Hopscotch Day Nursery Botley

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Staff help children to settle and place a strong focus on their happiness. Occasionally, there are some minor issues in how the key-person system is organised for new children starting at the nursery. Despite this, staff readily support young children to make good progress in their learning and development. Babies happily explore and pull themselves up to the low-level window sills. Staff hold out their hands to encourage them to take steps and support their physical development.

Babies enjoy snuggling up with key persons to look at texts, such as board books. This helps to develop their communication skills as they look at the pictures and staff talk to them about what they can see.

Children are confident and independent. They show fascination and curiosity as they go on bug hunts during forest school activities. They work together to decide how to use natural materials to build a bug hotel, based on what they have learned about bug homes. Staff ask meaningful questions to encourage children to share what they know, and children confidently talk about their prior learning.

Staff have high expectations for children's behaviour and support them effectively, such as if they struggle to share. Children behave well and engage in purposeful play. All children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), make good progress from their starting points.

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

• Leadership and management is good. Staff report that their well-being is supported, and they receive regular supervision and training opportunities to aid their professional development. The manager has a clear vision for the nursery and talks confidently about the sequence of learning. However, not all staff fully understand the intentions behind the curriculum. As a result, the planning and next steps are not as precise as they could be.
• Staff build on what children know and can do. They use this information to provide a range of activities for the children, to help them learn. On occasion, there is some variance in the quality of teaching practice. The manager is aware and is working with senior managers to address this to ensure consistency in teaching throughout the nursery. However, this is yet to be fully embedded.
• Overall, children settle swiftly and are happy. However, there are occasions when key persons are not always available, particularly when children are new to the nursery, or settling in. As a result, this can cause some children to be unsettled.
• Children with SEND are particularly well supported. The special educational needs coordinator (SENCo) keeps their knowledge current by accessing ongoing training and attending support groups. The SENCo identifies additional needs early and seeks advice from external agencies when children need more help with their learning. The management team uses funding effectively to ensure that all children, including those with SEND, make good progress, to prepare them for their next stage of learning.
• Staff use praise and encouragement to support learning. There are clear expectations, and children understand the rules and boundaries. As a result, behaviour is good.
• Staff are good role models and support children's understanding of personal hygiene. For example, they quickly attend to younger children's personal needs, such as wiping their noses. Older children wash their hands and faces and talk about the reasons for this routine. This helps children to further develop their independence skills and understanding of healthy lifestyles.
• Partnership with parents is effective. Staff gain information about family circumstances and children's interests when they start at nursery. This helps to ensure they can fully support the needs of families. Parents give positive feedback about the care given to their children and the updates they receive on their progress.
• The manager and staff have formed close relationships with the local school. For instance, they visit the on-site library weekly. This helps to support children with transitions, as they are familiar with the surroundings. Staff also work in partnership with other settings children attend. This helps to develop a shared approach to children's care and learning.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• build further on staff's understanding of how to plan an effective curriculum that focuses on the intentions of learning before implementing activities
• provide even more support to develop staff teaching skills so all children receive consistent learning opportunities
• strengthen the key-person system with regard to new children and availability of staff to support them when they start.