Future Stars Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children at this nursery are happy, content and settled. Toddlers smile with excitement as they play, while the older children have good-quality interactions with the staff and their friends. Staff deliver an interesting curriculum that keeps children fully engaged. Staff plan exciting and challenging experiences and activities that motivate children to learn and develop. Staff are responsive to children's individual needs and interests. For example, they follow children's fascination with animals and plan stories and arts and crafts activities associated with farm animals. Staff teach children listening, attention and communication skills effectively. For example, in a group, older children discuss how to keep their teeth healthy and clean. They share their experiences of going to the dentist. Children behave very well and know the importance of kindness and showing respect for one another.

Children have plenty of opportunities for fresh air and exercise as they move freely around the indoor and outdoor play areas. They enjoy balancing as they walk across a low-level obstacle course and learn how to use hoops, wheeled toys and a small trampoline safely. They thoroughly enjoy using their umbrellas when it rains and offer cover to their friends and staff from the rain. All children make good levels of progress in their learning, including children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) and children in receipt of additional funding.

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

• The quality of teaching and interactions between the staff and children are good. Staff work closely with other professionals to adapt activities to make them inclusive and ensure that they meet the needs of individual children. This supports all children, including children with SEND and children in receipt of additional funding, in their learning and development. For instance, older children enhance their communication and language, mathematics and literary skills effectively.
• Staff promote children's love for books. They read a range of stories to children throughout the day. Staff gain children's engagement by using expression in their voices, visual aids and props. They encourage children to join in with familiar verses and repeat key words. Staff ask children questions about the characters and story plot. However, at times, staff do not provide children with enough time to think through their ideas and formulate their responses.
• Children engage in pretend play enthusiastically, such as taking orders and making meals in a role-play restaurant. Staff join in, supporting the children's play by asking open-ended questions and encouraging them to think. Staff involvement helps to foster an environment for children to develop their creativity and imagination.
• Staff enhance children's problem-solving and planning abilities. For instance, when designing a house for the three pigs, children are provided with a range of materials such as sticks, string, card, pipe cleaners and hay. They also engage children in group discussions about which house is the strongest and weakest. However, there are times when group activities are not arranged effectively enough. Some of these activities do not fully encourage all children to participate at their highest level.
• Staff have created a safe environment for children to grow into independent and well-behaved children. Children are kind and caring towards each other, their environment and the staff. They demonstrate their good independence skills as they put on their aprons before messy play and use tissues to clean their hands and noses. The lunchtime helpers proudly set the tables.
• Parents speak highly of staff. They appreciate the information they receive about the children's day and ongoing events through newsletters and emails. Parents feel the staff at the nursery know their children's individual needs very well. Parents are actively involved in their children's learning.
• Since the previous inspection, leaders and staff have worked diligently to address the actions raised. For example, they sought guidance from a professional expert, a specialist early years adviser and a professional mentor. In addition, regular supervision and focused professional development opportunities for the staff have helped to promote positive outcomes for all children.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• give children more time to think and respond to questions, developing their communication and language skills even further
• review the planning of group activities to match the age and stage of development of all children so that activities fully engage them.