Fun Kids Nurseries

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Parents say how happy their children are to come to nursery. They describe how staff welcome their child in, asking about their morning. For example, staff ask if they have walked to nursery or come by car. They know children's routines well and use conversations to support their move from home into the nursery.

Children come together to start their day with singing, listening to a favourite story, and discussing how they are feeling. Staff give children time to talk about their personal experiences or emotions linked to the story. Children behave very well. Older children share toys and take turns, with minimal support from staff. Children who require additional help or children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are quickly identified. Staff attend training and quickly begin to use specific interventions to support children's attention. Staff track children's development well to ensure that they make progress.

Activities are creatively planned and presented around children's interests. For instance, children have opportunities to plant seeds and watch them grow as they nurture them with water. Some fruits and vegetables are used in the nursery. Children also get to take them home and share what they have grown with their family.

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

• Since the last inspection, leaders have focused their attention on developing their team. Staff in the nursery have gained professional early years qualifications, with some studying at a higher level. Links have been established with the local early years and area SEND teams, who have provided training. Through sharing their vision, leaders have inspired their staff.
• Staff are positive role models. They use 'please' and 'thank you' and negotiate with colleagues to share tasks to be completed. Children are kind. They play together cooperatively and share resources without prompting. Children learn to respect others and value differences as they learn about festivals from other cultures and religions. Staff praise and encourage children and build their self-esteem.
• Staff working in the baby room build very strong attachments to the children. They fully understand their role as key persons and make sure that babies and young children are well cared for and have the attention and support they need. For example, staff encourage the children to move around to explore their environment. Staff remain close by to offer reassurance and praise as babies begin to develop their physical skills.
• Staff follow children's direction. For example, children ask questions and share experiences when staff read a book during morning circle time. Children discuss when they have been sad, angry or frightened. Staff recap on what children are sharing and how they were supported with their feelings. Children remain fully engaged as they share their thoughts and confidently speak in the large group.
• Staff use children's interests to creatively provide activities to build on what children know. For example, older children look for minibeasts hidden in soil. Children discuss their features, such as the number of legs that spiders have, or how caterpillars move. However, on some occasions, staff ask questions but do not give children enough time to think about and answer them, to extend their communication skills further.
• Staff in each area come together to plan activities for the children in their care. They incorporate children's individual, tailored next steps by having different aims for each child. They are skilled in guiding and supporting children's learning as they play. They have a good understanding of how children learn. However, staff are not always clear about which role they are taking, such as which staff are leading the activity. On occasion, enthusiastic staff speak at the same time, leaving children unclear on what they are doing and how they should respond.
• Leaders and staff keep the needs of children and families at the centre of what they do. Parents say that they feel that staff go 'over and above' and the nursery feels like 'family' as all staff are supportive and sensitive to the needs of their family.
• Leaders regularly evaluate practice. Systems, such as peer-on-peer observations, regular evaluations from parents, and continuous reflection on practice, ensure that leaders know where staff need support. Regular team meetings, supervision, and training have helped to develop relationships between staff, who are motived and have a real sense of job satisfaction.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• monitor the impact of the changes made to planning, to ensure systems are in place for ongoing reflection and improvement
• give children the time they need to answer questions to extend back-and-forth interactions.