Buzy Bees

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

This nursery places great importance on building strong relationships between children and staff, recognising the significant impact this has on children's learning and development. Children feel happy, secure and safe in this nursery, where they play happily with their friends and the staff. The staff foster a love of stories and books by creating a cosy book area, which children enjoy spending time in. Staff read to children throughout the morning in groups and individually. This approach ensures that every child has the opportunity to listen to a story and gain knowledge of the world beyond their own experiences. Children ask staff questions about the stories, developing their thoughts and communication skills.

In the 'home' role-play area, toddlers are encouraged to develop their imagination and creative skills. Staff support children as they engage in pretend play with their friends, serving each other food and making phone calls to their family. Pre-school children build their independence and physical skills in the outdoor area. They create mud paintings using big paintbrushes to make sweeping marks on a large whiteboard, guided by the staff.

Children of all ages are well prepared for their next stage of learning. The curriculum is well planned, staff know the children in their care well and understand their individual starting points. Staff support children in building their confidence in mathematics through a variety of learning experiences. For example, they count the fruit they eat during snack time and how many children are sat at the table.

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

• A strong emphasis is placed on developing communication skills. Staff hold conversations with toddlers to guide them to develop their speech. They also use early signing so children who do not yet speak can express their needs and thoughts. Staff communicate slowly, using clear language to help children understand and expand their vocabulary. Staff are quick to recognise when children require additional support with language and communication skills, and they introduce effective strategies to enhance children's communication. They make timely referrals to outside agencies to address any communication delays. Staff engage in lovely conversations with children, discussing how oranges grow on trees and where other fruits and vegetables grow.
• Children are curious and eager to take part in activities. They ask lots of questions and quickly respond to requests from staff, for example when they need to put their outdoor clothes on. However, when children find it hard to share toys or express their frustrations, they tend to snatch toys from others and scream or pretend to cry when they do not get what they want. Staff quickly step in to help children calm down, but they fail to support children in understanding why their behaviour is not acceptable or how it has an impact on others.
• A good focus is placed on guiding children to develop their independence skills. Children of all ages are able to find their own snack pots and lunch boxes and then take them to their seats before they eat their healthy food. The pre-school children are guided to develop their hand strength and hand-to-eye coordination by cutting along lines on paper with scissors. Children develop confidence in their abilities and celebrate each other's achievements.
• Staff work well as a team and enjoy working in this pre-school. They undertake regular training courses, which are well linked to the needs of the children in their care. Staff undertook a course about supporting children's learning outdoors. The pre-school developed an extensive outdoor learning focus. Staff support children of all ages to go outdoors to play and explore in all weathers. This has had a positive impact on children's learning, development and confidence.
• Parents report that the care their children receive is good. They are kept up to date with their child's progress through regular meetings with their child's key person. Parents recommend the pre-school to others.
• Staff have developed a good curriculum. They support children as they explore the wider world and nature. Linking with the recent snowy and cold weather, they guide children through an ice activity. Children touch blocks of cold ice, and staff explain that ice is frozen water, demonstrating how it melts when warmed up. However, during mixed-group activities with both toddlers and pre-school children, staff do not always provide sufficient challenge for the older children. These children then struggle at times to concentrate and their learning is not fully extended.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• extend behaviour management strategies to support children to understand how their behaviour has an impact on others
• strengthen the planning of group activities to ensure that the older and more able children are consistently provided with further challenge.