Kiddi-Creche Private Day Nursery (The School House)

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children enjoy warm, responsive relationships with adults who know them well. When they become upset, adults notice and reassure them. This means they can quickly settle and happily return to play. When a baby holds out their hand, adults know they want to give a 'high five' because they know they are learning to do this at home.

Babies concentrate for long periods of time, exploring a tray of oats. They use spoons to fill containers and see what happens when they pour the oats through a funnel. Skilled adults repeat key words, such as 'scoop', 'pour' and 'sprinkle', to develop children's communication and language skills.

Older children decide to create their own chairs using wooden building blocks. Adults support them to think about what they will need. They compare their chairs with the ones at home and in the setting. This helps them to develop their knowledge and understanding of the world, and learn what makes them unique.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the provider now allows small groups of parents to enter the setting at the beginning or end of the day. Parents do not enter the building at lunchtime. This is to reduce the risk of the spread of infection at busier times. The provider has increased other forms of parent communication, including telephone discussions and video recordings of children's activities, such as the nativity play. Parents say that this means they still enjoy good communication with the setting and their child's key person.

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

• Leaders and staff have a clear vision for what children need to learn. They work closely with parents and use observations to find out what children know and can do. They plan activities that enable children to make good progress in all areas. Staff help parents to share their child's learning at home. For example, they provide a bag to collect autumnal objects, and phonics activities.
• Children make good progress in their communication and language. In the baby room, adults use short, simple sentences and repeat key words. This develops children's vocabulary. Older children talk confidently and have complex conversations. For example, a child asks an adult if they can juggle, demonstrating how to move their arms and telling them how their daddy juggles.
• Younger children explore early mathematical concepts by filling and emptying different-sized containers. Adults count 'one, two, three' as children climb the steps of the slide. Older children count how many scoops of oats they add to a measuring cylinder. Staff support them to predict how many they will need to fill it. They begin to write numerals and complete simple addition using a calculator. On some occasions, less-confident children are not fully supported to join in all group activities.
• Children are supported to be physically active both inside and outside. Toddlers persevere when carrying a heavy watering can to water the trees. Older children create an obstacle course, using tyres and wooden blocks. They run across the course, developing their balance and coordination skills. Adults provide play dough and large-scale mark-making activities. They understand that children must develop their muscle strength, coordination, and small-muscle skills before learning to write.
• Children behave well and respond to instructions promptly. Children and adults show respect for each other. They work together to tidy up before lunch. An adult thanks children and rewards them with a sticker. A child says 'thank you for the sticker' and the adult responds, 'You're very welcome, thanks for tidying up'.
• Adults use daily opportunities to promote children's good health. For example, children explore empty bottles in the creative area. They talk about the different smells of the shampoo, laundry liquid, and mouthwash containers. An adult prompts them to think about who uses mouthwash and what it is used for. This leads to a detailed discussion about children's own oral hygiene.
• Staff promote children's independence skills. They remind children to wipe their noses and wash their hands. Children sing the 'Wash, wash, wash your hands' song to make sure they wash for a long enough time. Children set the table for mealtimes and scoop pasta onto their plates from a serving dish.
• Leaders are committed to improving the quality of care and education for children. They have met the actions raised at their last inspection. They help staff to improve by regularly observing practice through training and supervision discussions. However, targets for staff development are not focused sharply enough on helping them to raise their teaching practice to the highest standard.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen the arrangements for professional development to provide staff with clear targets so that they can improve their teaching practice even further
• further develop good teaching practices to ensure all children, including those who are less confident, are fully included in every learning opportunity.