Church Street Day Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children express excitement and enjoy their time in this warm and welcoming setting. They actively seek out staff to join them in their games or go to them for reassurance and cuddles. This demonstrates the strong bonds children have with their key person and the team. The staff create an inviting and stimulating environment, which encourages children to make independent choices and become confident learners. The well-planned curriculum builds on what children already know and further supports their learning in all areas. For instance, babies explore shape sorters, which helps to develop their hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills as they practise fitting shapes into the correct holes. Toddlers develop their physical skills by running, skipping and climbing as they play outdoors. Pre-school children use their imagination in the home corner as they play with their friends.

Staff have high expectations for children's behaviour and gently remind them of the setting's rules. Children are kind to one another and are beginning to manage their own emotions effectively. When unwanted behaviours arise, staff calmly distract the children. This results in good behaviour. Staff celebrate children's achievements and praise them when they attempt activities or display positive behaviours, for example tidying up and being kind to their peers. This approach helps children take pride in their accomplishments and helps raise their self-esteem.

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

• Managers and staff have worked hard to address the actions and recommendations since their last inspection and have made significant improvements. Staff are clear about what they want children to learn from each activity. Managers support staff with topics and ideas and have developed a well-sequenced curriculum that ensures all children make good progress. However, staff do not always have confidence in their abilities and do not always take the lead in planning an exciting curriculum that supports individual children's interests even further.
• Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) receive exceptional support. The setting uses additional funding to employ a dedicated team to support children with SEND and their parents. Staff work closely with the local authority and other professionals to best support individual children's needs. The setting goes above and beyond to support families of children with SEND. For example, the setting organises regular coffee mornings for parents to meet other parents. Staff interject with ideas such as how to play and communicate with their children or support to claim extra allowances and resources. This enables children to have the support to make good progress in their learning.
• Staff provide children with meaningful activities to enhance their learning. For example, babies delight in using musical instruments. They engage in lively music sessions, which helps to develop their coordination and listening skills. Toddlers use a range of tools to pick up small objects, concentrating on how to manipulate the tools to achieve their goals. Staff introduce early mathematical concepts to the pre-school children. They count together as they cut fruit, using language such as more and less. However, some activities lack enough challenge to fully extend children's curiosity and interest to enable them to fully benefit from the already good learning.
• Staff help all children to develop their communication skills. They use picture cards and visual prompts to help children who are non-verbal or speak English as an additional language. Throughout activities, staff narrate children's play, model good conversational skills and introduce new vocabulary. Staff ask children open-ended questions to encourage conversations. Children listen with interest to stories and sing along to familiar rhymes, which further extends children's vocabulary.
• Staff support children to develop healthy lifestyles. Children enjoy healthy and well-balanced, home-cooked meals and snacks throughout the day. All dietary requirements are catered for, and allergy management strategies are secure. Children develop good physical skills as they benefit from daily fresh air and regular exercise. Staff encourage children to follow good hygiene practices, such as washing hands and blowing noses.
• Parent partnership is strong. Parents get regular communication from both an online system and verbally from staff as they collect their children. This ensures parents know about their child's day and their development. The setting also uses social media and newsletters to keep parents up to date with events and celebrations. Parents appreciate the support their children receive and comment on the friendly, approachable staff. This promotes continuity for children and supports effective parent partnerships.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• build on staff knowledge to enable them to independently plan and provide ambitious and exciting learning opportunities, to broaden children's experiences even further
• develop teaching to inspire children's interests and fascinations to further develop their curiosity and engagement.