Busy Bees Day Nursery at Leicester Meridian Park

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are warmly welcomed into the nursery on arrival by the nurturing and caring staff team. Children quickly settle into their chosen activity. Those children who need more support to settle in are reassured sensitively by the staff. This allows these children the appropriate time to join in with activities once they feel ready to do so. Staff provide a good range of attractively presented activities and new experiences for all children. Children eagerly explore the activities with enthusiasm. Staff plan most activities carefully. They take into consideration what children are interested in or what they have experienced with their family. For example, children show an interest in space. They explore resources and talk with staff about the moon and the stars as they sit in a pretend space rocket.

Children develop a secure understanding of how to keep safe when playing with resources and equipment. Toddlers learn to balance carefully as they skilfully manoeuvre themselves across an obstacle course. They know to hold their arms out to help them balance when walking on planks. Children behave well. Staff are good role models and help children to learn how to manage their feelings safely. Older children resolve their own minor disputes and play cooperatively. Children respect the toys and their environment. They help to tidy away the activities and help staff to prepare the tables ready for mealtimes.

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

• There have been staff and management changes in the nursery recently. Despite this, the management team has thorough support systems in place to provide guidance for those staff in their new roles. The new manager is ambitious and enthusiastic in her role. She has a clear vision of how she wants her staff team to continue to deliver an ambitious curriculum to support children's ongoing development.
• Children develop a love of books. Older babies point out animals in a book they look at with staff. They say 'dog' and make the noise of a dog. Toddlers enjoy spending time with staff as they look at a familiar book together. Children tell the staff what will happen next in the story. Older children listen carefully to stories being read by the staff. Staff talk to children about the title of the book and encourage the children to guess what the story could be about. Children confidently engage in conversations about the characters in the story.
• Staff know what they want their key children to learn. Overall, staff plan activities well. They help children to develop the necessary skills for their future learning and build on what they already know and can do. However, sometimes, activities are not planned precisely enough to ensure all learning intentions are fulfilled. Sometimes, the learning intent is lost so children do not learn as much as they can.
• Staff repeat words and sounds and use hand gestures with babies to help them to babble, start to make sounds and use actions. Toddlers learn the names of fresh vegetables. Staff repeat the names of the vegetables clearly, such as 'tomato' and 'courgette'. Most of the older children are articulate. However, sometimes, during planned activities, staff allow the more-confident children to dominate the activity. They do not encourage the quieter and less-confident children to engage in conversation. This means that on occasions, these children do not build on their communication and language development further.
• Parents' comments about the nursery and staff team are very positive. They highly value the skills of the staff and how staff support their children's development. Parents comment that during the COVID-19 pandemic, communication from the staff was extremely effective and well maintained. Staff kept them up to date with play ideas and support for them to continue their child's learning at home.
• Secure attachments are in place between the children and staff. Children are happy and settled. Babies demonstrate their security as they practise their walking skills. Toddlers confidently bring pretend food to visitors and happily receive cuddles from staff. Older children excitedly engage in conversations with visitors and talk about their favourite superheroes and spiders.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support staff to ensure that the precise learning intention for purposely planned activities is not lost so that children learn as much as they can
• help staff to identify when to engage more with quieter and less-confident children so they receive the same level of positive communication and language support as their more confident and articulate peers.