Choo Choo's Day Nursery and Preschool

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children arrive happy and are keen to get into nursery to play. The friendly and welcoming staff greet children and help them to settle quickly into their chosen activity. Children form secure relationships with their key persons and the other staff working in the nursery. The members of the strong staff team have high expectations for children. They praise children and encourage them to learn through exploring. Older children confidently make their own choices about where they would like to play. They benefit from lots of fresh air and exercise. Older children cooperate with their peers and staff as they learn to use the hoops to spin around their waists and giggle as they try to catch the balls with Velcro bats. Younger children benefit from exploring different textures as they play. They develop their physical skills as they scoop and pour ingredients. Children behave well. They learn to share and take turns with the resources and become independent at meeting their own needs. Children develop nice friendships within the nursery. They play together with their friends and include each other in their games.

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

• Leaders and staff have high expectations for what they want children to achieve. They monitor children's progress and provide a curriculum that is ambitious and uses children's interests to engage them in learning. Leaders provide staff with support and supervisions. Regular staff meetings help to inform staff training and professional development.
• Parents are very happy with the care that their children receive. They say that the staff are welcoming and supportive. Parents say that staff work closely with them to get to know their children so that they feel secure. Parents say that staff help with managing children's behaviour and support them with toilet training.
• Leaders reflect on their environment and consider how it supports children's learning. They have made a lot of changes to the nursery and the resources that are available to children. For instance, the entrance hall has been made more of a natural calming environment to help children to feel calm and settled when they arrive. Staff reflect that this has had a positive impact on children as they arrive at nursery.
• Leaders recognise the impact that the cost of living is having on parents. Therefore, they encourage the use of recycled resources for children to play with. Children enjoy using real-life resources in their play, such as a blender, kettles and milk bottles. This supports their imaginary play and allows them to explore objects that they see at home.
• Staff provide a good range of interesting activities to spark children's curiosity and motivate them to be involved. For instance, children thoroughly enjoy making their own 'chocolate pancakes' in the pancake kitchen. They immerse themselves in making their own creations. Children practise mixing, pouring and squeezing the ingredients into their bowls, and staff facilitate this well. However, staff do not consider how they can organise the adult-led activities and group times, so that all children can achieve the same levels of focus and engagement. At times, children become distracted and lose interest, and they miss out on planned learning opportunities.
• Staff speak clearly and listen to children, to further their language skills. Leaders and staff provide support to help children who have delays in their development. For instance, they put plans in place and refer them to other professionals to access further support. However, leaders and staff do not consider how to help children who have limited verbal communication skills to express their wants and needs. As a result children get frustrated and struggle to communicate their needs with staff.
• Children develop an interest in books and stories. They choose to use the reading nook in the garden as they snuggle into staff to look at books and to share stories. Staff link books to the children's learning, using them alongside activities to follow children's interest and to extend their understanding of literacy.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• develop strategies to support the children who have delays in their language development to communicate their wants and needs
• review the organisation of adult-led activities to ensure that all children are able to focus and be involved.