Daisy Chain Day Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy to arrive at the nursery, as staff greet them warmly. They separate confidently from their parents and feel safe and secure. They enjoy a stimulating range of activities and experiences across all the areas of learning that help broaden their knowledge and build on their interests and what they already know. Children have daily opportunities for outdoor play. Babies, younger children and older children have their own outdoor space to practise their physical skills. Babies use walker toys to aid standing and movement. Younger children use wheelbarrows to transport resources and ride on push-along cars and bikes, while older children ride scooters and bikes and construct buildings and ramps independently.

Children are confident talkers who are curious about the world. For example, they are confident to talk to visitors about a helicopter that flew over the nursery. Staff have high expectations of children. For example, staff model how to zip up their coat. Children watch intently and follow the staff's actions and clear instructions, so that they are able to zip up their own coat. This helps children to become independent. Staff promote healthy lives by encouraging children to talk about healthy food choices and why it is important to brush teeth regularly. Children choose which vegetables they would like at lunchtime and serve themselves. Children's choice is prioritised throughout the nursery. For example, staff seek children's consent before changing nappies or helping with intimate care routines.

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

• Leaders and staff use effective systems to share information with parents. They use an online system effectively to share care routines and children's learning. Parents speak highly of the nursery and the progress their children make. They value the caring staff and the regular communication about what their children have been learning each day.
• Children concentrate and pay close attention when listening to stories. Very young babies look at pictures in books and competently turn pages. Older children recall familiar stories, such as 'We're going on a Bear Hunt' and show excitement as they name and re-enact all the actions from the story. Staff are consistent in how they talk to children and teach them new vocabulary. For example, when sharing a non-fiction book about the dentist, children discuss what cavities and X-rays are. Children acquire good communication and language skills for their future education.
• The manager values the staff team and has recently reviewed the system they use to monitor staff. Staff regularly attend meetings and are provided with training opportunities. Senior staff members now mentor and supervise staff in each room. This helps them to identify how to support staff development so that their practice is of the highest quality. However, this system has only recently been implemented and is not yet embedded or been evaluated.
• Staff identify when children are struggling to manage their emotions. Staff role model the behaviour they expect from children and speak to each other with manners and respect. They provide praise and encouragement and help children to make positive choices as they play.
• The manager and staff place a strong focus on supporting children's social and emotional needs. When children first start attending, they are offered gradual settling-in sessions. This helps them to become familiar with staff and the environment before being away from parents for long periods of time. Staff also provide a flexible approach to moving from one room to another. They offer settling-in visits to the next room and are guided by children's stage of development as to when it is appropriate for them to transition.
• Teaching is effective and children make good progress. However, the quality of teaching is occasionally inconsistent. For example, when children are building with blocks, staff do not use questioning effectively to extend children's learning as much as possible to help them make the best possible progress.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• develop consistency of staff practice to use effective questioning to extend children's learning
• embed and evaluate the recently revised mentoring supervision system so that staff practice is raised to the highest level.