Kids Community Nursery Ltd

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Staff provide a welcoming and inclusive environment where children are happy and motivated to learn. Children are eager to join in the wide range of activities that staff provide that are, overall, linked to their interests and learning needs. Staff adapt activities so that children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are included.

Staff are good role models for the children. They help children to learn how to treat each other with respect and kindness. Children show concern for each other. For example, they apologise when they accidentally bump into their friends and ask, 'Are you ok?' Children use good manners. Staff treat children as the unique individuals that they are. They provide children with lots of praise and encouragement. This helps to build children's confidence and self-esteem. Consequently, children demonstrate a 'can-do' attitude. They are confident to ask questions and give their opinions. Staff teach children about the importance of a healthy diet, exercise and good oral hygiene. Staff support children to develop their independence skills. Toddlers learn to put on their coats. Older children learn to do things for themselves. They use appropriate cutlery at mealtimes.

All children, including children with SEND and/or those who speak English as an additional language (EAL), make good progress from their starting points.

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

• The manager has high expectations for what the children can achieve. She ensures that additional funding is used effectively to benefit those for whom it is intended.
• The enthusiastic staff understand and implement an ambitious curriculum that covers all areas of learning. They make regular observations and assessments of children's learning and plan activities to help children to move on to their next stage of learning, including school.
• Support for children with SEND is effective. The special educational needs coordinator (SENCo) ensures that timely referrals are made. They work closely with outside professionals to ensure that these children receive targeted intervention to enable them to make the progress they are capable of. Children who speak EAL are supported effectively by the staff.
• The manager observes staff's practice and provides feedback on what they do well and advice on where they can further develop their practice and strengthen their skills.
• Staff have high expectations of children's behaviour. They explain and remind children about the rules in the nursery at the start of the day. Staff are alert and respond promptly when they notice children who need a little support to resolve minor conflict. Consequently, children learn to compromise and play cooperatively.
• Staff support children's communication and language skills well. They model language through regular discussions with children. Staff sing to children throughout the day.
• Staff help children to develop a love of books. They read stories with enthusiasm and good intonation. Children listen attentively and join in excitedly with repeated phrases, such as, 'I'll huff and I'll puff.' Staff ask children questions about the story, such as 'What do you think happens next?' Children look at books independently and with their friends. Staff encourage children to take books from the nursery's lending library to read at home with their parents.
• Staff teach children to count and recognise shapes and numbers. However, at times, staff do not provide children with enough opportunities to further enhance their mathematical development and understanding beyond what they already know.
• Staff support children to develop their physical skills well. Staff take children for walks in the local community. Throughout the nursery, children enthusiastically join in action songs. Staff support children to develop their hand strength as they encourage them to manipulate dough into different shapes. However, at times, some transitions between activities are not organised by staff as effectively as possible. Consequently, on occasions, children wait around for too long unoccupied. This leads to children becoming restless and disengaged.
• Parents speak highly of the staff. They comment on the good progress their children make, particularly in their language development and social skills.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support staff to enhance the teaching of mathematics to consistently help children to build more on what they already know
• support staff to review and make better use of transition times so that children do not have to wait unnecessarily between activities.