Giggles N Squiggles Discovery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are warmly welcomed into the nursery by staff, who greet them at the door. They readily separate from their parents and are keen to explore the range of different materials and resources available. Children are happy and settled, and demonstrate that they have developed reassuring bonds with staff. They make decisions about what they would like to do next, developing their confidence. Staff support this and are led by what children want to do. They engage well with children during their play, offering further support when needed.

Children benefit from plenty of fresh air, in all weather. They have opportunities to be physically active, which helps to promote their health and well-being. Children enjoy exploring water with bubbles and blocks of ice. They eagerly use spades to help plant a Christmas tree in the garden. Staff talk to children in a calm manner and children's behaviour is good. Staff praise children often as they recognise their efforts and achievements. This helps them to build good levels of self-esteem.

Staff know the importance of supporting children's speech and language skills. They teach children new words and language as they play, which helps to build children's vocabulary. Staff support children to use simple sign language to aid their communication.

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

• Leaders demonstrate a strong commitment to the continued development of the nursery and show passion and determination for the nursery to further thrive and develop. They have recently reflected on and redeveloped aspects of the nursery, for example, making alterations to the layout of the learning environment. The available resources are interesting and capture children's imagination, motivating them to engage well in learning.
• Staff work closely with parents to help children to settle. They find out about young children's care routines at home, such as sleep and feeding patterns, and aim to follow these as closely as possible to support children's health and emotional well-being.
• Children receive a curriculum that supports them to make progress in all areas of their learning and development. Staff know the children well and understand what they need to do to support their continuing progress. When staff identify any gaps in children's learning, they plan targeted small-group activities that children benefit from. Staff work closely with other professionals to seek extra help and support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).
• Staff work well as a team. They closely supervise children and communicate effectively with each other. This means that staff are fully aware of what each staff member is doing, such as checking on children to ensure they are safe when sleeping.
• Children understand rules and expectations. They wait their turn for a space at the snack table and select what they would like to eat. Children have a go at cutting their chosen items using safety knives. However, staff do not always help children to build on their understanding of how to keep themselves and others safe.
• Leaders monitor and support staff practice. They provide relevant training to further their professional development and mentor new staff to help to develop practice. Staff feel well supported and morale is good. They comment that they enjoy working at the nursery.
• Parents speak positively about the nursery. They appreciate the good levels of communication they receive from staff, through daily discussions and the online application.
• Children enjoy spending time sharing books and listening to stories read by staff. They are keen to talk to staff about what they see in the pictures. Staff ensure that children have many opportunities to hear and join in with familiar action songs and rhymes.
• Healthy eating is promoted well. Children experience sociable snack and mealtimes and have opportunities to try new foods.
• On occasion, staff do not consider how to adapt activities to ensure that all children are fully engaged. For example, during some daily routines, more confident children dominate staff's attention. This means that, at times, quieter or less confident children are unable to participate fully.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• help children to build on their understanding of the need for safety to help them consider and manage some risks when tackling new challenges
• support staff to pay closer attention to children who are not engaged in activities so that all children have opportunities to reach their full potential.