George Elliot Kindergarten

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children arrive at the nursery happy and receive a warm welcome from familiar staff who know them well. They settle quickly in to play with their friends. Staff build close relationships with children which helps them to feel safe and secure in their care. Staff use their knowledge of children and consider their learning needs alongside their interests to decide what experiences to prepare and what they need to teach. For example, babies are excited to experience play with cereals. They copy the staff's actions to crumble and sprinkle the cereals into a tray. Staff include new vocabulary for babies to hear, such as 'crunch' and 'sprinkle'. Older children, show high levels of interest in an activity about fire. Staff hold interesting discussions with children who are keen to use blocks to build which represent a fire. All children eagerly blow out their fire and tidy away resources when they are finished with little prompting.

Children behave well in the nursery. They respond well to staff reminders to be kind and to use their good manners. Toddler's children readily say 'please' and 'thank you' during mealtimes. Staff help children to know the behaviour that is expected of them. The oldest children help to decide the rules of behaviour for their rooms. They receive praise for their positive behaviours, which makes them smile and helps to raise their self-esteem. Children gain the knowledge and understanding they need to prepare them for their future learning.

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

• The nursery curriculum shows clear intentions for children's learning that is sequenced well throughout the nursery. This helps children to continually build on what they already know and can do.
• The play environments are well-considered and equipped specifically to meet the needs of the children attending. There are abundant opportunities for children of all ages to select and explore a range of interesting resources. For example, babies access shiny kitchen trays and utensils safely. Toddlers, including those in need of additional support, receive help from staff who show them how to play safely with sand.
• Children show increasing independence. For example, the youngest children feed themselves with appropriate cutlery and practice drinking from un-lidded cups. Toddlers learn to manage their personal care needs with the support they need from staff. The oldest children enjoy being creative. They select from the tools they need to lead their play and learning. They select scissors to continue to practise and strengthen their skills to make snips in their paper.
• Children in need of additional support receive the help they need to make continual progress from their starting points. Staff liaise effectively with parents and outside professionals and use the information they gain to ensure the children are happy and provided for so that they are included alongside their peers.
• Children develop communication and language skills. Babies grin when they copy the animal sounds that staff make as they hand these toys to them. All children enjoy listening to stories and singing a range of rhymes. Staff use additional programmes to support them to focus more sharply on what children need to learn. That said, for those who speak English as an additional language, there is scope to build on the existing work to enable further two-way communication.
• Children are provided with opportunities to understand the similarities and differences between people in our wider communities. They enjoy celebrating a range of festivals, such as 'Chinese New Year' and 'Love Your Pet Day'. They discuss how families may differ from their own experiences. This helps children to develop their tolerance and understanding of how we are all unique.
• Managers ensure that staff receive the mandatory training they need. Staff have opportunities to talk about their development and practice. They do not yet seek to help maintain staff's knowledge gained from training current through regular discussions and other professional development opportunities.
• Parents are happy with the nursery. They say that staff are easy to approach and friendly. Parents comment particularly on how well their children develop their communication skills. They say they receive regular information about their child's learning both online and when they collect.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• build on the existing support for children and families who speak English as an additional language to enable further two-way communication and understanding
• develop opportunities to help staff maintain the knowledge they gain from training so that this remains current.