Cloud 9 Day Nursery Limited

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children happily separate from their parents at the door and enter the friendly and welcoming nursery. Staff eagerly greet children with smiles and a warm welcome. Babies and the youngest children benefit from tickles and cuddles from familiar staff. This helps support children's emotional needs, and they demonstrate that they feel safe and secure. Older children become confident communicators. They engage in conversations with unfamiliar adults with ease.

Children are very familiar with the routines and respond well to the instructions and guidance given to them. Staff are good role models and have a calming and respectful attitude towards children. In turn, children's behaviour is very good. They patiently wait in line to let children returning from outdoors enter first. They take responsibility for tasks in the nursery. For example, toddlers tidy away toys energetically as they dance and move to the 'tidy-up song'. Older children serve their own food and clear the plates away after eating.

On the whole, a wide range of exciting and stimulating activities are available to children. Babies explore multiple sensory activities. They explore sand, water and cereal mixes with increasing interest. Toddlers manipulate dough as they stretch, knead and pull it into the desired shape to create 'aliens'. Older children use scissors competently to cut out shapes. They use glue and a variety of materials to make space pictures. This extends children's concentration and strengthens their hand and finger muscles in preparation for early writing skills.

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

• Leaders provide effective support for staff, who are encouraged to regularly reflect on their own development. Staff undertake a range of training to help them to develop their practice to benefit children. Staff are clear about what they want children to learn. They know their key children extremely well. They carry out observations and assessments to identify and address gaps in learning to make sure that children make good progress.
• Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) make good progress in their learning. Staff work closely with other agencies to provide the support that children need. For example, they follow agreed plans to focus on what children need to learn next. This helps to ensure that children with SEND thrive.
• Staff encourage children to develop a love of books from an early age. Babies are beginning to point at pictures and babble. Older children are able to retell their favourite stories and talk about the characters with excitement.
• All children develop good physical skills. Staff support babies to sit and roll. Toddlers enjoy 'finger gym' activities to develop their small-muscle skills. Older children thoroughly enjoy outdoor play, where they run, climb and balance.
• Staff help children to engage in experiences that widen their understanding of the community. They visit local facilities, such as the library and parks. Children enjoy making birthday cards to congratulate a local care home resident who reached the age of 100 years.
• Staff place a high priority on developing children's communication and language skills. They consistently model words and language and engage children in conversation. However, at times, teaching is not as strong. For example, staff working with young children use cards with shapes, words and colours on. Children do not understand what staff want them to learn and lose interest.
• Children make friends and work well together. They share and take turns with resources. Staff successfully plan and set out activities and experiences in each of the playrooms. Throughout the day, children have plenty of opportunities to choose what they want to play with. This results in children being interested and remaining engaged for sustained periods of time. However, group activities are not planned as successfully and children sometimes lose focus and engagement during these times.
• Parent partnerships are strong. Staff talk to parents daily and share regular information about children's care and learning. They offer support to help parents continue their child's learning at home. For example, parents attend workshops in the setting or continue activities at home. Parents support their children to be creative at home, making their entries for a 'best rocket' competition.
• Parents are very happy with the nursery. They speak positively about how approachable and supportive the staff are. Parents comment that they can see the impact of the learning their children do at nursery. They gave examples of how their children's speaking skills are improving and the progress they are making.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• review and develop the planning of group activities to increase children's interest and engagement
• provide further support to staff to raise the quality of teaching to a consistently higher level.