Flying Start Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children thoroughly enjoy attending this setting. They independently put their lunch boxes away and find their pegs to hang their coats. Children show curiosity and a real zest for knowledge as they engage with this thoughtfully planned environment. Children explore with play dough and join in with junk modelling. Staff build on children's knowledge by exploring real vegetables in the home corner, and they learn the vocabulary for 'aubergine', 'turnip' and 'leek'.

The entrance hall has been made more of a natural, calming environment to help children feel calm and settled in small groups. Children seek out their key person for comfort and reassurance when needed. This means that children are supported to continue to feel secure in their environment.

The forest school sessions offer children a rich learning experience. They learn about the natural world around them. For example, children and staff discuss how worms hear through vibrations and how birds attract worms to the surface to be eaten. Children have plenty of opportunities to be physically active, indoors and outdoors. For instance, they climb obstacle courses, using soft play blocks, and learn skills such as kicking a ball and climbing and balancing along a fallen tree trunk.

Children are encouraged to be independent throughout their time at the setting. They put on their coats and shoes to go outside and wash their hands independently. Children behave well. Clear expectations ensure that children know how they should behave. They receive extensive praise from staff when they play cooperatively together and take turns.

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

• The intentions for learning are based on what the manager and staff know about the children and what they feel is important for them to learn and experience. Recent changes to the curriculum and routines have improved children's concentration.
• Children's communication development is prioritised well by staff. They plan activities and support to address gaps in children's communication and language and their social skills. Staff get down to the children's level and listen and extend their language effectively. Strategies such as these help children to make good progress in their communication and language.
• Children's additional needs are identified early, and staff provide swift and targeted support. For example, additional funding has been used to purchase resources and activities to support children's specific needs. As a result, children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) join in with activities well, and they have made excellent progress from their starting points.
• Staff use observations and assessments to identify gaps in children's learning. These assessments are used to identify children's next steps and inform staff's planning. Staff show an understanding of the benefits of communicating with staff at other settings children also attend. However, staff have not yet fully established working in partnership with staff at these other settings to gain a full picture of children's developmental needs. This means that children who attend other settings lack consistency in their learning.
• Teaching is consistently good. Staff provide opportunities for children to think and share their ideas and collaborate with adults. For example, children think of ways to measure how tall ferns grow in the local woodland by creating a height chart.
• Parents are highly complimentary about the nursery. They comment that staff are 'kind' and 'warm', and their children love attending. Parents appreciate the regular communication from the key person about their children's progress and support provided. They see the positive impact that attending the nursery has on their children's learning, particularly their confidence and speech.
• Children sit together at mealtimes and socialise with each other and staff. Staff give clear messages to parents regarding healthy meals, including the contents of healthy packed lunches. However, staff do not consistently reinforce these messages during children's play. For example, staff do not extend or challenge children's understanding of healthy food options during activities, such as while looking at pictures of a variety of food. This does not fully support children to learn how to make healthy choices in relation to food.
• Staff report being well supported by the leadership team. They benefit from regular supervision, which focuses on children's learning, training needs and staff well-being. Therefore, staff morale is high, and teamwork is effective.
• The managers are very reflective in their practice to enable them to improve outcomes for children. They are able to identify the strengths and areas for development.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen the sharing of information with other settings that children attend to support a consistent approach across all aspects of children's development
• support children further to improve their understanding of the importance of making healthy choices around food.