Bright Horizons Bolton Day Nursery And Preschool

Inclusion: Expected standard

Leaders and staff know their children well. This ensures children who face barriers to learning or who have special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are identified early and receive appropriate support. Leaders typically ensure support is tailored to individual needs. Overall, this means children experience an inclusive, welcoming environment. Ongoing partnerships with parents and carers is a priority. Leaders and staff share information effectively about children's needs, and parents play an active role in their children's learning journey. Families speak highly of the support and communication from leaders and staff.

Funding is used effectively. Leaders enhance provision and offer experiences that enrich early opportunities to support children to make progress. For example, staff share thoughtful rationales to ensure purchases are purposeful and add value to individual children's unique needs. Children with SEND receive the same opportunities, and leaders make enhancements to provision to ensure children's individual needs are met. For example, recent updates to classrooms include designated quiet spaces where children can support their own self-regulation throughout the day. This means children typically feel included, valued and secure in the environment. Leaders' knowledge and understanding of how best to utilise external professional support is evident. This builds trust and a shared understanding with families as they work collaboratively to achieve positive outcomes for children.

Curriculum and teaching: Expected standard

Leaders have designed a broad and balanced curriculum which is responsive to children's interests and is generally well understood by staff. Staff promote independence well, for example, children are managing age-appropriate tasks, such as handwashing, serving their own lunches and using knives and forks to eat. All children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, are well included in the curriculum offering.

Children show enjoyment as they join in with adult-led activities. For example, toddlers join staff to engage with dough while singing number rhymes. This helps children's developing numerical skills to progress. Staff working with babies prioritise supporting them to build solid foundations for the future, such as helping them develop their physical and communication skills. For example, children use their fingers to manipulate dough, while staff model language such as 'push', 'poke' and 'prod'. This helps children to develop their vocabulary and understanding alongside their play. Overall, children develop the skills they need for the next stages of their learning. However, during some activities, staff do not adapt their practice in response to children's changing interests or focus. For example, on occasion, staff focus their time on the same children. At these times, other children do not fully benefit from the high-quality teaching opportunities to extend their learning and deepen their understanding.

Achievement: Expected standard

All children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those facing barriers to learning, make appropriate progress from their starting points. Children typically receive the support they need to meet personalised milestones. This means children are well prepared for the next stage of their learning journey. Children access a range of activities across all areas of learning that spark natural curiosity. For example, older children work together during water play to fill containers and name the numbers on the containers as the water rises. They giggle excitedly as it overflows.

Throughout the nursery, children benefit from a focus on personal, social and emotional development. Children build positive relationships with staff and their peers. They learn to share and take turns which builds emotional resilience and empathy, with guidance from staff. Children show an understanding of behavioural expectations and can listen and follow instructions appropriate to their age and stage of development. For example, children use their manners, saying, 'yes please' or 'thank you' during mealtimes.

Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines: Expected standard

Leaders and staff create an inclusive environment where children typically feel safe, happy and secure. This means children play and learn together appropriately. Leaders offer flexible sessions, which help families and children, particularly those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, to settle into nursery life. Leaders are quick to identify non-attendance which supports families and children to establish a solid foundation for regular attendance as they move on to school. This regular attendance has a positive impact on children's learning and development opportunities.

Staff are positive role models who are kind and caring. They reinforce good manners and sharing which children are responsive to. For example, children pass the bowls to their friends with the support of adults as they serve their own lunch. Overall, staff understand and consider children's uniqueness and make reasonable adaptations to maintain expectations of behaviour that reflect the children's ages and stages of development. On rare occasions, inconsistencies within routines means children spend periods of time waiting as they transition between activities. This affects children's motivation levels and attitudes, which are otherwise positive and reflect a clear sense of belonging. Children have positive attitudes to learning and are keen to celebrate their achievements. For example, children sing along while making pretend current buns using dough and share their success with staff, who match their enthusiasm.

Children's welfare and wellbeing: Expected standard

Leaders and staff ensure that each child, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, feels safe and valued, reinforcing children's sense of belonging. They build trusting relationships and ask children how they are feeling. For example, children respond positively to staff, who ask them how they are feeling and give them care and support when they need it. This nurturing approach means children are typically emotionally secure, confident and settled.

Staff encourage children to wash their hands at mealtimes to begin to manage aspects of self-care, supporting independence. This promotes hygiene routines and creates a solid foundation of adopting healthy habits. Following additional training initiated by leaders, all staff are now confident to ensure children's dietary requirements are followed whilst ensuring a nutritional, balanced diet. Staff understand the importance of ensuring children are closely supervised to keep them safe. For example, staff sit with children and talk to them about their meal. Staff have secure knowledge and understanding of safe-sleeping guidance. They are confident with procedures to ensure children remain safe, such as placing babies on their backs and ensuring they are checked regularly. Staff adapt routines to ensure children's individual needs are met and align with routines at home.

Leadership and governance: Expected standard

Leaders are reflective. They strive to better improve the provision for their children, families and staff and make positive steps to adapt practice. Leaders monitor practice regularly. Overall, professional development opportunities are typically well provided for. However, leaders realise the need to continue strengthening supervision processes to provide staff with the skills and understanding to ensure consistent levels of high-quality teaching is embedded.

Leaders have a good relationship with the families they serve. This reflects their clear understanding of the local area and context they operate within. Leaders and staff know the challenges some children and families face and assist wherever possible. For example, they support families to access funding they are entitled to. Leaders embed effective key-person procedures. This ensures staff have individualised next steps in place to support children's progress across the curriculum effectively and uphold close relationships with parents and carers. Staff and families report that they feel well supported and valued by leaders.

Leaders maintain positive partnerships with other professionals, such as those who work with children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. This helps them support staff to meet children's needs for a successful transition on to school. They welcome feeder schoolteachers in to support transition for those children who are reaching the end of their journey with them, to ensure they have the best possible start to school.