Charnwood Day Nursery and Preschool

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children arrive eager to play and use their imagination in the home-from-home environment created by the staff. They have strong bonds with all staff and go to them for guidance or reassurance when they need it. Children confidently share their ideas and invite friends to join in their chosen play. They share paintbrushes, water and mud to draw and make marks on the fence. Children develop their hand muscles and grip while copying the letters and shapes staff draw. They learn the properties of different shapes, such as triangles having three sides, and the first letters of their name. Children are highly motivated by the staff's praise and keen to try things for themselves. When they run out of water to use, children independently take their pots to the outside tap and work together to fill them up and carry them carefully back to the fence. Children excitedly giggle as they follow staff instructions to paint as high and as quickly as they can. They proudly show each other and staff their creations, asking, 'Look at mine!'

Children behave extremely well and understand what staff expect of them during the day, including using their manners. From a young age, they develop their skills and understanding as they follow the daily routines staff put in place. Children in the baby room help put resources away when they have finished playing and know to move and sit at the table waiting patiently for their lunch.

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

• The staff know the children and their families well, including what interests the children have. They assess what children know and can do, supporting them with what they need to learn next and addressing any gaps in their learning. This includes children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who speak English as an additional language.
• Staff encourage children to share the experiences they enjoy at home and use this to inform the planned activities. For example, children discuss enjoying listening to music by different bands. Staff encourage them to share this information with friends and create their own band. They help them to find items to use as instruments and build a stage out of pieces of wood. Children laugh as they develop their musicality and physical skills, as they bang objects with sticks to imitate drums and symbols.
• Staff plan a wide range of activities for all children based on the skills and knowledge they want them to learn next. They help children take carefully planned risks in their play, such as building using real hammers. Staff teach them what appropriate safety equipment they must wear, such as goggles, and why they must check their surroundings to ensure that it is safe to start. They help children to develop deep concentration and perseverance, as they learn to hold nails and hit them straight with a hammer before pulling elastic bands tight between the two. However, some staff only support children with what they have planned for them to learn from an activity, and therefore do not pick up on opportunities to develop children's wider skills. This means some children do not make the progress they are capable of during some activities.
• Staff tailor their approach to support all children in developing their ability to communicate. While helping younger children explore paint and water, staff encourage them to repeat keywords and sounds they use, such as 'splash' and 'pat'. Staff hold vibrant conversations with children about the world around them. They teach them new vocabulary, such as what an 'overcast' sky means.
• Staff promote independence from a young age. They explain to children how to get a tissue and wipe their noses, helping them put it in the bin when they have finished. Staff encourage children to pour their own water throughout the day and use cutlery efficiently during mealtimes.
• Leaders have a clear vision for the setting. They help staff reflect on the learning opportunities they provide children. The manager identifies what staff need to work on next to develop their understanding of getting the most from the curriculum. She has started to put coaching opportunities in place for staff. However, this is not yet effective at raising the quality of practice for some staff and needs to be embedded further to improve the consistency of high-quality interactions.
• Parents and carers explain that staff communicate with them about all aspects of children's care and education, including how they can help children develop their learning further at home.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• provide staff further support to be able to recognise and make the most of learning opportunities during activities
• embed staff's professional development to improve the consistency of high- quality interactions.