Canterbury Tender Care Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children happily arrive at the nursery and separate from their parents with ease. They settle quickly into the routine of the day and become engrossed in their play. Children develop good relationships with staff. They feel safe and secure in the stimulating environment. Children new to the nursery are supported well by staff as they settle in their new environment. Children display high levels of self-esteem and excitedly make independent choices in their play. Babies move around competently in the well-organised learning areas, exploring toys and real foods building their curiosity. Toddlers enjoy testing their problem-solving skills as they fill the scale buckets to make them balance.

Children become immersed in their play and are motivated learners. For instance, pre-school children maintain high levels of engagement and enjoyment as they experiment with ways to melt ice blocks. Children are active learners and benefit from a well-designed curriculum and routine that enables children to spend a significant amount of time outdoors to explore, investigate and learn through play. Older children enjoy exploring and making recipes in the mud kitchen. Younger children use their skills to catch sea creatures using nets. All children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) and those who speak English as an additional language, make secure progress in their learning. Children are confident, sociable and behave well.

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

• The provider and management team are ambitious leaders who know their children and community well. They support staff by providing good professional development and supervision. The provider has introduced a reflection room to encourage staff's well-being. She has recognised since the recent pandemic that the well-being of staff is paramount.
• Staff create a well-designed and sequenced curriculum. They use their knowledge of children's development and interests to create a wide range of activities. Staff plan topics each week to help children learn and develop their skills. However, during child-initiated play, some staff do not join in effectively to challenge and develop children's learning. Therefore, there is inconsistency in teaching across all the rooms.
• Staff help all children develop their communication and language skills. They understand that some children need more support, such as those with SEND and those who speak English as an additional language. Staff ensure they listen carefully to what children are saying, ask meaningful questions and give children time to reflect and answer and introduce new words to expand their vocabulary. This helps children express themselves effectively.
• Children enjoy books and stories and benefit from a wide range of books which are easily accessible for them to choose from. Staff skilfully link books to the topics planned to enhance children's learning further. For example, following a favourite story, staff planned an activity for children to 'clean the oceans'. Children eagerly collected and recycled plastics from the beach activity to protect the sea creatures.
• Staff support children to develop mathematical concepts during everyday tasks. Children enjoy counting as staff ask them to take three ice cubes for an activity. Older children use mathematical skills to set tables at lunch with the correct amount of cutlery.
• The nursery provides healthy meals and snacks for children. Children are encouraged to be independent and develop skills for the future, such as serving their meals and using the correct cutlery during sociable mealtimes.
• Children behave well. They form strong attachments to their key person. Staff are knowledgeable and ensure that children are well cared for. When younger children are occasionally unsettled, staff respond sensitively with care and warmth to reassure them.
• Partnership with parents is effective. Parents comment children enjoy their time at the nursery and are making good progress. Staff work well with other professionals involved with children.
• The management and staff team reflects on practice to identify ways to improve the support for children's learning. Staff have opportunities to complete training to enhance their knowledge and skills. However, the manager does not seek feedback from parents regarding the nursery evaluation to form the development of the setting. Therefore, parents do not understand the improvements made and the benefits for children.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support all staff to understand how to enhance children's learning as they join them at child-initiated play
• strengthen opportunities to share ideas and improvements with parents to enhance continuity of learning for children.