Goslings Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children arrive at nursery happy and confidently separate from parents because they are greeted by kind and familiar staff at the door. All children make good progress in their learning because staff plan a broad and balanced curriculum. Children are eager to join in with the various activities that are planned both indoors and outside. Younger children get excited as they join in with songs and rhymes. They giggle as they make attempts at the various actions and show delight by clapping their hands when the song finishes. Older children remain focused as they concentrate while building towers with construction toys. Pre-school children enjoy experimenting with different containers, predicting if theirs will sink or float in the water.

Staff have high expectations for children's behaviour. They remind children of the nursery rules, such as using their walking feet while indoors. Children learn to share and take turns. For example, pre-school children happily wait for their turn while playing a game of skittles in the garden. Staff join in with children's play and are close by to help children resolve any small disputes.

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

• Managers meet regularly with staff to ensure that they are supported to fulfil their roles and responsibilities. Staff benefit from regular supervision meetings and ongoing training. They express how they feel supported and valued. This contributes to a positive working environment and high levels of staff morale.
• Staff promote children's communication and language skills well. Conversation and chatter can be heard in all areas of the nursery. Children enjoy listening to well-read stories. They are encouraged to join in with familiar phrases and predict what might happen next. As a result, children are becoming confident communicators.
• Staff use good methods of teaching. They have a good understanding of how young children learn. Staff get to know children well. They use this knowledge to plan activities that children enjoy. Children remain engaged and motivated in their learning. This helps them to make good progress. However, staff do not always focus their planning on what individual children need to learn next, to help them make even better progress.
• Staff ensure that new children to the setting are offered gradual settling-in sessions to help them become familiar with their new environment. Staff offer babies cuddles and comfort. This helps children to settle and develop strong bonds with adults. Toddlers show that they are comfortable and familiar with the routine. For example, they independently retrieve their comfort items from their drawer before moving over to their allocated bed for a sleep after lunch.
• The support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities is good. Staff understand the importance of working with outside professionals to ensure that children receive targeted support to enable them to make good progress from their starting points.
• Staff promote children's good health. They provide children with healthy and nutritious meals and snacks that are prepared in line with individual dietary requirements. Children are reminded to wash their hands before eating and after using the toilet. Children benefit from daily fresh air and exercise.
• Staff supervise children well. They ensure that children who are sleeping are regularly checked. Staff confidently explain the safer sleep guidance that they follow for babies. Staff sit with children while they eat and remind them of the importance of staying in their chair, so they do not risk choking.
• Parents are happy with the service provided. They express how happy their children are attending, saying that their children want to attend on a day when it is not a nursery day. Parents value the information that is shared with them about the activities and experiences their children take part in. However, staff could share more information with parents about the plans for children's future learning, to enable them to fully support children's learning at home.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support staff to focus more on children's next steps in learning to help them make even better progress
• build further on sharing information with parents about children's future learning needs to help them continue with their children's learning at home.