Imagination Preschool: Battersea Park

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Staff place children at the heart of everything they do at this inclusive and welcoming nursery. Children enter with confidence and settle at activities that interest them. They form good bonds with staff, who know their individual needs and interests. Younger children show that they feel secure as they approach staff for cuddles and reassurance when needed. Children are respectful and consistently display positive behaviours. They demonstrate a sense of belonging at the nursery.

Staff design a highly ambitious curriculum that is tailored for each age group of children. It sequentially builds up to prepare children for their transition on to school. The curriculum has a focus on children's communication and language. Children enjoy small language groups and activities to support their listening skills as part of their language development.

Children keenly explore the environment and what is on offer. They make choices and lead their own play. Staff provide teaching moments during children's play and adult-led activities to help children to embed their learning. For instance, children are keen to use tools in the construction area as they build and fix their creations. Staff provide resources and media for children to be creative and imaginative. Leaders provide an inclusive environment for all children to make good progress from their starting points in development.

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

• Leaders and staff are passionate about fulfilling their roles. They strive to provide every child with the best possible early education experience. The nursery's curriculum is well designed and focuses on preparing children to gain the knowledge and skills to become ready for the next stage in their learning. Staff share this vision. Overall, they plan and provide activities that support children to make progress in their learning.
• Children develop good language skills as they enjoy looking at and listening to stories. Younger children hear language and new words to enhance their skills. Older children hold back-and-forth conversations with staff, eagerly sharing what they know. All children make good progress in their language skills.
• Children enjoy regular time outdoors. Staff provide a vast range of opportunities to extend children's physical development. Children enjoy activities developing their ball skills and working as a team. However, daily routines and transitions can, at times, be disorganised. This impacts on children's understanding of what is expected of them. At these times, children become distracted and staff do not ensure that children are engaged in learning opportunities.
• Staff are good role models and, overall, their teaching is good. Staff plan activities around themes and children's abilities. For example, younger children eagerly use paint to learn about colours as they paint a rainbow. However, staff's implementation of some planned group activities does not consistently promote or extend individual children's learning effectively. This means that, occasionally, group activities are dominated by children that are less engaged or focused on the activity. At these times, children do not benefit fully from the intended learning.
• Children have opportunities to develop their mathematical skills. Children keenly count how many animals they have. Staff encourage mathematical language as they talk to children about shapes and size. Older children talk about capacity as they fill cylinders in the sand. This supports all children to develop their mathematical awareness.
• Partnerships with parents and carers are good. Parents speak highly about the care, support and education their children receive. They say that the nursery has a 'welcoming and nurturing feel'. Communication is very good. Staff share activities that parents can carry on with at home to support their children's learning.
• Staff report that they receive good levels of support in their roles. They feel that leaders are always approachable. Leaders regularly observe staff's teaching and practice. They provide constructive feedback and training opportunities to help staff to continually develop their teaching skills. Staff say they feel very well supported.
• The leadership team is highly reflective and takes steps to continuously improve the quality of care. Staff receive clear guidance and training for their roles, as well as when new initiatives are being introduced.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• enhance staff's communication during the organisation of daily routines to use all opportunities for children's learning and support children to understand expectations
• support staff to adapt their organisation of planned group activities, so that children remain engaged and meet the learning intentions for all children.