Crescent II Kindergarten: The Kindergartens

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Staff greet children warmly at the gate. They use children's home languages to say hello and chat to them about their home lives. Children are extremely well settled and happy at the nursery. Babies play very contentedly alongside their friends, and pre-school children enjoy sharing stories together.

Children are exceptionally well behaved. They learn to follow staff's expectations in the nursery, such as tucking in their chairs and tidying up their toys. Staff build strong relationships with children from the start. Babies beam with delight when their key person walks into the room. Staff meet children's individual needs in calm and nurturing ways. This helps children to feel safe and secure. Staff engage children in playful interactions that support their social skills. Toddlers roar with laughter as staff play peekaboo with them. Pre-school children become deeply engaged in role play, such as pretending to be at the spa, which helps to embed their thinking about their life experiences.

Leaders, managers and staff are extremely ambitious to create stimulating environments and learning experiences that prepare children well for the next stage in their learning and future lives. Children are highly interested in the learning opportunities that extend what they can do and know. This means that all children make excellent progress.

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

• Staff have an excellent understanding of how children learn. They use their observations of children's development effectively to plan exciting and interesting activities that stimulate children's learning to a high level.
• Children develop superb communication skills. Young children learn simple signs to say 'please' and 'thank you'. Staff extend children's vocabulary very well, such as introducing phrases like 'red leicester' to name cheese. Children gain confidence in their abilities as they join in enthusiastically with familiar songs. They develop their listening skills during exciting storytelling sessions.
• Babies develop their finger muscles, such as when they explore objects in treasure baskets. Staff support toddlers to gain confidence in their movements as they crawl and toddle up ramps and through tunnels. Older children develop their physical skills even further as they gain control to make marks and cut spaghetti with scissors. As a result, children make excellent progress in their physical development.
• Children develop skills to become independent, such as washing and drying their hands. Staff teach children to keep themselves safe. For example, they remind them to use 'walking feet' indoors and to sit down when they are eating. Pre-school children make choices about what to eat and what to play with. This helps children to develop the skills they need for later life.
• Staff's knowledge of children's individual characteristics is exemplary. They celebrate children's achievements, such as taking their first steps. Staff engage children in conversations about past experiences, such as swimming lessons. This helps children to build a secure sense of their identity and supports their self-esteem extremely well.
• Children are highly interested in the resources and are eager to join in with group activities. Staff give toddlers time to explore natural materials alongside their friends. Pre-school children are skilfully encouraged to develop their own ideas when modelling with play dough. Children develop very positive attitudes to their learning.
• Children develop high levels of self-control. Staff recognise children who need extra support and put plans in place so children learn to control their behaviour. Older children learn to consider the needs of younger children as they cooperate in construction play together.
• Leaders and managers provide exemplary professional development opportunities for staff to develop their knowledge. As a result, staff are highly skilled in their interactions with children and carefully think about how best to teach children in their care.
• Partnerships with parents are superb. Parents speak extremely highly of staff and the excellent care their children receive. Managers use a range of communications to share information about children's learning. This means that children's development is consistently supported at home and nursery.
• Leaders and managers are highly reflective and evaluate the nursery very effectively to continuously improve children's experiences. For example, they are planning to enhance the already excellent outdoor area to make it more accessible for children in all weathers.