Bright Start Ramsgate

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Staff are dedicated to working closely with children and their families. They have implemented very effective settling-in procedures. This helps children to feel safe and form close relationships with the staff. Children know the daily routines and are becoming independent learners as they investigate the nursery. Staff continue to support children as they move within the nursery and on to school.

The children's behaviour is appropriate to their stage of development. They are kind to their friends. For instance, older children help each other to find their sun hats before going outside to play. Younger children pass their friends a sponge so that they can all cover their hands in paint before making handprints on the transparent surface. Staff remind children about having kind manners as the children interact with their friends and develop their social skills.

Staff offer children a multitude of experiences to develop and practise their physical skills. For example, older children confidently climb on the pirate ship before going down the slide. Staff make strong use of praise as they support younger children to jump on the trampette. The staff understand the importance of playing outside. They take the children on outings to the forest school to play and explore in the woods. Staff provide children with opportunities to take managed risks in their play as they develop their skills and muscle strength.

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

• Children and their families are at the heart of this nursery. The managers and provider have established exceptional partnerships with parents. There is a good two-way flow of communication. For instance, staff share information through children's online learning records as well as speaking with parents at drop off and collection times. Parents comment on how they value the support they receive from the staff at the nursery.
• The management team are devoted to providing high-quality opportunities for all babies and children. They understand the importance of having a well-trained staff team. For instance, all staff have completed paediatric first-aid training. There is a strong emphasis on staff's well-being and staff comment on how supported they are in their roles. The managers ensure staff are deployed effectively throughout the nursery to always keep children safe.
• Staff closely monitor children's progress. They have a clear aim for learning, based on children's next steps and interests. For example, older children develop their problem-solving skills as they work out how to free the flower petals frozen in the small blocks of ice. Younger children explore the texture of the rice as they pour it into different containers. However, on occasion, staff do not have a clear focus on how they want children to achieve the aim of the activity. This can result in children having an abundance of resources, which can restrict their engagement in the activity. Therefore, children do not always make the progress of which they are capable.
• Communication and language development are a high priority at the nursery. Staff ensure children hear a rich variety of vocabulary to strengthen their language skills. For example, staff working with babies talk to them about what they are doing as they post pasta shapes into bottles. Older children learn about what happens when they pour lemon juice onto the bicarbonate of soda. Staff skilfully introduce new words as they talk about the bicarbonate of soda dissolving in the liquid. Staff effectively use commentary and repetition to extend children's language skills.
• Staff provide children with a good range of adult-led and child-focused activities. They encourage children to engage in large dance activities to explore movement and to develop listening skills. Staff plan small-group activities to support children going through to school. For instance, children sing silly songs and identify the rhyming pictures hidden in the top hat. However, at times, staff do not make sure to minimise distractions and noise during group activities. As a result, children become distracted, lose focus, and do not fully benefit from participating in the activities.
• The managers have made good use of additional funding to support and enhance children's learning. For instance, they purchased resources for role play to help engage children in imaginative play. The special educational needs coordinator (SENCo) works very closely with parents, staff, and other professionals to ensure those with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children who speak English as an additional language receive the support they need. For example, they have implemented focused activities to help support children's concentration and social skills. This enables staff to act quickly to close any identified gaps in children's learning.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen the staff's understanding of how to focus the curriculum so that teaching has a clear impact on children's learning
• make better use of group activities to make sure children are engaged and involved.