Bright Horizons Wavendon Day Nursery and Preschool

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children feel at ease and confidently explore their play space. They have close relationships with familiar staff. For example, toddlers cuddle up to read stories with their key person. Children happily say goodbye to parents at the door and eagerly find their friends and join them in their play.

Children are eager to learn. They show a great interest in other's comments and discussions. They listen intently to their friends, waiting their turn to speak. Older children understand right from wrong and confidently support their peers to understand the impact of their actions on others. Staff act as positive role models for children. They work well as a team, showing children how to support each other, with positive use of manners throughout their work. As a result, children say please and thank you, showing a growing respect towards their friends.

Children learn to communicate through gestures and expressions, showing their preferences in their play. Babies learn to babble early conversations with staff. Toddlers eagerly extend their vocabulary while enthusiastically listening to stories. Staff use effective questions to challenge children's thinking and to share their ideas. Children confidently share these through movements, words and by using pitch and tone in their voices.

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

• Children learn to manage tasks themselves. Staff introduce children to skills that support their independence. For example, babies start to use spoons at lunchtime, with effective support from staff. Older children serve themselves at mealtimes, deciding how much they want, and talk about the foods they like and do not like.
• In pre-school, children show a strong interest in space and time. They explain the different planets and the concept of space well. Staff plan these learning activities from children's interests and experiences from home. Children eagerly share family experiences, such as trips abroad, days out to London, parties and celebrations. This helps children to appreciate each other's lives and to respect each other's cultures and faiths.
• Children learn to cooperate and negotiate with each other through their play. They listen to clear explanations as to how to share and learn from others. Staff effectively interact with babies to help them become aware of others in their play. Older children learn to share and work as a team to finish tasks together. For example, children complete complex puzzles, helping each other to solve where the pieces go, listening to each other's ideas and solutions to the problem.
• Staff are eager to improve their practice. They attend different training of their choice. They pursue their interests that link to children's well-being and mental health. They are enthusiastic to learn new practices and share these with others to provide children with continuity throughout the nursery. However, on occasions, staff do not have the confidence to evaluate the effectiveness of their own practice and they rely on more senior staff to identify this for them. Therefore, the quality of teaching is not as effective for some children when senior staff are not present.
• Children eagerly participate in an abundance of adult-led activities that are planned according to their next steps and interests. Staff provide stimulating and exciting experiences that spark children's eagerness to know more. However, children have limited opportunities and encouragement to access resources and make decisions about their play, particularly outside. This does not help children to challenge and extend their play themselves.
• Parents make positive comments about the care and development that their children receive. They feel that children are making good progress and are well prepared for school. Parents receive plenty of information about their children's day, their achievements and their next steps in their learning. Staff develop close professional relationships with parents and carers. They effectively support parents in the knowledge of how to promote children's learning at home.
• Staff gain support from other professionals to tailor personal plans and practice to meet children's differing medical and developmental needs. For example, staff complete specialist feeding training and liaise closely with other settings to promote a smooth transition for children's move to the next place in their learning.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• develop staff's confidence to evaluate their practice more effectively to help identify and consistently improve the impact their practice has on children's learning
• strengthen the opportunities for children to explore and discover through play and to use their newly acquired skills and knowledge to reinforce their learning.