GEMS Nursery and Out of School Club

Inclusion: Strong standard

Leaders and staff identify and assess children's needs swiftly and accurately. Daily wellbeing checks on every child as they arrive ensure that any barriers to children's welfare are spotted early. Comprehensive assessments and close monitoring of children's progress help staff identify emerging barriers to learning. When concerns arise, staff act quickly, working with parents and other professionals to ensure children receive the right help at the right time. Staff are trained and knowledgeable in supporting children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. They introduce individual learning plans promptly when concerns emerge about a child's progress. Leaders monitor interventions closely and review them regularly to ensure they are effective and make a meaningful difference for each child.

Many children in the nursery speak English as an additional language. Leaders and staff take full account of this, and it shapes their routines, curriculum and teaching strategies. Staff prioritise children's language and understanding, helping them to develop English skills rapidly as the foundation for accessing all areas of learning more effectively.

Children who face disadvantage are supported well. Leaders use additional funding thoughtfully, for example to provide extra staff who deliver close focused teaching to help children develop the language skills they need to take full part in nursery life and learn alongside their peers. Families who face financial hardship appreciate the nursery's practical support, including providing meals and snacks when needed. This inclusive approach ensures that children with a wide range of needs and backgrounds are able to participate fully and thrive.

Curriculum and teaching: Expected standard

Leaders share a clear vision for teaching and learning through their bespoke curriculum, which is rooted in current research and early childhood theory. They understand the barriers faced by their children and shape the curriculum to accelerate progress from day one. The curriculum prioritises communication, independence and confidence in learning to support children's future success. Leaders' aspirations are that children become not only 'school ready' but also 'world ready'. Much teaching takes place through hands-on experiences in the community, which staff consider to be a classroom. Learning is therefore meaningful, and children make links that help them to remember and build on what they know.

The quality of teaching is developing swiftly. During activities such as ice play, threading and drawing, staff model new skills, encourage children's speaking and thinking skills and scaffold learning through appropriate support and challenge. However, staff do not consistently engage children's interest during some adult-led activities. They do not always prepare children for learning or secure their attention before starting. At times, staff allow children to leave activities by choice, which disrupts their otherwise valuable learning opportunities.

The curriculum is highly inclusive and responsive to children's individual needs. Staff adapt approaches for children who speak English as an additional language, those from disadvantaged backgrounds and those facing other barriers to their learning. Leaders celebrate staff strengths and are taking evidently successful steps to ensure further consistency in high-quality teaching across the team.

Achievement: Strong standard

Children achieve remarkably well across all areas of learning, particularly given the barriers they face when they join the nursery. Those who speak English as an additional language develop English speaking skills rapidly and progress to using a wide and varied vocabulary. This gives them the secure foundations they need to make progress across all other areas of learning. Children recognise numbers, compare quantities and solve simple problems, showing strong early mathematical understanding. They develop friendships and social skills, for example enjoying social occasions at the local café where they order food and share a meal with their friends. Carefully planned activities help children to identify and manage their feelings.

Children who speak English as an additional language, and those facing disadvantage or other barriers to their learning, make rapid progress from their starting points, many of which are significantly low. Despite minor weaknesses in teaching, which occasionally affect attention and engagement, gaps in children's learning close quickly. All children develop a secure foundation of knowledge and skills, across all areas of learning, that prepares them well for later learning and life.

Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines: Expected standard

Leaders provide clear direction for behaviour and routines. Staff use calm, positive language and build warm relationships that help children to feel secure. For much of the day, children show positive attitudes, follow instructions and enjoy their learning. For example, during yoga and sensory activities, children behave well and their engagement is strong. However, sometimes, children's engagement is less consistent when boundaries are not upheld. Although staff remind children to listen and follow instructions, some choose not to, challenge staff or ignore what is asked of them. Staff do not always follow this through, so children are not consistently clear about expectations for their behaviour and engagement. This disrupts staff's teaching and affects other children's learning. Some children leave activities when their play is interrupted or when expectations are unclear.

Routines are well established and help children to feel settled and secure, as well as promoting their safety. For example, children are very familiar with how to form a line and stand by the wall when preparing to leave nursery to go on a walk.

Leaders follow up absences promptly and track where children move on to, including overseas, to ensure they do not go missing from education. They promote regular attendance and punctuality, helping children and families to develop positive habits for the future and benefit fully from the nursery's early education offer.

Children's welfare and wellbeing: Strong standard

Parents describe how staff's diligence ensures that their children's healthcare needs are met precisely. Leaders work closely with parents to share guidance about healthy eating. This helps families to understand children's nutritional needs and how to provide balanced meals. This support has an impact beyond nursery. Packed lunches improve rapidly from when children start attending, and children learn to choose healthier options over treats, for example, when selecting items for their snack at a local shop.

Children's emotional wellbeing is a priority. Carefully planned activities help children to explore feelings and learn ways to manage their emotions. Staff incorporate movement breaks thoughtfully into the day to support children's focus, and recognise the benefits of fresh air not only for physical health but also for mood and motivation. Close supervision ensures that staff are quick to bring children back when they attempt to leave activities. Staff teach children how to keep themselves safe, for example to 'stop, look and listen' when they cross roads in the community. Routines such as sleeping and eating are particularly well supervised, and leaders provide staff with timely comprehensive guidance to ensure children's safety at these times.

Leadership and governance: Strong standard

Leaders have quickly embedded a culture of safeguarding, reflection and professional accountability. They maintain detailed records, act promptly on concerns and scrutinise all aspects of practice and children's progress in their drive to provide consistently high-quality care and learning for every child. Recent staff changes have presented some challenge. However, leaders have supported the new team tirelessly to build their skills and knowledge and to implement the ambitious curriculum.

Staff are extremely keen to continue their professional development, which accelerates how quickly research and theory become familiar to staff and are used to inform teaching. Some staff apply expert knowledge already, while others are introducing and sharing new strategies, for example to teach mathematics with even greater precision. Leaders recognise that more time is needed to embed practice fully and to ensure consistency across the team. Their self-evaluation is honest and responsive, identifying where practice is not yet strong and taking meaningful steps to strengthen it through high-quality support and supervision. Staff wellbeing is protected and promoted. Staff feel valued, supported and happy in their roles. This contributes to the highly positive atmosphere where every member of the team is enthused and driven to improve outcomes for children.

Families feel highly valued and a part of nursery life. They consistently speak positively about staff and the excellent communication that supports children's learning at home. Parents describe staff as open, supportive and knowledgeable. They appreciate how quickly staff identify barriers to learning, especially for children with little or no English when they first attend. Multilingual staff and translation tools ensure that language barriers are overcome, parents are fully involved in nursery life and that children flourish in staff's care. Partnerships with other professionals are purposeful. Leaders ensure there is a meaningful exchange of information with schools to share expectations for school readiness, teaching strategies and to support transitions as smoothly as possible so that children's learning continues seamlessly when they move on from nursery.