Kids Play Bury St Edmunds

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children form strong bonds with their key person, which helps them to settle quickly on arrival. Staff get to know children well and effectively support their emotional needs. Babies listen to and recognise rhymes and songs as staff spontaneously sing. This helps to calm the environment, and babies eagerly join in with familiar actions. Children of all ages enjoy cuddles and reassurance when they are tired or upset, which successfully boosts their self-esteem.

Children are happy and keen to explore their environment. Outdoors, they have good opportunities to develop their physical skills. Older children take appropriate risks as they walk along wooden planks balanced on crates. Staff monitor what children are doing and offer support when needed. They promote children's independence well in all rooms. Staff encourage pre-school children to help tidy toys away before lunch. Children are eager to complete simple tasks such as wiping a table. They learn basic self-care skills, including the importance of good hygiene. Older children master changing their own clothes after getting wet from playing in the water tray. At mealtimes, babies sit at low tables and are supported to feed themselves, and toddlers scrape their plates when they have finished their cooked lunch.

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

• Leaders have established a clear vision and curriculum and know what they would like children to achieve during their time at the nursery. Staff understand the curriculum and know how to support children's ongoing development. They know the children well and can talk about where they are in their learning. Staff plan suitable activities, and leaders are supporting staff to develop this further to ensure that all children make good progress in readiness for the next stage in their education.
• Partnerships with parents and carers are strong. Staff work hard to maintain effective relationships with all families. Parents express their thoughts and comment positively on the nursery. They highlight the effective communication from staff and say that their children enjoy attending.
• Overall, staff support children's communication and language development. They talk to older children as they play and ask effective questions to build on what they know and can do. However, staff do not always support younger children to develop their growing vocabulary effectively. They do not make the best possible use of opportunities to model language to help children pronounce words correctly.
• Staff work effectively as a team to quickly identify if a child may not be meeting typical milestones. The nursery's special educational needs coordinator ensures staff provide targeted support for children who require additional help with their development. Staff work sensitively with parents and, when necessary, closely with other professionals and agencies to help ensure these children make the best possible progress.
• Leaders have recently introduced 'golden rules' throughout the nursery. Staff provide children with regular praise as they recognise individual achievements. However, staff do not support children to understand the impact of their behaviour on others. This means that children do not learn how to keep themselves and others safe.
• Leaders monitor staff performance. They spend time in the rooms and encourage staff to reflect on their practice. Staff have supervision meetings where they discuss their professional development and training needs to help enhance their knowledge and skills. Overall, this has a positive impact on the quality of children's learning experiences.
• Children's special dietary needs and allergies are well managed across the nursery. Staff are fully aware of individual children's requirements and ensure that they serve food safely. Healthy eating is promoted well. Children experience sociable mealtimes and have opportunities to try new foods.
• Leaders encourage staff to take responsibility in the nursery to enhance the environment. For example, the pre-school children now have opportunities to grow and tend to vegetables, and a member of staff has taken on the role of well-being ambassador. Staff say that they feel well supported in their role. They comment that their well-being is given high priority.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support staff to model language consistency, to help young children to hear and use the correct pronunciation of words
• ensure staff help children to understand the need for safety so they can consider the impact of their behaviour on others.