Home From Home

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children arrive at the nursery eager and excited for their day to begin. They are cared for in a carefully organised homely setting, where staff have created a well-thought-out space for children. Children particularly enjoy snuggling on the sofas to share stories or having a rest in the cosy book area. The manager and her staff have high expectations for all children in their care and provide a safe and stimulating learning environment, which supports children's interests. Children develop strong attachments to their key person and they seek comfort and reassurance as they need it, especially when they are unsure about new experiences, or visitors to the nursery.

Children's independence skills are nurtured well within the nursery. They confidently look for their name cards, as they self-register on arrival. Staff encourage children to 'have a go' when trying to complete tasks for themselves. For example, children competently spread butter onto their crackers at snack time and use tongs to select their cucumber and cheese. Children demonstrate their self-care skills as they put on their coats and change their clothes. Toys and resources are stored to enable children to select for themselves, further promoting their independence and confidence.

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

• The manager and her staff team are passionate about the continual development of the nursery. They have a clear vision for the future and are motivated to achieve the best possible outcomes for all children.
• Children's behaviour is good. Staff act as positive role models and provide regular opportunities for children to revisit the rules of the setting. Staff speak gently to children, particularly where they need more emotional support. Staff support children's confidence and emotional skills well. They boost children's confidence levels with lots of positive praise. This helps children to become confident and independent learners.
• Staff plan a rich and varied selection of well-organised activities across the curriculum which engage and focus children to learn. Staff engage well with children and, overall, model good language skills to support children's play and experiences. However, at times, staff do not give children enough time to respond to questions before moving on.
• Parents' views of the nursery are highly complimentary. They say staff share regular information with them about their children's well-being and learning. Parents praise the hard work of the manager and her staff. They comment how staff supported them extremely well through the COVID-19 pandemic, providing activities and ideas to support children's learning at home.
• Staff use additional funding well to address gaps in children's learning. For example, the manager provides further resources for these children at nursery, tailored to their individual needs, and provides resources for the children to also use at home. Additional funding is used well to enhance and enrich children's experiences.
• Professional development is strong. Staff are encouraged to further their own qualifications and careers. Staff speak very highly of the support that they receive from the manager. She implements systems to ensure that staff's workload is managed effectively and their well-being is consistently supported. This means that staff feel valued and enjoy their roles.
• Overall, staff support children's language development well. However, staff do not fully understand how to support children who speak other languages at home, to help them use and develop these alongside English. For example, staff do not give children consistent opportunities to use their home languages in play within the setting.
• Staff provide a good range of activities which support children's interests and enhance learning. For example, children explore the water tray, making Halloween potions. They use words such as 'poisonous', 'sour' and 'spooky' to describe the pretend potions they make. Children learn to safely and competently chop fruits with knives and snip herbs with scissors, which supports their physical skills for early writing.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support staff to develop their questioning skills to ensure they give children time and opportunity to think and respond
• increase staff's understanding of how to support children who speak other languages at home, including the benefits of this for children's learning and development.