Busy Bees Day Nursery at High Wycombe

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy and settled in the nursery. They are keen and curious to explore the exciting experiences staff provide. Children seperate from their parents with ease as staff welcome and motivate them to get excited about the day ahead. They form secure attachments with dedicated staff, who know them well. Staff meet each child's individual needs and nurture their unique interests and personalities. Children behave well. They develop good social skills as they engage in opportunities to work together. For instance, children listen carefully to instructions as they learn to make dough. They wait patiently for their turn to pour the ingredients. Children are considerate of their friends, taking turns and thanking each other for passing resources. They talk to one another and share their thoughts and ideas.

Babies form close bonds with the staff who care for them. They smile and laugh as staff join in singing familiar nursery rhymes. Babies excitedly pick up toy farm animals as they recognise the words in the song. Babies make links and demonstrate their understanding of the new words they hear. Children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, make good progress. They develop the skills and knowledge they need to prepare them for their next stage in learning.

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

• The new manager has a clear vision for providing high-quality care and education. She places a strong focus on supporting staff to develop their skills and knowledge. The manager is committed to ensuring staff well-being is prioritised and recognises the impact this will have on providing the best outcomes for children.
• Staff support children's growing independence and ability to make decisions for themselves. For instance, they give babies time to choose how many pieces of banana to add to their bowls for snack. Babies have a go at wiping their own faces and hands after eating. Older children carry out small tasks, such as cleaning the tables in preparation for lunch. They fill up spray bottles for themselves and carefully wipe the surfaces. Children develop a sense of responsibility and confidence in their capabilities.
• Children relish the opportunities to listen to staff read. For instance, toddlers share book after book with staff as they pretend they are reading a bedtime story to their toy babies. They learn new vocabulary, such as 'claw' and 'paw', as they listen to a story about a tiger. Staff support children to understand the meaning of the new words they hear.
• Staff promote children's physical skills well. For instance, children develop their core strength and balance as they carefully cross wooden planks. Babies explore their environment with confidence. They develop their mobility as they crawl up slopes and move up and down steps on climbing equipment.
• Staff are attentive to the needs of babies. For example, they sensitively carry out care routines and join in as babies play with sensory materials. They show them how things work and name new objects. However, on occasions some staff do not increase these interactions by talking about what they are doing and providing further opportunities to extend babies' early communication and language skills.
• Staff teach children about the traditions and different customs of each other's families. For instance, children learn about Shrove Tuesday. They talk about the different times they have eaten pancakes before and enjoy finding out about the similarities and differences of each other's experiences.
• Staff in the pre-school room provide children with a range of experiences that support them to be prepared for school. Children focus and concentrate on the activities on offer. However, staff do not consistently organise times when children move between activities or daily routines as effectively as possible. During these transitions, some children become distracted and take time to engage in the routine.
• Parents comment on how happy they are with the care staff give to children. They feel supported to understand the progress their children make. They value the information staff share about what children are learning. Parents have access to a wide range of resources to continue their children's learning at home.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• increase support for staff to enhance their interactions with babies to support their early communication and language skills
• sharpen the organisation of routines in the pre-school room, so that children can quickly engage in the good learning experiences staff provide.