Busy Bees Day Nursery at Birmingham Dartmouth Circus

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are very happy and settle well at this warm and welcoming nursery. They demonstrate that they feel valued, safe and secure. Children develop high levels of confidence and self-esteem. They are eager to play and learn. Children develop strong language skills and communicate well with adults and their friends.

Children benefit from a wide range of exciting experiences. They enjoy activities that are tailored to their current likes and interests. Older children learn about cause and effect as they free their favourite superheroes from blocks of ice. They recognise that their warm hands will melt the ice and squeal with delight as the superheroes are released.

Younger children enjoy sensory materials. The children learn new words, such as 'rough, smooth' and 'squashy', as they explore a variety of materials. Children of all ages make marks with various media, including pencils, paint and chalk. This helps them to develop the skills they need for early writing. Children learn to take turns. They play card games and participate in other activities, where they patiently wait for their turn. However, children do not always receive consistent support from staff to know what is expected of them regarding the rules and boundaries in place at nursery.

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

• Leaders have developed a strong educational programme. The manager is clear about what children in each age group need to learn and how to support children with special education needs and/or disabilities. Staff plan around children's likes and interests, which helps to engage children in learning. Overall, children make good progress, and some children are exceeding expected levels. However, leaders do not monitor children's learning at the highest level. At times, staff do not identify or focus their teaching accurately enough on what individual children need to learn next, to support more rapid progress.
• Staff receive good support from leaders. The manager provides regular supervision for staff to consider their training needs and develop their practice. Staff attend separate well-being meetings with the manager. She ensures that they are supported and that they have a manageable workload and feel well. Staff are happy in their roles and morale is high. This contributes to the overall relaxed and friendly atmosphere throughout the nursery.
• Parent partnership is very strong. Staff work in close partnership with parents to promote children's learning and continuity in care. Various strategies are in place to inform and support parents, such as newsletters, online applications, activities to complete at home and daily conversations at the nursery door. Parents are extremely happy with the care provided.
• Staff place a high focus on children's health and well-being. For example, daily yoga sessions help children to relax, rest and develop their physical skills. Children benefit from plenty of fresh air and exercise in the outdoor area. The dedicated nursery chef provides a range of healthy and nutritious meals and snacks.
• Children receive good support to develop their literacy and communication skills. Staff regularly share stories with children in groups or individually. Children enjoy moving their bodies and singing along to action songs and nursery rhymes. Staff consistently talk to children, ask them questions and engage them in conversations. Staff working with the youngest children skilfully model and repeat words to encourage early language development.
• Staff promote children's personal, social and emotional development well. Children form close bonds with staff and their peers. Younger children show their affection by seeking out familiar staff for cuddles and one-to-one activities. Staff provide plenty of reassurance and praise for children to build their self-esteem. Children are developing independence. For example, they tidy away toys, set the tables for lunch and collect their own meals.
• Children behave well. They are polite and well mannered. However, not all staff follow a consistent approach to support children to follow the rules and boundaries in place at nursery. For example, some staff remind children to use 'walking feet' inside while other staff ignore children who run. This means children do not always understand or learn what is expected of them.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• monitor children's learning more precisely and support staff to identify and focus more accurately on what individual children need to learn next
• provide support for staff to develop a consistent approach to helping children understand what is expected of them.