Comfort Angelz Daycare

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children arrive happily and are warmly welcomed by the caring staff. They separate from their parents and carers with ease and show that they feel safe and secure. Children show positive attitudes towards their learning as they get involved in the broad range of activities provided.

All children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, make good progress from their starting points. Well-sequenced activities build on what children already know. For example, older children show high levels of focus and concentration when investigating the difference between floating and sinking. They extend this activity further by looking around the room for different objects to put in the water to test their ideas out.

Children's school readiness is at the heart of the curriculum. For example, children have many opportunities to promote their self-help skills, independence and confidence. Older children enthusiastically choose the speed and volume of how to sings songs during carpet time, demonstrating their ability to make decisions and choices for themselves. Younger children confidently chose activities that they want to explore. For instance, babies happily pick out books to look at, then move over to a member of staff to read it to them.

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

• The manager is dedicated and has a clear vision for the curriculum offered. This includes a secure knowledge of how to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. She closely monitors the purpose of the activities and experiences that staff deliver, and provides them with constructive feedback to support their teaching skills. This creates an environment where everyone works collaboratively and respectfully with each other, and staff feel well supported and valued.
• Staff support children's developing language skills and are ambitious to build and extend their vocabulary. For example, all children in the nursery are learning about the theme 'under the sea', and younger children are learning how to describe the colours and shapes related to this. Older children are challenged further by being introduced to language such as 'habitat' and 'environment'. Furthermore, during music time, children confidently name the different musical instruments that they are using, such as 'cymbal' and 'maracas'.
• Parents speak very positively about the nursery. They feel the staff are friendly and supportive and describe them as 'amazing'. Parents say their children have made good progress since attending the setting. They especially feel that their children have developed their language and communication skills well. They confirm that they have regular opportunities to discuss their children's progress with staff and they make use of the nursery's online application to aid information exchange.
• Children benefit from nutritionally balanced and healthy meals and snacks. Food is freshly prepared each day and there are strict arrangements in place to support children with special dietary requirements. Children show a good understanding of how to independently serve their own food, get their own drinks and clear their plates at lunchtime. However, at times, staff sometimes miss opportunities to continue to extend children's learning during this routine activity.
• Children in this nursery are curious, self-assured and happy to approach visitors. They approached the inspector with confidence and kindness, happily introducing themselves and discussing what they enjoy doing at the nursery.
• Children of all ages have good physical skills. For example, babies use their hands to make a diamond shape when singing 'Twinkle, twinkle, little star'. Children in the toddler room use their hands to roll different shapes with the play dough.
• Staff plan exciting activities based on the children's interests and what they want children to learn next. Overall, the passionate staff deliver these activities well. However, at times, some staff are not clear about exactly what they want children to learn during activities, which makes it harder for staff to identify whether children's learning is embedded.
• Staff provide meaningful experiences to help children understand and respect others. For instance, children learn that some people in the world are less advantaged. Together, children and families donate clothes and raise money for a range of different charities. Staff share pictures and information of who received some of their help, allowing children to have a deeper understanding of how they have helped others.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• make full use of routine activities in supporting and extending children's learning even further
• ensure all staff focus more clearly on precisely what they intend children to learn.