Kids Planet Cleckheaton

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy and smiley at this welcoming nursery. They have formed warm, close relationships with staff and feel safe. Babies and children regularly visit the nursery before starting, which helps them to settle in. They develop the confidence needed to explore the well-resourced environment. Older children say that they enjoy the nursery because it is fun. They talk about how they can be themselves and have lots of opportunities for socialising with their many friends.

Staff have high expectations for children. They know what they can do and what they need to learn next. They consider their interests when they plan learning and teach children to solve problems and make predictions. For example, children decide which is the best tool to use to free toy animals from ice. This helps them to develop the thinking skills that they need and to make good progress.

Children leave the nursery as confident and well-rounded individuals. They have fantastic opportunities to explore the world around them. The children are part of an eco-committee to drive improvements in recycling, energy use and caring for the planet. Children help to raise money for charity and donate to local food banks. The nursery promotes an 'intergenerational approach' and children regularly visit elderly residents to sing songs and share stories. This helps children to be respectful and contribute positively to society, giving them the skills that they need to succeed in life.

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

• Children develop mathematical skills well. Staff model counting, as babies scoop and pour rice. Where children make accelerated progress, staff plan activities to challenge them further. For instance, when children can count confidently and recognise numbers, staff use toy bears to teach how to add two groups together.
• Opportunities to develop physical skills are plentiful. Children benefit greatly from the outdoor areas. They ride bicycles and move around obstacle courses. Babies pull themselves up on furniture, climb soft-play apparatus and practise crawling. Children use sticks to make marks in cornflour. This helps to develop their pencil-control skills, ahead of starting school.
• Babies snuggle up to caring staff who read stories linked to their experiences, such as zoo visits. Although older children have opportunities to listen to stories, read by enthusiastic staff, staff do not always consider the value placed on story time routines. This does not help children to fully develop their love of reading.
• Generally, staff interact well with children to help them develop their communication skills. However, at times, they do not ask the right questions or make use of all opportunities to introduce new vocabulary. This means that children do not consistently have the chance to describe their ideas and develop their language skills further.
• Children appreciate the sense of responsibility they have. Older children use knives and forks. They clear the table once finished and manage their self-care at the hygiene station. Children access water from water stations and staff support children, who are ready, to use the toilet. This helps children to develop their self-care skills and independence well.
• Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities make good progress due to considerate staff who meet their needs and work well with other professionals. The nursery receives additional funding for some children. This is spent to directly benefit children to help them progress further. For example, staff have purchased sensory resources to help children to regulate their emotions.
• Children's behaviour is good. Staff act as excellent role models for children. They praise their achievements and children respond positively. Clear behaviour management strategies are in place, which work well. For example, children earn gems for helping to tidy, being kind and listening carefully.
• Parents are complimentary about the nursery and feel well informed. They are provided with packs to extend children's learning at home. They air their views through the 'parent forum'. Leaders use these comments to drive improvements. For instance, they have changed the surface of the outdoor area, after parents said that they want children to have more opportunities to ride bicycles.
• Staff report that they enjoy working at the nursery and feel appreciated and valued. They benefit from a variety of training opportunities. The dedicated management team has a clear and ambitious vision. The team regularly reflects on the effectiveness of the nursery and has lots of exciting plans for the future.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen the use of strategies such as questioning and introducing new vocabulary, to support children's communication and language skills further
• place a greater importance on story time routines to help children to develop their love of reading.