Cobholm and Lichfield Childcare Centre

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children's confidence grows as they attend this well-organised nursery. They develop their independence and gain positive attitudes to learning. Children show that they feel safe and secure in the nursery. They are keen to join in with play-based and adult-led activities. Staff share 'golden rules' with children. This helps children to understand how to get along. Children play actively and cooperatively together, as is appropriate for their age. Staff support children calmly when they are still learning how to behave safely around others.

Older children relish adult-led group times, which staff deliver well. They are enthusiastic and concentrate well. For example, pre-school children learn a special song to celebrate their move on to school. They sing the words fervently. Babies receive gentle and calm care and attention. Staff notice and respond to the emerging sounds and babbles that babies make, and staff repeat noises and simple words to them. This helps babies to begin to verbalise and say new words. Staff use a range of strategies to help children learn to communicate. For example, they use signs and pictures for children to help their developing understanding. Children have plenty of opportunities to listen to stories, sing songs and share conversations with staff.

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

• Clear systems are in place to promote children's health and safety. Staff are close by children at all times, supporting them to maintain their own safety.
• Children's needs and emotional well-being are paramount to all those involved in the nursery. Staff carefully plan for when children need to move rooms. They work to ensure that a familiar member of staff remains available to them when they move up to the next room. Staff carefully plan settling-in routines when children first start attending the setting. This helps children to feel safe and secure.
• Staff quickly identify children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). They work with parents and other services to assess and support children. Consequently, children with SEND make good progress in their learning.
• Staff deliver teaching that reflects children's individual needs, interests and learning preferences. For example, staff support children to gain new skills at group times and with smaller group work. This supports children to reach their next steps in learning.
• Children develop their independence. They learn to wash their hands before they eat. Staff help them to learn how to serve their own meals and snacks. They encourage children to try a little of unfamiliar foods. However, staff do not help children to learn how to make healthy choices or help them to understand the effect that different types of food has on their bodies.
• Leaders have high aspirations for the nursery and put plans in place to achieve continuous improvement. This leads to quality being good, which is improving over time.
• The curriculum is broad and challenging. However, staff do not always deliver the curriculum as intended. For example, sometimes, staff mispronounce the sounds that letters make. This means that children do not build all the knowledge they need to help them be well prepared for the next stage in learning and to read and write.
• Staff help children to develop positive values. For example, they teach children about fairness and taking turns. Staff provide hairdressing mannequins for older children to experiment with. These resources reflect racial diversity. However, staff do not plan to represent both males and females in these resources. This, and some interactions that staff have with children, potentially reinforces gender stereotypes.
• Parents value the quality of care and education that the nursery provides. They comment on the close bonds that children develop with staff. Staff share detailed information with parents daily. This helps to involve parents in their children's learning.
• Children get lots of time to exercise and play actively outdoors. Each age group has access to outdoor learning in well-designed areas. For example, children share stories, draw, use sand and other sensory materials, as well as climb, balance and create unique play ideas with their friends.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• help children to learn more about different types of food and how they can make healthy choices
• support staff to develop a deeper understanding of how to deliver the challenging curriculum, to further improve children's attainment
• strengthen the curriculum with regards to routinely challenging stereotypes so that children develop a deeper understanding of equality.