CW King Fishers Day Nurseries Limited

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children quickly separate from their parents and carers. They engage with the activities that staff provide. Children show they have strong bonds with staff at the nursery. For example, they seek out their familiar adults, who greet them with a smile. Children receive praise from staff when they follow instructions. This helps to raise children's self-esteem. Staff support children to understand their emotions as they encourage children to talk about how they are feeling. Children show they feel safe as they openly talk about why they may feel happy, sad or angry.

Staff have high expectations for children's learning. All children make good progress. They tailor children's learning within an overarching theme linked to children's individual needs and interests. Children are enthusiastic to learn and to share their new knowledge. For example, younger children eagerly share the names of the toy animals they play with in the sand. Older children use their ideas and work together as they build enclosures for the animals and develop their imaginations. Children develop a positive attitude towards their learning. They are well prepared for their next stage of learning, including their eventual move on to school.

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

• Staff sequence children's learning well. They plan opportunities for children to build on what they know and can do. For example, babies learn to scoop at the sensory tray, while toddlers strengthen their finger muscles further as they manipulate dough. This helps to develop children's hand muscles for further skills, such as early writing.
• Children are keen to join in and are highly interested in the curriculum that staff provide for them. They initiate their own play and develop their own ideas. For example, older children help themselves to materials to paint coloured monsters and eagerly talk about the emotions they are feeling. Children demonstrate positive attitudes to their learning.
• Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) receive good support. The knowledgeable staff work closely with parents and other professionals to establish targeted interventions to support each child. Staff provide an inclusive environment where they value all children and understand their individual needs.
• Staff consistently act as good role models for children. They continuously reinforce good manners and model the behaviour they expect. However, at times, staff give children appropriate instructions to stop certain behaviours without providing an explanation or direction as to why. For example, when several children want the same toy, staff tell them to share. They do not help children to understand what sharing means or how to do it. Staff are not consistent in teaching children how their behaviour may impact on their peers and why rules are important.
• Overall, children have effective communication, language and literacy skills. Staff read a wide variety of stories, which they link to activities to support children's language and literacy skills. For example, staff sing songs and read favourite stories with children. However, at times, staff do not extend children's vocabulary or ask questions that promote full answers from children during activities to extend their communication skills further.
• Staff plan physical opportunities to promote children to develop their gross motor skills. For instance, children enjoy jumping hurdles, throwing balls, using textured stepping stones and playing with the parachute in the garden. Staff support children to develop their fine motor skills as they make marks with paint and sand and manipulate play dough. This builds children's strength in their hand muscles to support their early writing skills.
• Parents speak highly of the nursery, staff and the management team. They comment that communication is very good. Parents comment that this helps them to know what their children have been doing and what they can do to help their children develop further.
• Leaders foster a positive and supportive culture. They offer staff continuous development through high-quality coaching and training. Leaders provide effective supervision sessions to help them to understand staff's strengths. They use regular reviews to help to enhance staff's skills and aspirations. Staff feel highly supported and valued.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• provide more consistent guidance for children to understand why certain expectations for their behaviour are in place
• support staff to enhance children's communication and language skills.