babies learn to feed themselves and drink from beakers independently. Toddlers put on their coats and scarves for outdoor play. Children develop strong independence from a young age.
• Staff have a clear understanding of their roles and responsibilities. They work in partnership with parents and professionals, including local authority teams and speech and language therapists, to support children with SEND. They implement strategies to help these children make good progress. For example, staff use visual cards to communicate with children about what is happening now and next in their daily routine.
• Early years pupil premium funding is used effectively to support children who receive it. The funding is utilised for staff training and to buy resources to meet children's needs. Consequently, all children are well prepared for their next steps in learning.
• Staff demonstrate a secure understanding of child development. They plan and implement adult-led activities that incorporate children's interests and next steps in learning. However, there are occasions when staff do not consider, for example, how to include real-life experiences to further promote children's learning. For example, children are learning about post office services and how to shop for various items. Staff have not extended children's understanding to build a sense of connection within their local community. This limits children's opportunities to experience real-life situations and broaden their understanding of the world around them.
• Staff encourage children to develop healthy lifestyles. Children enjoy nutritious home-made lunches and select from a variety of fruits during snack time. They are provided with daily opportunities for fresh air and exercise in the nursery garden. For example, they enjoy playing ball games, riding tricycles and running around. These activities help children develop their large muscles, spatial awareness and coordination.
• Overall, staff support children's speaking skills well. They use props and instruments to engage children in singing nursery rhymes and storytelling sessions. However, on occasion, staff ask children questions that do not provide them with the opportunity to engage in richer and broader conversations. For instance, staff read 'Goldilocks and the Three Bears' and ask closed questions, which do not allow children the opportunity to fully express themselves and recall what they know and understand.
• Mathematics is consistently embedded in children's activities. Staff provide play-based experiences to encourage children to expand their mathematical vocabulary. For example, children count skittles as they arrange them in a row and roll a ball toward them. Children squeal in delight as the skittles fall over. This helps build children's social skills and their understanding of early mathematical concepts.
• Parents speak positively about the care and education their children receive. They are extremely complimentary about the staff and know their child's key person. They feel valued and enjoy a range of experiences, such as Christmas lunches, coffee mornings and graduation ceremonies for children moving on to school. Parent partnerships are strong.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen the planning and implementation of adult-led activities to enrich children's learning experiences and further extend their learning
• enhance questioning techniques to give children the opportunity to fully express and recall their knowledge and understanding of what they have learned.