Bright Future Nursery Harehills

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children and their families are welcomed into nursery by kind, caring and friendly staff. Children show they feel safe here and they come into the nursery enthusiastically. Staff prepare the rooms with activities and resources that capture children's interests. Older children develop their understanding of the world and learn about their community. Staff teach children about 'people who help us', and children enjoy visits to the fire station and the local museum. Children develop their creative skills and use a range of resources to create cards for the local hospital. Toddlers show high levels of focus and concentration as they use glue with feathers to create pictures. Staff who work with babies focus on their physical development. Babies show delight as staff help them to use musical toys to support their hand- and-eye coordination.

Although the nursery opened after the COVID-19 pandemic, staff are aware of the impact this has had on some children's personal, social and emotional development. This is a strong area of the curriculum. Staff are good role models for children. They model good manners consistently and provide specific praise to help build children's self-confidence and resilience. Parents speak very highly of the team. They say, 'The care and development my child receives is exceptional. We feel our child is safe and are confident that our child is well looked after.'

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

• Staff provide a balanced and exciting curriculum for children. They focus on building secure foundations for children's future learning and prepare them to move on to school. Leaders and managers carefully consider how they can spend extra funding to provide children with a broad range of experiences. This has helped to close gaps in children's personal, social and emotional development.
• Staff demonstrate a good understanding of children's typical and expected stages of development. They identify areas of potential delay in children's learning and make referrals swiftly. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are supported effectively. There are specific plans in place for them to make good progress, and staff maintain good partnerships with other professionals.
• Overall, staff focus on helping children to develop their communication and language skills. Staff provide a narrative, and some are very clear in modelling actions and new words for children to copy. Staff show an awareness of children's needs, specifically those who speak more than one language. They know how to support their understanding using visual prompts and help their families with any paperwork tasks.
• However, on occasion, some staff speak too quickly and model incorrect language and letter sounds. For example, some children do not have enough time to process questions and to respond to them. Staff who work with younger children ask them if they want the 'choo choo' and do not model the correct name for the train. Despite this being an area of focus for staff's teaching, they have not yet accessed training to develop their skills.
• The arrangements to help children settle in are effective. Babies show they feel safe and are very settled. Staff are very calm and caring. They know the children extremely well and respond to their needs. Babies seek reassurance and are soothed quickly by staff. They enjoy cuddles while they have their bottle and fall asleep while staff sing to them. Older children show good levels of self-esteem and self-confidence. They have close relationships with staff.
• Staff say they feel valued and supported here. Managers provide effective supervision and ensure they promote staff's positive mental health and well-being. The nursery owner and manager are very dedicated to providing good standards of care and education for children. They inspire staff to provide children with the best start in life.
• Partnerships with parents are very positive. The nursery team provides a lot of support for families and there is a strong sense of community here. The nursery owner and manager ensure the whole family is cared for. They attend meetings with families to support them with application forms and run a food bank to help with the cost of living crisis.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• provide staff with training to help them consistently support children's communication and language development
• continue to enhance the outdoor environment in order for babies to engage in purposeful learning.