Coneygarth Farm Day Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children's happiness is at the heart of this friendly nursery, which plays a key role in the local community. Staff are always on hand to warmly greet children at the start of the day. They show a genuine interest in the everyday things children tell them, such as what they had for breakfast. This sets a very positive tone for the day, which makes children feel comfortable and ready to engage in the daily activities.

Staff build strong partnerships with parents and carers from the start. They ask about children's routines and interests at home. Staff value this information, which allows them to plan for individual children's care and learning needs straight away. Children form strong bonds with their key person and other staff. They become increasingly confident as they explore both new and familiar resources.

The exciting nursery curriculum is created to fully promote children's holistic development. Leaders work closely with staff to ensure that the curriculum is broad, creative and well sequenced. The indoor and outdoor environments are superb and offer rich opportunities, especially for children's physical development. Children make good progress over time. They gain the skills and knowledge that will support their future learning at school.

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

• Nursery leaders value the different skills of the staff team. All staff have regular supervision meetings and opportunities for their professional development. Senior staff provide support and mentoring for the less experienced members of the dedicated team. The whole team demonstrates a lot of commitment to providing high-quality care for children.
• Leaders target any additional funding they receive for children to further enhance their learning and care needs. All staff work closely with parents and other professionals to ensure that children get the right support to achieve their curriculum goals. This includes children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).
• Children are engrossed as staff read their favourite stories to them. They listen carefully and excitedly join in with parts of the stories they remember. Staff ensure that there is an excellent range of books available for children to independently select. They foster children's love of reading.
• Babies are taken for regular walks around the local area in their special 'baby bus'. Staff take older children on visits to the village shops, library and nearby care home. Children begin to understand that people and places are an important part of the local community.
• Staff teach children about their emotions and how they might manage these in different situations. For example, if children are upset because they both want the same toy, staff encourage them to find solutions together. Children learn the importance of sharing and taking turns as they play with their friends.
• Children become increasingly independent over time. The younger children learn to pour their own drinks and find their shoes before going out to play. Older children manage their self-care needs with confidence. They tell visitors that they need to wash their hands to get rid of any germs.
• Staff talk to children about what is happening next during their day. Children begin to understand the predictable daily routines that generally support their well-being. However, some routines, such as mealtimes, are not always well organised, and this results in children becoming quite unsettled.
• Children learn, at first-hand, about caring for animals on the nursery farm. They discover the different foods that animals eat, such as hay for the cows and bulls. They observe the hens laying eggs and show a lot of care as staff give them an egg to hold. They are eager to tell staff the newly laid eggs feel warm to the touch.
• Children's cultural backgrounds are celebrated in the nursery. For example, at welcome times, children learn how to say 'hello' in different home languages, such as Spanish and Romanian. They taste foods that are associated with different countries in the world. Children begin to understand and appreciate the differences between themselves and others.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• review and adapt daily routines so that they consistently promote a calm, purposeful ethos to fully support children's well-being.