Castledyke Ltd

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy and genuinely enjoy spending time at this warm and welcoming nursery. They develop confidence, independence and good communication skills. Staff secure warm relationships with children through gentle and thoughtful interactions. This helps children to feel safe and secure. Staff have high expectations for children's behaviour. Children automatically say 'excuse me' if they need to get past an adult or one of their friends. Staff and children use sign language to reinforce manners. For example, children speak and sign 'thank you' during their everyday activities.

Staff plan a curriculum that builds on children's previous knowledge. They know what it is they want children to learn. The experienced special educational needs coordinator prepares personalised plans of support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. This helps all children make good progress from their starting points.

Children show high levels of motivation and engagement, particularly during role-play activities. They take it in turns to be customers at the café, while other children take and prepare the orders. Outside, children build a house to protect themselves from the big bad wolf. Staff are animated as they join in with children's imaginative games. This supports children in understanding that their ideas matter.

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

• Staff plan and offer a range of activities based on children's interests or the room theme. Children recreate favourite stories using puppets and their imagination. They craft and create to enhance and deepen their understanding of the story. For example, children make houses for 'The Three Little Pigs' using simple shapes. However, staff rely on adult-led activities to promote learning rather than incorporating learning into children's interests. This means that children are not always as engaged as they could be if the adult-led activity does not interest them.
• Children develop a love of stories and books through the wide range on offer. Staff read with passion, actively engaging children to keep them interested in the story. Children are given time to express their opinions about what they think will happen next. With familiar stories, children eagerly finish the well-known phrases. Stories are strengthened through purposeful activities. For example, children play with real straw and sticks which links to the story of 'The Three Little Pigs'.
• Staff support children's personal, social, and emotional development well. Children and staff talk about emotions. For example, each morning, children put their name on the emotion wall. Children are then encouraged to talk about why they are sad or frightened. This has a positive effect as children learn to understand their emotions and manage their behaviour. Children learn to share and take turns during snack and mealtimes as they skilfully pour their own drinks before passing it to their friends.
• Staff help children to understand the importance of a healthy lifestyle. They provide children with lots of opportunities to be physically active to develop their muscle strength. Babies are encouraged to climb the steps of the slide, while toddlers ride the scooters and jump off the wooden logs and pre-school children practise their yoga moves. Healthy eating is promoted as children enjoy their fruit snack and homemade lunches. Staff comment on how the children are getting 'big and strong' when they have finished their fruit and milk.
• Partnerships with parents are good. Staff gather relevant information about children during settling-in sessions. These sessions are adapted to suit each child's needs. Staff provide parents with regular updates on children's development through daily communication and an online platform. This includes a daily diary for the youngest children. Parents state that they are very happy with the service and care the setting provides.
• Staff speak highly of the manager and the ongoing opportunities to develop their practice. The manager works closely with staff on a day-to-day basis. However, this has not been fully effective in identifying where staff need more guidance to consistently provide children with the highest level of teaching and learning experiences.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• ensure learning is incorporated into children's interests to encourage children to become deeply engaged in learning experiences
• strengthen the monitoring of staff practice to provide more focused support on the quality of teaching and learning to ensure staff always provide children with the highest quality of education.