Busy Bees Day Nursery at Gillingham

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy and secure in this nurturing nursery. They have built close relationships with their key person. Younger children seek out their key person when they need support. Behaviour is good. Children learn the golden rules of the nursery. They talk about 'kind hands' and know what is expected from them. For example, they know to put aprons on before messy play and remind their friends when they forget.

Leaders have recently implemented a new curriculum. They use a 'small steps' approach to plan appropriate targets as they move through the nursery. For example, younger children are supported to develop their independence by feeding themselves with a spoon, before moving to knives and forks in the pre-school rooms. These small steps help children build on what they know and can do.

Staff work hard to meet children's emotional needs when they start and leave the nursery. For example, they have created special bags to share with families when children start at the setting. They contain recording equipment for parents to record messages and songs to support their children to settle. When children are ready to leave to go to school, staff invite older children who have left and started school to return to the nursery to answer any questions they have. This careful planning helps children to be prepared for their next stage in learning.

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

• All children, including children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, make good progress in their learning. Staff assess children regularly and monitor progress closely. When they identify a child needs extra support, they make referrals to outside agencies. This ensures children get the extra help they need in a timely manner.
• Children's early mathematical skills are developing well. Staff plan activities to support them to explore different concepts. For instance, children draw around their feet and use them to compare against items in the environment. They use words such as 'bigger' and 'smaller' when comparing sizes. These experiences increase children's knowledge and understanding of basic mathematics.
• Children are developing a love of reading. They enjoy a wide range of books. Staff introduce a book of the week. They build on the learning each day by introducing props and puppets throughout the week, to extend children's understanding of the story. For example, children play with characters and they recreate the story of 'We're Going on a Bear Hunt'. In addition, children and parents borrow books from the lending library to share at home.
• Overall, staff support children's communication and language development well. Staff plan effectively for older children to develop and extend their language using different methods. For instance, they introduce a word of the week, such as 'delicious'. Staff role model how to use the word, such as when children are eating their lunch. However, staff are not always consistent in engaging younger children. This means that not all children hear new words to build their vocabulary further.
• Children are developing healthy life styles and good hygiene practices. They are offered home-cooked food at lunchtime and children know to wash their hands before eating. They get to play outdoors daily. Older children play in a well-planned environment. For example, they have a range of natural item to explore and resources to challenge their physical skills. However, planning for the outdoor learning environment is not so effective for the younger children. On occasions, children run around and are not engaged in purposeful play.
• Staff feel they are well supported by the management team and have manageable workloads. They value the regular supervisions they receive as well as the open-door policy the management adopt. Staff are provided with the opportunity to attend training to support them to improve their practice.
• Partnership with parents is good. Staff keep parents informed about their children's progress. They give regular updates on what they have been learning. Staff share ideas on how to support children at home, such as with potty training. Parents value the support they receive. They report they are very happy with the care and education their children receive.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen staff interactions to support a consistent approach in helping the youngest children develop their communication and language skills
• strengthen the curriculum planning in the outdoor environment for younger children so they are engaged in purposeful play.