Emscote House Day Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy and settled at this welcoming and friendly nursery. They enjoy the time they spend at nursery and readily engage in a good range of play activities that are age-appropriate and based on their interests. Children make choices from the well-resourced environment. They readily explore and develop their own ideas. Pre-school children show sustained levels of concentration as they use scissors to cut out shapes to create a picture of a rocket. They excitedly join in with activities outdoors, pretending to go on a bear hunt and joining in with games such as hide and seek. Toddler children enjoy taking part in yoga sessions. Babies settle well and develop strong bonds with familiar adults. Staff follow children's home routines and offer children frequent cuddles and reassurance when needed. This helps them to feel emotionally secure.

Children behave well and staff demonstrate high expectations for their behaviour. Children cooperate well together and play happily with their friends. They learn how to use good manners and be respectful towards other people's feelings. Overall, staff prepare children well for the next stage of learning, including moving on to school.

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

• Staff plan a varied curriculum. They use their observations and assessments of children to help inform them about what children need to learn next. Children are provided with high-quality and exciting learning experiences to help them make progress across all areas of learning.
• Children's communication and language skills are well supported. Staff engage children in frequent conversations and discussions. They model language clearly and introduce new words to children. Staff regularly share stories with children, which helps to promote their emerging interest in reading.
• Older children develop independence skills. They learn to manage their own self-care needs, using the toilet themselves and dressing for outdoor play. Children readily help with small tasks, such as tidying away after an activity before moving on to the next.
• Staff use appropriate methods to manage children's behaviour. They gently remind pre-school children of the rules throughout the day. For example, children are asked to use 'indoor voices' and 'kind hands'. Staff praise children for their good behaviours and kind actions.
• Managers and staff act quickly to identify children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children who speak English as an additional language. They engage well with other professionals to ensure that children receive the support they need. This helps to ensure that any gaps in children's learning are swiftly closed.
• Healthy meals and snacks are provided on site and adhere to any individual dietary requirements. Staff make mealtimes sociable events. Older children help to set the table, counting out and laying the cutlery. Babies are fed in small groups, with older babies gradually supported to use spoons to feed themselves.
• Staff express how happy they are in their roles, stating that they feel supported and valued by leaders. The management team provides good opportunities for staff to keep all mandatory training up to date, such as safeguarding and first aid. Staff receive regular supervision meetings to help them fully understand their roles and responsibilities. However, managers could focus more on improving staff's knowledge and skills, to further enhance the teaching of the curriculum.
• Partnership with parents is good. Parents talk very highly of the nursery. They say that the staff are friendly and approachable. Staff share regular information with parents about their children's progress. However, information-sharing with some other settings that the children attend could be extended to further promote continuity in children's care and learning experiences.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• build further on professional development opportunities for staff in order to enhance the quality of teaching to the highest level
• develop partnerships with other settings attended by children to promote continuity in children's care and learning experiences.