Deal Nursery and Forest School

Inclusion: Strong standard

Leaders prioritise children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) and those who face barriers to their learning very well. They consistently make a demonstrable difference to children, including those who face barriers to learning, disadvantage and SEND. For example, staff develop forest school sessions to support children who do not have access to the outdoors each day. Leaders make sure that they prioritise reducing barriers for families to ensure they make a sustained difference to children. Staff know the children very well and use funding very effectively to support individual and specific needs. For example, they develop physical spaces for children to ensure they develop important movement and coordination skills. Those who face disadvantage are provided with specialist aids to support them to take their first steps. This means that children with SEND make significant progress from their starting points.

Children benefit from very well-trained staff. For example, staff swiftly identify training and adapt their practice to support children's specific needs. Staff implement this immediately, ensuring that children benefit straightaway, adapting their support skilfully to ensure they offer targeted and bespoke support for children. This supports significant progress in children's speech and language skills. Leaders ensure that all children benefit from additional sessions to further enhance their skills. For example, children join in with yoga, multi-sports, dance and French sessions, supporting their learning further.

Staff encourage a culture of respect and inclusion. Staff encourage children to talk about their families. This helps to support children to learn about similarities and differences positively. Staff liaise with a wide range of other professionals and partners to secure additional support and help for families where needed. For example, links with the local settings are effective, ensuring that children have a very smooth transition to school.

Curriculum and teaching: Expected standard

Staff provide children with a very well-planned curriculum. Staff use assessment effectively to identify what children know, can do and need to learn next. This means that children are well supported for their next educational stage. Staff focus on developing children's personal, social and emotional skills. For example, babies are regularly cuddled and comforted, supporting them to feel safe and secure. Staff use funding to purchase resources to support older children to identify their feelings, developing their understanding of emotions.

Staff encourage children to join in with favourite songs, rhymes and stories. Babies immediately join in with the song 'Sleeping Bunnies', demonstrating they know the routines well. Older children explore different paints, making marks and learning about colours. These activities support children's knowledge and skills successfully.

Staff encourage children to count and identify numbers. Older children identify how many farm animals they have in a tray, and staff skilfully support them to count on. Staff encourage all children to develop their physical skills. Staff provide additional physical activity sessions, such as football, to enhance this. All children thoroughly enjoy exploring forest school, learning about the natural world. However, during some daily routines, such as some points of transition, children are not always consistently supported by staff to be as focused as they could be. Leaders identify this and take immediate action to support staff with these times. All children enjoy learning and make progress.

Achievement: Strong standard

All children make significant progress. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) who could not walk when they started are now confident movers. Children with SEND benefit from swift interventions and adaptions to ensure they make excellent progress in their communication, listening and attention skills. Children benefit from high-quality support from other partners and professionals, which is organised to support them individually so that they reach their full potential. Children access a wide variety of motivating and interesting activities and experiences to support their confidence and independence. Where for some children, points of transition are a focus for staff, this does not impact on children's achievement or progress. For example, babies learn to choose what they want to eat and use spoons to feed themselves. Older children use cutlery with skill. These activities help all children be very well prepared for their next learning stage. All children flourish and thrive.

Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines: Expected standard

Staff have high expectations for children. Where needed, staff are gentle and sensitive in their interactions with children, reminding them of the rules and routines appropriately. Children develop positive bonds with their friends and staff, demonstrating that they are happy and well cared for.

All children attend regularly, and this impacts positively on the progress they make. Staff know the children well. They identify what children need to learn next, supporting children's individual interests successfully. For example, staff ensure that children with special educational needs and/or disabilities settle in well. They make sure that they provide children's favourite toys, helping them to feel secure. As such, children develop very positive attitudes to each other and their learning.

However, at some points of transition, for example mealtimes, opportunities for some children to remain focused and engaged are not embedded as consistently. At these times, this means that children are not supported by staff as well as they could be to join in with other activities to support their learning even further. Despite this, children demonstrate that they are happy and play with their friends collaboratively. For example, children enjoy exploring during their forest school sessions, learning about the natural world and moving in different ways.

Children's welfare and wellbeing: Strong standard

Leaders and staff prioritise children's welfare and wellbeing. Leaders regularly review processes and procedures to ensure that all children's emotional wellbeing is at the forefront of their practice. Staff provide babies with frequent cuddles and reassurance. Older children receive regular praise for persevering. Staff are highly responsive to individual needs. For example, staff talk with children about how they are feeling. Babies are encouraged to learn to recognise different emotions. Staff encourage older children to advocate for themselves. These activities support all children's emotional wellbeing, self-esteem and confidence successfully.

Staff encourage children to make healthy choices and manage their self-care. For example, babies learn to use spoons to manage their meals. Older children wash their hands and put out bowls and cups for their friends at snack time. These skills promote children's understanding of how to keep themselves healthy and safe effectively.

Staff encourage children of all ages to be physically healthy. Babies learn to balance and move, supporting their coordination skills effectively. Older children enjoy additional yoga sessions, learning how their bodies move. These very well-embedded practices ensure that children learn to make consistently healthy choices and support children's physical and mental health very well.

Staff ensure that they provide targeted and individualised support so children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children who face barriers to their learning make significant progress in their learning and development. Leaders regularly review practice and provision to ensure they consistently prioritise children's welfare and wellbeing. They support families very well to ensure that parents and carers are provided with support where needed to help their children settle in. As such, all children feel welcomed and safe.

Leadership and governance: Strong standard

Leaders and managers are very reflective and proactive. They are committed to providing high-quality care and education for all children and to making a difference. Leaders continuously review what they offer and have effective plans in place to enhance the setting further, providing more opportunities for children to learn and develop. For example, leaders accurately identified where support for staff could be enhanced and immediately supported staff's confidence with regard to this. They have instilled a culture of continuous improvement, where staff immediately ask for feedback and adapt practice in the moment, improving practice and provision straightaway. Leaders have a consistent focus on securing excellence for all children and have high expectations. This ensures they make a significant positive difference to children and families. For example, leaders are in the process of training for a therapy dog to join the setting, supporting children and staff's emotional wellbeing. They have plans to extend the environment for younger children, providing them with more space to explore. This will impact significantly on children's experiences.

Leaders and managers have an accurate understanding of the setting's strengths and areas for future development. They prioritise support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) and children who face barriers in their learning. They seek specialist advice and support to ensure that staff are well trained to support all children and families. This has a direct impact on the progress children make. Staff's workloads are reviewed regularly, and staff report high levels of support and wellbeing. Parents and carers speak highly of the setting, citing significant progress their children have made in confidence, independence and behaviour. They especially praise the support for children with SEND.