Brooklands Childcare Ltd

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy and curious in this homely and nurturing nursery. Babies are content and develop secure relationships with their key person from the start. As a result, they confidently explore, giggle and babble during play. Staff know the children well and use their interests to spark play ideas. Children enjoy the wide range of experiences on offer to them. They particularly enjoy accessing the 'tinker table' and the 'cosy room'. Children create their own games and stories using peculiar items from past and present. This sparks their imagination and extends their awareness of traditions and cultures. Furthermore, opportunities to support their communication and language are broadened. Children's language is well supported through staff's use of new vocabulary and comments on children's play. Older children hold interesting conversations and express themselves freely.

Children know how to adhere to expected behaviours and they follow instructions throughout the day. This helps to keep the environment and the daily routines calm. Children learn to be independent from an early age. Toddlers use their own cutlery and take their wellies and coats off when coming in from outside. Older children serve their own lunch and sign in on a written register. Furthermore, children pour their own drinks and have a go at wiping their own nose. They know the importance of washing their hands after using a tissue and before mealtimes.

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

• Leaders identify a range of training opportunities to help staff support children's individual needs, such as safe sleeping and speech and language assessment. However, some aspects of staff's skills and knowledge have not been evaluated effectively during the induction and supervision process. This means some staff have not fully embedded their new learning into practice to help them operate at the highest level.
• In the main, children engage well with the broad range of activities and resources on offer. Although the skilled staff use effective teaching methods during play, they occasionally lower the levels of ambition for children's development. This sometimes means that children do not get the most out of their intended learning. Their thinking is not always challenged and they look for somewhere else to play.
• Parents are happy with the care and education their children receive at the nursery. They know who they can talk to for support or to share information regarding their child's needs and interests. However, some parents have not been supported to understand how to continue their child's learning at home to encourage even further development. However, parents appreciate the daily feedback and updates they receive about their child's day at nursery.
• Leaders work in close collaboration with a range of external professionals such as health visitors and teachers from local schools. This helps them share information about children who may need additional support in nursery to help them continue to make progress. Furthermore, it helps staff prepare children for their move to primary education.
• The nursery curriculum is planned to help children build on skills throughout their nursery journey. For example, babies are supported to build core strength as they become mobile. Toddlers are then encouraged to gain upper body strength. In turn, pre-school children work on their hand and finger muscles, which helps them prepare for writing. This sequential learning means children are able to control a range of equipment with a purpose. They create careful marks and drawings. Children are proud to show their work to staff and the inspector.
• Children love to explore the ever-evolving outdoor area. They learn how to play safely as they negotiate equipment and cook soup over the fire. Children collect bugs as they build a wormery. They are confident on their feet and climb over and under obstacles. Children learn how to manage risk and they develop strength in their bodies.
• Mathematics is supported throughout nursery. Toddlers collect rainwater in buckets to see which get the fullest. Additionally, they pour and compare water from teapots. Older children are exposed to measuring equipment such as rulers to see who has the longest worm. This helps to develop their understanding of mathematical context.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• implement more robust induction and supervision systems that help monitor the effectiveness of training on staff's knowledge and skills
• embed higher levels of ambition for children's development in all experiences they engage with to help them get the most out of their learning
• find more effective ways to help all parents know how to continue their child's learning at home.