Childcare4u

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Leaders and staff have made significant improvements since the last inspection. Staff are now positive role models for children. They help them learn the behaviours expected of them and children's behaviour is now good. Children are kind to each other. They learn to share, take turns and cooperate as they play.

Children are safe and happy in this warm and welcoming nursery. They have secure attachments with staff, who are kind and caring. Children eagerly join in with the wide range of activities offered and enjoy their time at the setting. They show high levels of engagement in activities of their own choosing. For example, toddlers fill a variety of vehicles with shredded paper. They show delight and excitement as they press buttons to make lights flash and vehicles move.

Children are physically active. They enjoy daily outdoor play. Staff encourage children to take age-appropriate risks as they manage to balance and complete an obstacle course. Children relish the sense of achievement when they complete tricky tasks. This builds children's confidence and teaches them about their capabilities. Children grow in independence and take good levels of responsibility for managing aspects of their own play and learning.

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

• Leaders are dedicated to improving learning experiences for children. They accurately recognise where there are gaps in staff knowledge and support them to enhance their professional development. They provide regular supervision meetings for staff and prioritise their well-being. Leaders work closely with other professionals and their local authority advisers to improve the nursery even further.
• Staff support children's emerging language skills well. They use books and songs in addition to talking to children about what they are doing. Staff provide an environment where children hear spoken language clearly and fluently. This helps children learn the correct pronunciation of words. As a result, children become confident communicators. However, on occasion other activities nearby distract children and do not support their listening and attention skills effectively. For example, some children find it difficult to listen to a story due to the noise from other children close by.
• Staff provide good opportunities for children to develop early literacy skills. Older children enthusiastically listen to stories and enjoy looking at books. Staff encourage children to discuss their ideas and share their thoughts. They ask questions to extend children's learning. However, staff are less confident in extending children's learning in mathematics. For example, at times, they do not recognise opportunities to introduce mathematical concepts during activities, such as discussing weight and measure when children are making play cement.
• All children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, make good progress from their starting points. Staff use guidance and assessment tools to identify any gaps in children's language. They use this information to plan activities and make referrals to other professionals. This helps children to get the early and ongoing support they might need.
• Children show increasing independence. For example, babies learn to feed themselves by copying staff. The oldest children serve their own meals and manage cutlery well. They learn to dress in their own coats and practise fastening the zips and buttons. Children learn to manage their own personal care needs and understand the importance of washing their hands before eating and after using the toilet.
• Children immerse themselves in creative play. For example, babies enjoy sensory play activities. They are absorbed as they lean over a tub to feel foam. Babies watch with excitement as staff show them how to make foam appear from the can. They are fascinated and laugh delightedly as they try for themselves. This helps children to learn more about the world around them and to explore freely.
• The leadership team ensure that staff receive the training and support needed to improve teaching and learning. They have made effective use of the support from the local authority to make the required improvements. Staff report they feel supported by their managers and feel that their well-being is always taken into account. Staff undertake regular training initiatives and implement what they learn so that the children benefit.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• review and improve the organisation of activities to minimise distractions and further support children's listening and attention skills
• strengthen teaching strategies to more consistently promote children's early number and mathematical skills.