Excel Child Care Services Ltd

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy, settled and show strong bonds with staff. Younger children enjoy lots of hugs and cuddles that help them to feel safe and secure. Babies wake up happily after their nap and quickly join in play. Older children are helpful and join in the daily routines well. They help to set out the tables for lunch and enjoy helping to sweep up. Children behave well. They are considerate to others and take turns well.

Children benefit from a balanced curriculum that effectively supports their learning needs and interests. The well-established key-person system ensures that staff know children well. They identify what children know and what they need to learn next. All children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), make good progress from their starting points.

Children's good health is promoted well during everyday routines, such as washing their hands, blowing their nose and brushing their teeth. Children enjoy a balanced diet and sociable mealtimes where they talk about the foods they like to eat. They keenly copy staff as they make good attempts to twist the noodles on their fork. These self-care skills help children to build their personal independence, ready for the next stage in their education.

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

• The management team and staff have made good progress and successfully met all actions raised at the last inspection. They have reviewed and enhanced the arrangements for staff induction and supervision. This includes reviewing staff's well-being and ongoing suitability to work with children. Staff access a range of relevant training to support their continuous professional development. As a result, staff feel supported and understand the safeguarding procedures and responsibilities of their roles.
• Children enjoy exploring a range of art materials to make their collage, although staff do not always show younger children how to use all resources set out for the activity. However, once children observe and begin the activity, they join in and concentrate very well. They develop their creativity skills and enjoy the praise given by staff for their efforts and achievements.
• Parents comment that their children are very happy at the nursery. They value the support given by staff, and comment that their children's language skills have improved. For example, they say that children sing lots of songs and talk about the foods they have at nursery that they do not have at home.
• Children develop their early literacy skills as they choose and use books independently. However, staff do not regularly review the condition of books to promptly replace books that are worn or damaged with use. This hinders children's experience and enjoyment of books.
• Staff regularly share information with parents about their children's progress, including the progress check at aged two. They work closely with parents and other agencies to ensure that children with SEND gain any additional support that they need.
• Children's early mathematical skills are enhanced during play. Older children confidently count as they jump along the line of the hoops on the floor. During creative activities, children accurately count the tissue paper stuck on staff's fingers and recognise that they have 10 fingers. They learn about shapes and size while independently completing puzzles.
• Children become fully engaged in stories read by staff, and join in with key words and actions. Staff use a range of props to bring the story to life. For example, they use real mud and leaves and spray water for rain and foam for snow during relevant parts of the story. Children develop good speaking and listening skills as they answer questions about the story.
• Staff follow children's interests and enhance their understanding of the world. For example, they talk about snow and show children how the spray can works. Children take turns well as they wait for their turn to hold some foam and clap to make it look like snow.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• further support younger children during focus activities by demonstrating the use of resources, to fully enhance their learning experience
• regularly review the condition of books so that children's enjoyment of books is not hindered by any that are worn or damaged.