Hopscotch Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Staff have extremely positive and nurturing relationships with children. Even the youngest children brim with confidence, are eager to get to know visitors and actively engage with them. Staff know children exceptionally well. Each member of staff knows about each babies' interests, likes and dislikes and developmental stage. One-to-one interaction with babies is a priority for staff. They smile at them, use a soft, warm tone of voice and maintain good eye contact. Babies show they feel safe and settle incredibly well.

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

• Staff plan meticulously and ensure activities comprehensively cover all areas of learning. They link experiences to children's interests very effectively. Staff have excellent knowledge of where children are in their development and use their regular thorough observations to ensure that children are challenged to a high level. Children make excellent progress in their learning.
• Staff help children to gain excellent communication and language skills. For example, they stimulate discussion among children by using a bucket of interesting items. Staff sing a song, children choose an object and staff explain what it is and how it is used. During morning group time, staff sing a welcome song with children and they greet and learn each other's names. They discuss the weather and day of the week. Staff teach them new words during this time and children have very good opportunities to speak and listen.
• Children have excellent opportunities to learn about the world around them. For example, staff and children take part in a bird watching initiative. Children delight in trying to spot different birds outdoors to match them against their picture cards. Children plant and grow vegetables in the outdoor area. This helps them to understand where food comes from and how things grow.
• Staff help children to gain strong technology skills. For instance, children work with floor sensor software applications, which detect children's movements as they match numbers to different quantities of objects. Children use new words, such as 'detect' and 'sensor'. They concentrate very well and persevere as the task becomes even more challenging.
• Children develop superb physical skills. The spacious, well-designed outdoor area provides children with a very wide range of physical opportunities. Staff create interesting and challenging obstacle races and organise games to develop children's physical coordination skills. Children skilfully climb across frames and balance very well on scooters.
• Staff manage children's behaviour successfully. Staff share group rules with children. They fully understand and children act in highly positive ways. Older children remind their younger peers of acceptable ways to behave. They play cooperatively together and show respect towards each other.
• Staff work exceptionally well with parents. They keep them well informed of children's progress in highly effective ways, such regular parents' meetings, daily verbal feedback and on a secure software application. Staff give parents ideas for home activities to support children's learning.
• The manager provides highly effective support to staff. She meets with them individually and regularly to discuss and support their needs in relation to workloads, well-being and training. Staff have attended many courses that were targeted to meet their individual needs. For example, a course to develop a greater understanding of autism spectrum disorder led to heightened awareness and understanding in this area.