Cedars Day Nursery and Pre-School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Staff implement the curriculum learning intentions successfully to help all children gain the skills and knowledge needed for the next stage of their learning. Overall, staff's teaching is consistently good. They know and understand their key children's care and learning needs securely. They follow children's interests and choices, such as reading books when asked to by children and talking to them about the pictures.

There are effective settling-in processes for new children, which include visits with and without parents. Staff gain a range of useful information from parents to help them to understand and meet the needs of new children. This includes details about babies' home routines along with details of their favourite songs and activities. Children are happy and settled. All children benefit from positive relationships with the kind and supportive staff. Those caring for babies are responsive to their needs. This helps children to feel safe and secure. Children confidently explore and investigate and are appropriately supervised by staff.

Staff promote children's understanding of the behaviour expectations, such as being kind and sharing toys with others. Children enjoy their time at nursery. They engage in play and activities with enthusiasm. Older children confidently share their own ideas, which are valued by staff. Staff use these skilfully, such as to support children's decision-making as a group.

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

• The new manager has a good understanding of her roles and responsibilities. This includes her roles as the designated safeguarding lead and as the special educational needs coordinator. She works closely with other professionals, along with the staff team, to meet children's individual needs.
• Staff feel well supported. The manager encourages staff to reflect on their practice. Staff receive regular individual supervision meetings, ongoing feedback from the manager and complete training. This helps to promote improvements in staff's practice and builds on the overall quality of the provision.
• Staff demonstrate a good knowledge of children's progress and next steps in learning. They understand the needs of children who may need some extra support. When additional funding is in place for individual children, this is used effectively to meet their needs. Staff use children's interests to engage them in play and learning. For example, babies showed excitement when they joined in songs and rhymes using musical instruments.
• Staff engage children in learning well. They weave in teaching during interactions and activities to support children's learning, such as modelling mathematical language and counting with children. Older children develop skills to help them move on to school. For example, staff supported the pre-school children to make up a story together. Children used their imagination, concentrated and recalled information during the activity.
• Staff build on younger children's understanding of language well, such as using actions alongside words. They repeat words back to children to promote the correct pronunciation of these. Staff working with the older children give them time to respond to questions, which helps to support their thinking skills. Staff and children engage in frequent conversations. Sometimes, staff do not build on what children say as well as possible, to help extend their language skills further.
• Children gain a sense of responsibility. Older children help to tidy up and put away toys, for example. Staff encourage children to recognise and express their emotions. This was seen during the inspection, when staff explored pre-school children's feelings and drew faces to reflect these. Staff guide children appropriately about their safety. However, they do not always provide sufficient explanations to extend children's understanding about how to keep themselves and others safe.
• Children develop their independence and self-care skills well. Babies make choices from the toys and resources and explore with interest. Older children learn to manage their clothing and put away their belongings. They have opportunities to serve their own food and pour their own drinks. Children gain an understanding of healthy lifestyles, such as following good hygiene routines.
• The manager and staff build positive partnerships with parents. They warmly welcome parents and children on arrival. Daily updates are provided through the online app and discussions with parents. Parents speak positively about the service provided and comment that their children really enjoy attending the nursery.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• build on staff's skills to enhance the interactions and discussions with children to extend the support for their communication and language development
• extend staff's awareness of supporting children's understanding of their own and others' safety.