First Steps Day Nursery

Inclusion: Expected standard

Partnership with parents is at the heart of the setting's inclusive practice. The regular conversations and collaboration between staff and parents supports children's progress. The key-person system is well embedded and therefore, staff maintain a clear understanding of children's needs and interests. Where children speak English as an additional language, staff learn some key words in the child's home language. This helps children to feel settled and supports their engagement in the day. Where children have gaps in learning, staff use observation and assessment to monitor progress and they offer additional support where required. For example, staff use their knowledge from training around communication to offer strategies that support children's language and communication.

Leaders attend meetings and collaborate with other professionals, such as health visitors and teaching staff in schools. Where children attend more than one setting, staff work closely with parents to ensure there is a coordinated approach to support. Leaders acknowledge that strengthening work with other settings that children attend could further improve the consistency of care and education for these children across different environments.

Leaders consider how any additional funding could be used if it was in place for individual children. They are keen to ensure that any funding would be used to support the children it is identified for to make progress.

Curriculum and teaching: Expected standard

Leaders have developed a broad and balanced curriculum that reflects the needs and interests of the children who attend. Staff understand what they want children to learn and use assessment effectively to plan experiences that build on children's starting points and support their next steps. Overall activities are adapted well to enable children of different ages and stages of development, including those with health needs and those who speak English as an additional language, to participate fully in learning.

Staff promote children's communication, physical skills and social skills throughout the day. Babies are delighted as they point at pictures in a book. They name items on each page and staff respond. This helps them to develop back-and-forth conversation. Toddlers enjoy walking on uneven surfaces. This helps their balance and coordination. Children benefit from opportunities to socialise. Staff support them to turn take with friends and children become increasingly able to manage in a small group. They develop skills that will support them when they transition on to school. Staff help children learn about mathematics. Younger children develop mathematical language such as 'big' and 'small'. Songs are used to develop knowledge of number sequence. As children progress through the setting, they become skilled in counting and exploring patterns and shapes. All children are making progress and achieving expected standards of development across all areas of the early years foundation stage.

Overall, staff interactions are of a high quality and staff demonstrate knowledge about how to support children's learning effectively. However, very occasionally, some staff interactions do not extend and deepen children's learning. For example, from time-to-time, staff show children what to do, but interactions do not support children to be curious or to problem solve. On these occasions, teaching does not help children to excel.

Achievement: Expected standard

Children typically develop the knowledge and skills they need for the next stage of their learning. They make progress from their individual starting points and develop communication, physical, mathematical and personal skills expected for their age and stage of development. As they move through the nursery, children thrive. They become increasingly confident learners who are eager to take part in new experiences.

Children develop a wide vocabulary and can communicate their ideas, explain their feelings and develop positive relationships with others. They demonstrate increasing independence during everyday routines.

Children with barriers to learning achieve well because they are supported to work towards accurate developmental targets that reflect their individual needs. Consequently, children are well prepared for transitions within the nursery and are well supported to be ready for school.

Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines: Expected standard

Children typically behave well and develop positive relationships with their peers and staff. Staff create a calm and welcoming environment where children feel secure and understand what is expected of them. Overall, children follow familiar routines throughout the day. Babies are helped to wash their hands before meals, toddlers find their own bedding at nap time and pre-school children serve their own lunch and help to tidy away resources. These routines help children develop independence and confidence.

Staff consistently model kind and caring behaviours. They support children to share, take turns and develop friendships through play and everyday experiences. Staff skilfully use story times to help children discuss feelings. They help children to consider how their behaviour might make their friends feel. Children typically demonstrate positive behaviour. Pre-school children are beginning to form friendships and develop social skills that will support them as they transition on to school.

Staff recognise the importance of regular attendance and work closely with families to promote this. They have procedures for following up absences, helping children benefit fully from the curriculum.

Children's welfare and wellbeing: Expected standard

Staff create a warm, nurturing environment where children feel safe and secure. Key-person systems consider ways that key staff can be present at handover and collection. This supports consistency for families and helps to ensure that necessary information is shared. This helps to keep children safe and well. Settling-in processes are planned effectively. As a result, staff build trusting relationships with children. They know children well and consider their individual needs throughout the day. This helps children feel safe and ready to learn. Staff typically promote children's health and wellbeing. They teach children about healthy lifestyles through nutritious meals and snacks, which are planned with the advice of a dietician. Children's physical development is supported with regular opportunities for outdoor play.

Staff encourage children to develop independence and make appropriate choices. This supports children's growing confidence and self-esteem. Staff understand children's individual health, care and dietary needs and ensure that these are met appropriately. For example, staff implement individual care plans consistently and make appropriate adaptations to the environment. This enables children with differing needs, such as allergies, to participate safely in nursery life and supports their health and wellbeing.

Leadership and governance: Expected standard

Leaders have established a well embedded and stable staff team who understand their ambitions and are motivated to make continual improvements. Leaders know and understand the needs of the families attending and work hard to be flexible, managing resources to meet the needs of each child and family.

Leaders understand the strengths of the setting and the areas they want to improve next. As a result, children are making steady progress. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those known to be vulnerable are quickly identified and benefit from a well-planned curriculum that is closely tailored to their needs.

Leaders provide a wealth of support to the staff team, ensuring their workload is manageable. Staff supervision and training is embedded and staff say they feel well supported. Leaders have identified occasional inconsistencies in the quality of teaching. As a result, they have spent time modelling high-quality practice throughout the setting. However, leaders do not always sharply focus training and development on the needs of individual staff.