Busy Bunnies Braybrook

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children arrive at the nursery happy and excited to start their day. Staff provide a warm welcome and support younger children when needed. They invite families to visit the nursery prior to starting. This helps children become familiar with their new surroundings. Staff engage in positive conversations with children, developing their conversational skills and sharing special events that happen at home. Children's behaviour is good. They listen carefully and follow instructions. Children enjoy playing together and staff model expected behaviours so that children learn important social skills and build strong relationships with their peers. They share their experiences and ideas with friends during their play and listen to each other.

Staff teach children from a young age to pour their own drinks and encourage them to make choices about the foods they eat. Children demonstrate their independence when they get themselves ready to go outdoors and serve their own food at lunch time. Staff praise their success, building children's confidence and self-esteem. Parents are happy with the care provided at the nursery and staff share regular updates with them, about their children's learning.

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

• Staff know their key children very well. They discuss children's development and the progress they make. Children demonstrate this through their interactions with staff, listening, communicating and following instructions well. Staff put in place appropriate next steps for children to work towards to extend on what they already know and can do, helping them to progress in their learning.
• Children who speak English as an additional language are well supported in the nursery. Staff ask parents to provide key words in their home language to support children's transition into the nursery. Staff use clear language and visual prompts to help children learn English and make good progress in their learning.
• Books are displayed in the book corner, inviting children in. They choose books independently and sit to look at the pictures. Some children ask staff to read to them. Small groups, sit and listen carefully to the story and staff read, narrating the storyline to support children's understanding. Staff also provide a story book for children to take home to read with their family, encouraging them to share their love of reading.
• Staff encourage children to think for themselves and work together. For example, when completing a puzzle, staff ask, 'What 'do you think comes next?'. Children share ideas with each other and pass each other pieces of puzzle to fit together, demonstrating strong social skills. That said, during adult-focused activities staff do not always consider their deployment and the impact this has on children's levels of engagement. Therefore, children sometimes become distracted, which affects the learning that takes place.
• The nursery has recently revamped the outdoor area. They now provide a huge range of exciting opportunities for children to continue their learning outdoors. For example, children enjoy the large climbing walls, where they skilfully climb and balance with ease, strengthening their core muscles. Children also enjoy learning about the world around them, growing vegetables and helping to take care of the nursery guinea pigs.
• Staff communicate with parents through an online app and give face-to-face feedback at the end of each day. They share children's progress and next steps. However, staff are not always successful at engaging parents, especially those who speak English as an additional language, to help ensure children's learning is consistently supported.
• Staff teach children about a range of cultures and religions that are relevant to the children who attend the nursery. Children share traditions from home and learn about other's beliefs and values, helping them to understand the similarities and differences between people in their local community.
• The special educational needs coordinator works closely with children special educational needs and/or disabilities and their key person to put in place achievable targets for children to work towards. They monitor children's progress closely and make referrals to other agencies and professionals to give children the extra support they need. Therefore, children make good progress.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• help staff to recognise the impact their deployment has on children's concentration and engagement levels so that they benefit from the good learning opportunities on offer
• continue to develop ways to engage parents in their children's learning, especially those who speak English as an additional language, to support children's development further.