Bluebells Day Nursery Bebington Ltd

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Staff warmly welcome children into the nursery. Children settle quickly with a variety of activities on offer. Staff invest time getting to know children when they start. The key-person system in place is strong. All children have a secondary key person to help support their care and learning. Staff effectively role model the kind and positive behaviours they expect the children to demonstrate. In turn, children are polite, caring, and considerate of one another. Staff support all children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), extremely well. For example, when children struggle with their feelings staff use calm voices in an age-appropriate manner to settle them down. This helps children to resolve issues quickly and they learn to manage conflict. Children's behaviour is very good.

Leaders are reflective and have a clear vision of what they want children to learn. Recent changes to the curriculum are still being embedded. However, children benefit from a broad curriculum that is enhanced with experiences, such as cultural celebrations to help children learn about diversity. Therefore, children develop an understanding of life in modern Britain and are well prepared for their next stage in learning, including school.

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

• Children have opportunities for regular outdoor play and exercise. For example, staff support babies to develop their core strength through 'tummy time'. In addition, toddlers and older children develop their large muscles as they pedal trikes and learn to balance on scooters. Children make good progress in their physical development.
• Staff support children to learn about healthy lifestyle habits. For example, staff encourage toddlers to talk about healthy foods as they explore and handle fresh fruit and vegetables in the role-play area. Furthermore, staff help pre-school children to understand about good oral hygiene as they introduce activities to show how to keep teeth healthy. Consequently, children develop a good awareness of their own health and well-being.
• The curriculum for communication and language is strong. Babies thoroughly enjoy song time. They sit engrossed as staff bring out the 'song sack' and encourage babies to join in with the words and actions. Furthermore, older children talk about fireworks making a 'big bang'. Staff encourage children to extend their language by introducing new words, such as 'explosion'. Children are developing the skills required to become confident communicators.
• Staff support children to take part in local events and festivals. For example, children delight in taking their 'harvest boxes' to the local church. They learn about giving back to the local community and helping to provide food for those in need. These experiences help children to develop a sense of belonging and gain a greater understanding of their wider community.
• The provision for children with SEND is good. Leaders and staff work with parents to make timely referrals and give children the tailored support they need. In addition, any additional funding is used well to promote children's development. For example, leaders have attended specific training to support children's communication and language development. As a result, children with SEND receive good levels of support to make the progress they are capable of.
• Parent partnerships are very strong. Parents say that staff are 'kind' and 'approachable' and that their children love 'attending the nursery'. Staff provide daily updates to parents and share ideas to help extend their children's learning at home. This helps to support children's continuation in learning.
• In the main, staff support children's play and learning well. However, there are times, particularly during group sessions, when the intended curriculum is not delivered to leaders high expectations for all children. For example, some staff do not adapt their teaching quickly enough to ensure all children remain highly focused and engaged. Therefore, at times, these children become disengaged and wander off. This does not help all children to build on and maximise their learning.
• Leaders are dedicated to supporting staff's well-being. Staff value the kind and caring support they receive. As a result, staff morale is high. Leaders monitor the delivery of the curriculum and discuss the impact of this with staff. However, the individual feedback given to staff is not highly effective in supporting them to quickly improve the quality of their practice. This leads to minor inconsistencies in how some aspects of the curriculum are delivered, particularly during group activities.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• provide staff with incisive feedback on the quality of their education practice, so that they are better equipped to deliver all aspects of the intended curriculum and meets all children's learning needs.