Creative Learning

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children thrive in the care of nurturing staff within this calm and welcoming setting. Staff communicate with children with warmth and enthusiasm. They regularly praise children to build their self-esteem. In return, children smile confidently and feel proud of what they achieve. New children settle extremely quickly and form close bonds with staff. Staff expertly use information from parents, in addition to their own observations, to precisely plan the experiences they offer to children.

The curriculum is designed to give children the experiences they need in life. Leaders and staff provide children with an extensive range of enriching learning opportunities. Children gain confidence in a range of social situations. For example, leaders link with the local community to support children's understanding of local travel and local amenities. They visit art galleries, libraries and participate in forest school sessions in local woodlands. As a result, children are enthused by feelings of awe and wonder. They have a genuine thirst for learning.

Staff consistently extend children's learning. They seize every opportunity to extend children's vocabulary. They read exciting stories, sing songs and engage children in conversations throughout the day. The quality of interactions is outstanding. Children demonstrate excellent communication skills.

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

• The commitment for improving outcomes for children is admirable. Staff have opportunities to develop their knowledge through discussions and shadowing, and each child's key person works in partnership with parents and other professionals. Together, they develop individual support plans to further enhance children's learning and development. All children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, receive excellent support, and the progress children make is significant.
• Staff create fantastic opportunities for the children to build on their fine motor skills and mathematical skills. For example, older children can use hammers and nails effectively to create artwork, understanding and adhering to safety measures. This supports risk taking and boosts their confidence. The children benefit from an outdoor play area, which is used to enhance the learning, resilience and curiosity of the children. This provides essential opportunities to explore and encourage risk taking within a safe environment, as well as promoting high-quality opportunities for large-scale physical activities.
• Staff help children to develop a high level of independence and autonomy in the setting. For example, children use an established voting system to vote for their favourite story. They accept the result, enjoy the traditional tale and begin to see how the voting system relates to wider society. Furthermore, throughout the day, children show high levels of independence by selecting their own activities and resources. They are proud to do things for themselves, such as clipping their own paper to the art easel and placing the finished painting on the drying rack and washing their hands. Children are exceptionally well prepared for the next stage of their learning.
• Children behave impeccably. Staff expertly and routinely support children to understand the impact of their actions. The language of emotions is skilfully embedded across adult-led experiences, such as circle time. Children use words such as 'grumpy', 'sad' and 'happy' as they make play dough faces. Children take turns with resources and demonstrate wonderful kindness to each other.
• Staff welfare is a priority, and staff are supported extremely well. They have access to reading materials and a wide range of training opportunities. Staff nominate each other for 'hero of the month', and leaders use a room 'house points' system to give recognition for outstanding aspects of practice. Staff take pride in their responsibilities and embrace opportunities offered to them. This means that children benefit from consistently strong teaching by the motivated and skilled staff team.
• Feedback from parents is excellent. Parents are overwhelmingly grateful for the support that staff offer them. Staff provide advice and guidance to parents. This has a positive impact on the well-being of the children. Parents appreciate how supportive, caring and nurturing staff are.