Growing Places @ Little Acorns

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children flourish at this welcoming nursery. They are confident, happy and curious. Children have a rich variety of opportunities to be independent thinkers. They are captivated by the exciting and well-thought-out activities that staff provide. For example, children enjoy learning about minibeasts and their habitats. They use magnifying glasses to find creatures and identify them using books. Children are kind and respectful to each other and work harmoniously together. They initiate conversation and share ideas. Children learn the meaning of new words, such as 'stag beetle' and 'environment'. Older children offer support and guidance to younger children. They help them to lift natural resources, initiate conversation and share ideas. This supports children to develop positive relationships.

Staff have high expectations of all children. They are good role models and sensitively teach children how to follow rules and procedures. Children behave very well and have good manners. They take turns and share resources. For instance, children wait patiently to use the spades to help dig holes in the soil, and say 'please' and 'thank you' regularly during interactions with others. Staff and children are treated as equals. For example, during 'morning proposal', they discuss what they would like to do during the day. Everyone has an opportunity to share their ideas. This ensures that all children feel included and valued.

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

• Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities are supported well. Staff are attentive to children's individual needs. Leaders signpost parents to support from other professionals and implement tailored teaching and care routines. This helps to improve outcomes for children.
• Leaders have established close links with local schools. Children are prepared for the next stage of their education and supported to make a seamless transition through teacher visits and good communication between settings. This ensures continuity for children.
• The quality of education is good. Staff are passionate about ensuring that children have rich learning opportunities. They plan a wide range of interesting activities to support children's individual needs and interests. For example, children use dough to create pizza using flowers, herbs, sticks and leaves. Staff extend children's learning by encouraging them to think of how plants grow. However, not all staff encourage children to participate in activities. This means that there are occasions when children are not engaged in meaningful play and learning.
• Children make good progress in all areas of their development. Staff know children well. They find out what children know and can do when they start attending, and monitor their development through observations. This enables any gaps in children's learning and development to be identified quickly. Staff plan activities to further extend their learning based on children's interests and ages and stages of development.
• Staff plan the environment effectively. Children benefit greatly from playing outdoors. Staff teach them how to interact safely and look after animals, such as goats, sheep, ducks, chickens and rabbits. Children learn how to grow their own food, which they help to prepare and consume. This helps them to respect nature and enhances their developing independence skills.
• The curriculum is well thought out. Staff provide a good balance of adult-led and child-led activities. They thoughtfully plan fun activities that sequence children's learning to build on what children know and can do. For instance, during music and song time, children take turns to call out the names of wild animals. Staff extend their learning by encouraging children to make animal sounds and move like animals. This results in all children being engaged and motivated to learn.
• Children are confident communicators. Staff talk to children, ask them questions and introduce them to new words. For instance, during story time, children repeat words and phrases. They discuss characters and predict what happens next. This helps to support their communication and language skills.
• Parent partnerships are strong. Parents highly praise leaders and staff. They comment that they feel 'supported', and that 'staff are open and honest'. Parents form good relationships with each other through volunteering at the setting and through celebrations organised by the nursery. This means that children have opportunities to interact with people from their local community and helps them to understand diversity.
• Staff morale is very high. Staff have regular opportunities to evaluate and discuss their practice. Leaders provide rich learning opportunities for staff. For example, staff attend specialist training in Italy, funded by the nursery. This helps staff to improve their knowledge and understanding of different teaching styles.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• improve the support for less qualified or experienced staff to develop their teaching skills, so that all children consistently benefit from high-quality learning experiences.