Eljoy Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Leaders and staff provide a safe and welcoming space for children. They are consistently kind and attentive, join in with children's play and offer reassurance when needed. As a result, children settle well and show that they feel happy and secure. They confidently make choices about their play and tell staff about their needs and interests.

Staff have high expectations for children's behaviour. They remind them about using polite language and support them as they learn to share and take turns. Staff help children to understand the consequences of their actions and to express their emotions in positive ways, which aids their self-regulation. Children listen to staff and are keen to behave well. For instance, children are quick to help tidy up after their play. They show their friends where to put away the toys and take turns with using the dustpan and brush.

Leaders and staff provide an ambitious curriculum for children. There is a rich range of first-hand experiences, which bring children's learning to life. This includes regular outings, such as visits to a local railway station. Children learn about the processes of using public transport, which supports their understanding of everyday technology. They also enjoy making announcements over the station loudspeaker, which helps to boost their confidence in speaking. These exciting experiences foster children's positive attitudes to learning.

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

• Leaders have worked hard to address weaknesses identified at the last inspection. They work alongside staff, ensuring that children's development is accurately monitored and any gaps in their learning are quickly identified. Leaders provide effective training for staff, to help them to foster children's individual needs. They seek support and advice from outside professionals where needed, so that all children make the progress they are capable of.
• Staff introduce children to mathematical ideas and vocabulary in fun and interesting ways. They model how to count as they sing nursery rhymes and discuss weight and volume as children fill containers with water. Children show confidence in their mathematical knowledge. For example, children purposefully join magnetic shapes to create props for their imaginative play. They use triangles to represent ice-cream cones and two squares to make a folding mobile phone.
• There is consistent support for children's communication skills. Staff introduce a broad range of vocabulary and encourage children's speech through questioning, role play, stories and songs. They consider the needs of children who speak English as an additional language, using visual prompts to aid their understanding of rules and routines. Children become confident and effective communicators.
• Staff encourage children to develop healthy habits for later life. They provide nutritious meals, oversee good hygiene and encourage plenty of physical activity. Staff teach children about other professionals who can help them to stay well. For instance, they arrange visits from doctors and nurses. Children learn about their different roles and the equipment they use, helping them to feel comfortable about visiting surgeries or hospitals.
• Children begin to manage their own personal care. For example, staff encourage them to feed themselves and to wash their hands at appropriate times. However, staff do not consistently support children to build further on these skills, such as progressing from eating with spoons to using knives and forks.
• Staff present activities in fun and engaging ways, which draws children in and supports their engagement in learning. Children persevere in their self-chosen challenges. For example, they show confidence and enthusiasm as they build life-sized models of their peers. Children demonstrate resilience when their models fall over. They practise problem-solving skills as they work together to rebuild them.
• Staff say they feel part of a happy and supportive team. They have regular supervision sessions and access to a wide range of further training, to foster good practice and extend their childcare qualifications. This includes regular mandatory training to help them to keep children safe and well.
• Parents and carers describe staff as incredibly patient, warm and nurturing. They say the nursery is 'the perfect space for little ones to grow, learn and explore'. Parents comment that communication has improved greatly, and they are well informed about their children's care and development. They describe effective partnership working with staff, to promote children's toilet training, oral hygiene and healthy eating habits.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support staff to strengthen the opportunities for children to build further on their personal care skills.