Dawes Community Childcare Centre

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children thrive in the nurturing environment created by staff. They say goodbye to their parents and eagerly hang their bags up. They are keen to discover what they will be learning. Every day, children and staff sit together to say good morning. They use sign language to indicate how they are feeling and discuss what is making them feel happy or sad. Children work as a team to gently stretch their muscles while counting both forward and back. They say that they are 'ready to play' and their bodies have 'woken up' after stretching. Children are learning how exercise helps to keep their bodies healthy.

Children are very happy, well mannered and friendly towards each other. Staff role model expected behaviours as they interact and play with the children. Staff have high expectations for children to be confident and independent. This is skilfully built into routines of the day, so children have plenty of practice. For example, children serve themselves a snack using tweezers and spoons. They clear the table after eating then wash and dry up their own plates. Younger children and those new to the setting learn quickly from their peers. Parents feedback that children are keen to use the skills at home that that they have learned at nursery.

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

• Leaders implement an ambitious curriculum that supports all children's learning and development. They use effective assessment methods to identify those who may need more support. Swift referrals mean that children get any additional help they need from other professionals. This prevents them from falling behind and ensures that they make good progress.
• Staff successfully help children to develop a love of books. Children enjoy group story time throughout the day. They listen attentively and try to guess what is going to happen next in the story. Younger children benefit from 1-1 story time with their key person. They select books to read with enthusiasm and giggle as they lift up flaps.
• Staff provide a good balance of adult-led and child-initiated activities based on children's interests. Children demonstrate high levels of motivation and engagement. However, on occasion, staff do not recognise the impact of interrupting children who are engrossed in their play to move them on to another activity. At these times, children do not fully benefit from fully exploring and testing out their ideas.
• Children learn about different cultures and customs. During celebrations, staff wear their traditional dress and introduce food from different countries. Children learn how to say words in different languages. Staff help children to share aspects of their own home life and cultural heritage. This supports children to appreciate diversity and learn what makes them unique.
• Snack and lunchtime is a lovely social occasion which staff and children enjoy together. They hold conversations while staff discuss different fruits and vegetables. For example, children explore a fig and use words like 'squidgy' to describe its texture. Children are learning about healthy eating.
• There is a focus on developing children's language. Staff model and repeat tricky words to children so that they can practice their pronunciation. However, sometimes staff do not always give children time to respond to questions. This does not always allow children to fully develop their communication and language skills.
• Parents feedback that they love the homely and family feel of the nursery. They feel fully supported by staff with changes like toilet training. Parents receive information daily about what their children have been doing. They know what they will be working on next. Children benefit from this partnership work as parents can extend learning at home.
• Staff benefit from ongoing, good-quality supervisions. They receive support from leaders who check on their well-being. Staff say they feel part of a team, and this is evident when they work with the children. There is a culture of sharing best practice so that staff can develop their skills even further, which improves outcomes for children.
• Staff build strong relationships with other settings that children attend. They take children to visit the local school to attend open play sessions and meet the teachers. This supports children to feel secure in new environments. Staff are preparing children for a successful transition to school.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen the support for children to follow their own interests and explore their own ideas to embed their learning
• support staff to use language and interactions that encourage fuller responses from children to further encourage their communication and language skills.