Fennies Teddington

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children happily arrive at this very welcoming nursery. They settle in quickly when they first start and develop strong bonds with their key person and other staff. Children safely and confidently explore the learning environment. They develop positive attitudes towards learning because staff have high expectations of them. Children have access to a good-quality curriculum. They enjoy listening to stories and develop a love for books. Children develop good communication and language skills and become confident talkers. All children, including those in receipt of funding and children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), make consistently good progress in their learning and development.

Children are active and regularly access fresh air. They benefit from regular professional physical education sessions, where they test their physical abilities. Children enjoy being creative in their art studio. For example, they use their imagination, small-muscle movements and a range of modelling materials to create jewellery for an upcoming special occasion. Children build on their mathematical skills at every opportunity. For example, babies mimic staff counting fish during rhyme time, and toddlers carefully decide how many spoonfuls of different ingredients they need when making play dough. Children at the pre-school count in sequence during play. Children are kind and caring, behave well and respect each other's differences.

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

• The inspiring manager constantly evaluates the service and strives for improvements, involving staff, parents, children and other professionals. She works tirelessly and creates a culture of trust and love across the nursery. The manager has an individualised approach towards each staff member and knows how to build on their strengths, including through tailored supervision sessions, guidance and training. This means that the quality of provision for children is constantly improving.
• Leaders and staff develop a curriculum that is ambitious and well sequenced for all children to help them achieve their best potential. They regularly assess children's progress and plan for children's next steps in learning successfully.
• Children develop a high level of independence. For instance, babies wipe their hands before mealtimes. Other children proudly pour water themselves and drink from an open cup. They also serve and clear away after themselves at mealtimes. Pre-school children have a motto of 'I will try', and they eagerly have a go at trying new things.
• The manager works with other professionals successfully to ensure children with SEND receive early intervention and progress well in their development.
• Babies fulfil their sensory needs. They explore the texture of the foam and sand and follow the trail of bubbles. Toddlers use their imagination and create artistic collages. Pre-school children show a good level of concentration during activities. They enjoy making marks and develop skills such as cutting and sorting. Children are well prepared for school when the time comes.
• Children learn how to lead healthy lifestyles. For example, they have access to healthy and nutritious meals throughout the day and discuss how healthy food makes them strong.
• Children benefit from learning new languages, such as Spanish and French. However, children who learn English as an additional language have fewer opportunities to hear and use their home language in their play and learning. The manager has plans to address this.
• The manager works exceptionally well with parents. She creates a strong working partnership with them. Parents are partners who are informed about their children's care and learning every step of the way. This helps to provide consistency in children's development. The manager invites parents in for open mornings and to share their skills with others. This strengthens links with other parents and helps children learn about and value different occupations.
• Staff are proud of their workplace and talk very highly of the new manager. They are thankful for having a voice, which helps to form trust and transparency across the nursery.
• Staff consider children's abilities when planning for their learning. However, staff do not always follow children's interests to build on their learning even further, and activities are mostly adult led. The manager identifies the weaknesses and sets priorities to advance learning opportunities constantly for children.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• enrich opportunities for child-led play and build on children's interests when planning for their learning
• build on current opportunities for children to hear their home language in their play and learning.