Bright Horizons Farnham Day Nursery And Preschool

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Management and staff have high expectations of themselves and of children, and they provide an extremely welcoming environment. Children arrive at the nursery and excitedly greet staff, eagerly sharing any news. Staff encourage children to elaborate on this and take a keen interest in what they share. Throughout the building, there are vibrant displays showing pictures of what children do and how these activities link into the nursery's ethos. Management strives to provide an environment where children can feel safe, nurtured, flourish and confidently express themselves. New initiatives are continually being implemented to help raise parents' and carers' awareness of how to build on this away from the nursery.

The high-quality curriculum that staff carefully plan and deliver incorporates children's individual interests and identified learning goals. This has a great impact on all children and the excellent progress they make. Staff in all rooms are excellent role models, and children display exemplary behaviour. When children display unwanted or challenging behaviour, which is rare, staff sensitively address this with gentle reminders and distraction techniques.

Staff working with the youngest children start the process of helping children become curious and inquisitive, so they feel comfortable to try new things. Babies confidently explore shakers and different textured materials. Staff motivate them to start moving by placing these just out of reach. As children progress through the nursery, staff continually build on these skills, encouraging children to explore, experiment and test out ideas. As such, they become highly motivated learners. Toddlers experiment in sand, soil and water, seeing how they change as things are added, and they use tools to uncover hidden 'bones'. Pre-school children confidently express their knowledge and ideas to staff, who then extend on these to challenge children's thinking. For example, children explore ideas about aeroplanes and then make complex folds to create their own unique paper plane. They help to create a ruler on the floor and predict how far each plane will fly, considering whether they will fly further if flown outside.

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

• The management team and staff are highly reflective. They are dedicated to helping children grow into well-rounded individuals who are respectful and eager to learn. Staff make the curriculum ambitious and exciting for children, who they know exceptionally well. They incorporate this knowledge during their skilful interventions to challenge children's learning and thinking skills even further. All children are incredibly well prepared for the next stage in their learning.
• Management rigorously monitors staff's practice and welfare. Managers have an extremely clear understanding of staff's strengths and where they may need support. They identify precise areas for improvement and have measures in place to achieve these. Staff's comments are valued and have led to a number of resources and activities being implemented to ensure their well-being.
• Management and staff are quick to identify emerging gaps in children's learning and development. They work exceptionally hard to address these, secure timely interventions and seek targeted support for individual children, including children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). They work closely with parents, schools and other professionals to ensure that all children receive the interactions they need to maximise their progress.
• There are incredibly strong partnerships with parents. They share that they feel extremely well supported and safe in leaving their children. Parents share how staff go above and beyond to ensure that any parent or carer can be included in their children's learning or special events. They share how they appreciate the various communication methods used and how they can access a range of resources and activities to continue their children's learning at home.
• Right from their initial entry into nursery, staff encourage children to persevere in tasks and develop their independence. For example, once staff have ensured they only have access to food they are able to safely have, older children take responsibility for their snacks and meals. Older children can make food, such as pizza, from scratch in their own child-sized kitchen. Toddlers help with plates and sharing of snacks, and babies are encouraged to try to feed themselves.
• Management and staff identify training that will support their practice or address identified areas for improvement. For example, after a food incident, all staff underwent training to reinforce processes around dietary needs and allergies. These are now consistently and rigorously applied to keep children safe.
• Children develop an excellent awareness of healthy lifestyles. They enjoy a wide variety of well-balanced meals and snacks that are all cooked on site. These cater for children's dietary needs and incorporate cultural festivities. Children learn about healthy practices, such as cleaning their teeth, why they need to drink water and how sleep and exercise help their bodies. Children eagerly share how long you should brush your teeth for and a song to help you do this.
• All children learn how to respect their community and the natural world. They talk about their nature walks and their trips out in the locality. Children eagerly show visitors their chickens and explain how they care for them and why they must use kind hands when they are feeding or interacting with them.