Dragonflies Nursery Limited

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are warmly welcomed into the nursery by the friendly, familiar staff, who know them and their families well. Children display positive relationships with the staff, who care for them and are eager to begin their play. Children enthusiastically engage in sensory activities alongside their peers. They explore the texture of paint and initiate their own learning, painting on their hands before making prints with them on paper. Staff are good role models. They sit alongside children to guide their learning, introducing simple language to describe the paint, such as 'green' and 'cold'.

Staff plan a broad and well-sequenced curriculum with a primary focus on children's well-being. They support children to develop secure attachments and a sense of safety before building on their communication skills and physical development. As children grow, staff help them to develop independence and confidence in all areas of learning, preparing them for the move to school when the time comes. Outdoor activities play a key role in the curriculum. Staff regularly take children on trips to the nearby forest area. Older children learn important life skills, such as road safety, and follow forest rules, such as 'no picking or licking'. Children explore at their own pace. Staff encourage them to use information books to support their search for mushrooms. Children excitedly collect conkers and leaves to place inside baubles they make, which they take home at the end of the day to share with their families.

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

• Partnerships with parents are strong. Staff keep parents informed through daily discussions about children's experiences and progress, as well as by adding photos to children's online learning records. Parents' feedback is positive. They praise the stimulating environment and the wide range of experiences available to their children, such as forest school. Parents describe the staff as passionate, noting, 'the love they have for their job and the children shines through.'
• Staff work closely with parents to assess children's knowledge and skills. They use this information to help them plan for children's next steps in learning. These next steps are displayed in the rooms to help staff focus on them during children's play. In the pre-school room, the next steps are clear and measurable, enabling staff to effectively support children's development. However, in the baby and toddler room, the next steps are often too broad and sometimes focus on resources rather than specific learning intentions. This means that not all staff are able to easily identify and support children's next steps in learning to help them to make the best possible progress.
• Children behave well because they understand the expectations set by staff, who remind them of the rules throughout the day. The rules are age-appropriate and staff encourage older children to create their own rules, promoting a sense of ownership. This approach helps children to reflect on and regulate their behaviour. For example, children remind each other to use their 'indoor voices' and 'kind hands'.
• All children develop good early literacy skills. They enjoy looking at books and listening to stories, both independently and with staff. Staff support young children's communication and language development by singing familiar songs, encouraging participation with sign language and actions.
• Staff effectively support children's self-care skills. They ask young children for permission before wiping their noses or changing their nappies, and they remind older children to wash their hands at regular intervals throughout the day. This helps them to understand the importance of good hygiene practice. After lunch, young children sleep peacefully in comfortable surroundings. Staff provide individual sheets and blankets for each child and stay with them to monitor their safety and well-being.
• Leaders actively build connections with the local community and use available experiences to enrich children's learning. Children engage in physical activity lessons in the community hall and learn to handle and respect young animals when a mobile farm regularly visits the nursery.
• Staff meet with leaders regularly to discuss best practice and identify professional development opportunities to further enhance their good knowledge and skills. However, there are times when there are some minor inconsistencies in the quality of teaching. For example, staff interrupt children's engagement at song time to change their nappies. This means that children's focus, attention and concentration are broken, hindering their engagement during important learning opportunities.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• ensure next steps for the youngest children are more precise so that staff know what they need to do and can provide more targeted support that these children need to achieve
• support staff to avoid unnecessary interruptions during important learning opportunities, such as song time, to fully promote children's focus, attention and engagement.