Butterflys Day Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Staff create a language-rich environment where children and adults enjoy conversations about what they know and enjoy. Children have established strong relationships with staff, demonstrating that they feel safe to explore and are motivated to learn. New children to the setting are given additional support until they feel confident to explore independently. Children's literacy skills are supported well. Older children listen to stories attentively and join in with well-known song lyrics. Younger children copy actions they have observed and move their bodies to the music.

There is a good range of activities provided for the children, both indoors and outdoors, to support the seven areas of learning. For example, children learn about growing food, flowers and herbs in their outdoor play area. Children learn to take turns and manage risks. For example, they take part in an obstacle course, where they learn to balance and jump. This helps to encourage them to make their own safe choices and to support physical development. Staff provide children with different coloured paints and add them to flour and water. Children use their hands to make patterns in the sticky mixture. They discuss how it feels and talk about the new colours they make.

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

• Children who speak English as an additional language and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities are supported well. Targeted strategies are used to ensure that any gaps in their development are closed quickly. Partnerships with external agencies are in place to advise staff of the best way to provide tailored support for children who need this.
• Parents are very supportive of the nursery and the relationships that staff have with their children. They talk about recommending the nursery to friends with enthusiasm. Staff hold daily discussions with parents, and they are invited to parents' meetings to discuss their children's progress. Although there is a good partnership with parents in place, occasionally, the procedure to gather information from parents when children first start about their prior learning and abilities is not followed.
• Staff benefit from regular team meetings, supervisions and appraisals and overall, the manager monitors staff's performance well. Staff are well qualified and translate their knowledge effectively into practice. A programme of professional development opportunities is provided for staff to continue to develop their skills and knowledge.
• Children learn about the wider world. For instance, they explore a range of national and international festivals and celebrations. Children are involved in trips out of the nursery to help them learn about their community. They visit the local pet shop and have taken part in walks to raise money for charity.
• Staff organise a wide range of activities which children enjoy and become involved in. For instance, staff help older babies develop their small-muscle skills as they explore water and sand. However, they do not always ensure that the activities are meticulously planned for children's individual developmental learning needs to help them make rapid progress.
• Staff work well with other professionals. For instance, they invite teachers to visit and requests visits to the schools. This supports children well in readiness for their eventual move to school.
• Staff help children to learn about the importance of good hygiene. For example, they explain thorough handwashing, talking to children about washing the germs away. Children are offered nutritious meals prepared by the cook and they enjoy the sociable occasion of sitting together. Children behave well. Staff provide a welcoming environment where children understand what is expected of them.
• Children manage their own personal care needs and are independent, relative to their age. For example, older children wash their hands independently, serve their own lunch and put on their own coats and shoes for outdoor play. These skills help to prepare children for their future move to school.
• Staff interact skilfully with children and build on their current learning. For example, children regularly take part in activities to learn about the importance of oral health and brushing their teeth.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen the monitoring of the procedure for gathering information from parents when their children first start so that staff consistently have a clear and precise understanding of what children know and can do at home from the start
• increase the focus on what individual children need to learn next and how they can challenge their own learning to improve the potential for them to make more rapid progress.