Daisy Chains Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children arrive happy and eager to start their day at this friendly nursery. Staff plan individualised settling-in procedures for new starters. This allows children to begin to become familiar with their environment and their key person. Staff are knowledgeable and give children practical and emotional support. This helps children to build trusting bonds with the staff and to feel safe and secure.

Staff plan an ambitious curriculum, and they focus sharply on children's communication and language development. They narrate what they do and repeat key words and phrases to children. For instance, while young children explore the different smells of fruits, staff use simple words such as 'lemon' and 'grapefruit'. Furthermore, staff use opportunities throughout the day for children to be immersed in songs and stories. Children have opportunities to choose the story they would like to hear and enjoy retelling their favourite ones through play. Children develop good concentration skills and listen intently to shared stories, joining in with familiar phrases. Children are becoming confident communicators.

Staff are good role models and have high expectations for children's behaviour. They help children to understand and manage their own feelings. Staff talk to children about how they feel and use pictures to help them understand their different emotions. This helps children to form friendships and play cooperatively together.

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

• Leaders of this nursery are passionate about delivering an inclusive setting for all. They have developed a good curriculum with a focus on children's speech and social skills. Mostly, staff have a good understanding of what it is they want children to learn and how to plan activities based around these intentions. However, on occasion, staff do not implement activities well enough to build on what children already know and can do. This means children leave some activities too quickly.
• Staff promote children's independence well. They encourage children's self-care within their daily routines. Younger children are growing in confidence as they learn to use cutlery at mealtimes. Staff encourage children to keep trying. For example, they give children plenty of time to put their coats on ready to play outside. This helps children to succeed.
• Staff teach children how to keep themselves healthy. For example, children know to wash their hands before mealtimes. Staff talk to children about the different foods and drinks that are good for them and the importance of oral hygiene. This helps to promote children's good health.
• Overall, children have positive attitudes to learning. For example, they make creative pictures with paint and develop their imagination by pretending to be hairdressers. However, the daily routine is structured in such a way that staff sometimes stop play unnecessarily without warning. For instance, staff encourage children to tidy away their activities to move on to the next activity, which interrupts children's learning. Occasionally, this impacts on children's ability to become deeply engaged in their learning.
• Behaviour in the nursery is good. Staff support children to be kind and build friendships. For example, children are encouraged to take turns as they share the hairbrushes in the hairdresser area. Staff provide children with lots of praise and warm smiles. This supports children's self-esteem.
• The support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) is strong. Staff work closely with parents and external agencies to ensure the best outcomes for all children. Leaders act with integrity to ensure that children with SEND receive the highest level of support. For example, staff complete specific training to support children's individual needs. This means staff are fully informed of any care or developmental needs to support children.
• Leaders have a high regard for staff training. For example, staff have undertaken training to support children's language and communication skills. This has supported them to plan group times to further develop children's language skills.
• Partnerships with parents are strong. Staff work hard to get to know the family, which helps them to tailor children's care and learning to meet their individual needs. Parents comment on the excellent communication that they receive from the nursery. They say that staff are 'nurturing' and 'amazing'.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support staff to focus their teaching on intentions for children's learning during planned activities, so that younger children remain engaged and learning intentions are met
• improve opportunities so that children can continue to explore and expand their learning for longer periods without interruptions.