Busy Bees Day Nursery at Sunderland Doxford

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children arrive at nursery happy, confident and ready to learn. They are welcomed warmly by friendly staff, who greet children with a cheery 'Hello'. Children have an abundance of exciting opportunities throughout their day. They freely access the indoor and outdoor areas, and explore the sand, water and painting activities available. Children are well behaved and polite. They show respect towards each other. For example, they listen intently as their friends tell stories about things that interest them, such as holidays and dinosaurs. Children join in, ask questions and engage in exciting conversations with each other. Staff help children to understand rules and boundaries. Younger children are encouraged to use their 'walking feet indoors'. Older children wait until everyone has finished their lunch before leaving the table. Children learn new words as staff introduce and model vocabulary throughout the day. For example, younger children learn about 'scratchy sponges' and 'shiny spoons'. Older children talk about volcanoes and how they 'erupt with lava'.

Staff encourage children to explore and use their imagination. For example, older children talk about holidays and pretend to work in a travel agents, where they choose countries to visit. Staff provide them with maps, passports and paper to 'write down' important information, encouraging their emerging early literacy skills. Younger children explore a variety of sensory materials and smile as they make sounds by tapping spoons against metal buckets.

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

• There are opportunities for children to see numbers throughout the nursery. For example, there are scales in the construction area, numerals displayed around the rooms and height charts for children to stand against. However, staff do not always use mathematical language to support children's understanding. For example, staff do not consistently build on children's interest in mathematics by using mathematical language or introducing counting in children's play.
• The manager and staff have an understanding of their curriculum intent and talk about what they would like children to learn, know and do by the time children leave. For example, the manager talks about babies having tummy time to strengthen their core muscles before they move on to crawl, stand and walk. Children in the pre-school room are supported to be confident talkers with a wide vocabulary. Staff use what they know about children to plan further opportunities.
• Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities are well supported. Staff understand their needs and work well with other professionals, such as Portage and speech and language therapists. This supports staff in ensuring that children are included and make good progress.
• All children have a key person who knows their care needs well. There is a buddy system in place to make sure children receive continuity of care when the key person is not available. However, staff covering this role do not always know where children are in their learning. Although information is available, staff do not always make themselves familiar with it to make sure children's learning is effectively supported throughout the day.
• Staff develop an environment where children confidently choose what they want to play with. Children know where the toys and resources are kept, so they can choose where to play. This supports their confidence and independence.
• Children are happy to play together. For example, they sit together and read stories to each other. Babies take turns to go up and down the climbing apparatus. Staff encourage them to make safe choices and praise them when they climb up the steps and slide down the slide.
• Children who speak English as an additional language are offered good support. Staff work closely with parents and decide together how best to support children. For example, parents share key words in their home language, such as 'toilet' and 'sleep'. Staff support children to use both languages, to encourage their developing vocabulary. Words are displayed around the room to reflect both English and children's home languages. Opportunities such as these also help children to recognise and understand differences.
• Parents speak highly of the manager and her team. They comment about the progress their children make at nursery. For example, they talk about the increase in vocabulary and confidence in children. Parents feel involved and use the nursery app to share information and gather ideas from staff about some of the activities they can do at home.
• The manager is enthusiastic and dedicated to providing children and families with the best experiences possible. She values her staff team, and they work well together to create a nurturing environment for children. Together, the whole staff team evaluate the setting to promote continuous improvement. Monthly room meetings and one-to-one supervision sessions enable staff to share thoughts and ideas with the manager.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• maximise opportunities to extend children's mathematics skills during everyday activities
• build on the current arrangements for sharing information about children's learning between staff to ensure continuity in children's care and learning.