Busy Bees Day Nursery at Quedgeley

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Staff provide a warm and nurturing welcome as children arrive. Children who may feel a little unsure are comforted with gentle reassurance and cuddles, helping them to settle quickly. Staff are attentive and respond swiftly to children's needs. This supports their emotional well-being effectively. They encourage children to explore and talk about their feelings. Staff guide them to begin to understand their emotions. For example, children state that playing with friends makes them feel happy and beam with a smile in response. Staff validate their response which boosts their self-esteem.

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

• The strong leadership team places importance on supporting staff with their well-being and enhancing their professional development through modelling practice and accessing a wide range of training opportunities. Staff speak highly about working in the setting and feel a valued part of the team. This creates a positive and happy working environment that benefits children.
• Staff establish routines and boundaries, which children follow with increasing independence. For example, children confidently manage their hygiene routines, such as washing their hands before meals. However, some transitional routines are not always managed as consistently, particularly at mealtimes. On occasion, staff are not fully clear about what is happening next. As a result, some children lose focus and engagement as they are unsure of the expectations.
• Children develop a secure understanding of healthy lifestyles. Staff consistently encourage daily physical activity and support children to recognise how the food they eat impacts their bodies. For example, during mealtimes, staff engage children in discussions about the vegetables they enjoy and explain how these provide the energy needed to ride bikes and play actively in the garden.
• Leaders and staff work together with parents and other professionals to support children's learning and development. They act quickly when they identify any developmental delays, ensuring that children receive the right support at the earliest opportunity. Staff are proactive while waiting for external referrals and swiftly implement tailored strategies. As a result, children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) gain confidence to develop new skills and make progress in their learning and development.
• Parents speak positively of the care their children receive. Staff share vital information through daily handovers and through an online app, offering ways to continue children's learning at home. For example, extending children's knowledge of changes in autumn. Staff share ideas, such as going on autumnal walks to collect leaves to bring into nursery. This provides a collaborative approach to children's learning, both in the setting and at home.
• Staff support children's learning across the seven areas, placing an emphasis on developing communication and language skills. Children enjoy singing songs and engaging in conversations with staff, which helps to build their vocabulary and confidence. However, at times, some staff are not always precise in the language they use when describing animals or responding to children. For example, they occasionally use informal words, such as 'piggy wiggy' for pig or 'ta' for thank you. This does not always fully extend children's spoken language or model accurate vocabulary.
• Children learn about the world around them as they explore activities about the farm or animals in the wild. Staff use stories to embed their understanding of what they are exploring. Children excitedly contribute to familiar phrases in the story. Younger babies giggle when they see familiar pictures. This helps children to develop a love of reading from an early age.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• review transitional routines, particularly at mealtimes, so children clearly understand what is happening next and remain fully engaged
• refine how staff model language to support children's emerging communication skills and extend their vocabulary further.