Kidzsteps Kindergarten and Preschool Limited

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children show a strong sense of belonging and are excited to arrive at the nursery. Staff welcome families warmly. Children demonstrate that they feel secure as they follow the daily routines. They separate from carers with ease, put their bags away and join their friends to play and explore. Therefore, they are developing their independence skills. Older and younger children play harmoniously together. They use their imaginations in the role-play area and make up their own games. Children learn the importance of using good manners. Staff are good role models, demonstrating polite and respectful behaviour, and offer gentle reminders to support children.

Children practise their speaking and listening skills. They enjoy singing together and eagerly choose their favourite songs for their friends to join in. Staff provide ongoing commentary as they play alongside the children. Children use their imagination and are creative with the available resources. They use large tweezers to find 'treasure' in the sand, developing their hand-to-eye coordination, and manipulate clay to develop their hand muscles. This supports children's early writing skills. Children enjoy using their number skills as they recognise the number on their scooters and match to the correct parking spot.

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

• The nursery's curriculum is designed to support children to make progress across the different areas of learning. Staff have good systems in place to assess children's development when they start. They use this information to plan tailored next steps for individual children to help them to move forward in their learning.
• The manager and staff plan an ambitious curriculum for all children, including children who speak English as an additional language and children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. For example, staff give priority to children's language development. They talk to children, describe their actions and repeat new words to develop their vocabulary. Consequently, children make good progress from their starting points.
• Overall, teaching is good. Staff model language during play activities, talk with children about what they are doing, and demonstrate and support when required. However, some staff do not use questioning effectively to check children's prior learning and understanding. Therefore, children do not have opportunities to develop their thinking skills and share their own ideas.
• Staff develop supportive bonds with children. As a result, children are happy and motivated to learn. For example, staff comfort unsettled children when they arrive and join children at activities to support their play and learning. However, occasionally, staff do not recognise when the quieter and less-confident children would benefit from more interaction to further support their learning and enjoyment to a higher level.
• Children have frequent opportunities to develop their physical skills. For instance, they show good coordination as they balance on stepping stones and ride around the garden on wheeled toys. They also have fun at the mud kitchen making different potions, which helps to develop their imaginative and creative skills as well as their physical well-being.
• Parents give positive verbal feedback about the service they and their children receive. They appreciate the information shared online about what their children are learning and how they can support them at home. Parents also praise the warm welcome they get when they drop off and collect their children. The close partnership between parents and staff benefits children's education and personal development effectively.
• Staff supervision and support is effective. The manager ensures that regular discussions and group meetings enable staff to identify their own strengths and areas for improvement. Staff speak positively about their roles and how the manager's ongoing support and guidance promotes their professional development. Staff confidently embed new skills and knowledge they acquire from recent training into their practice. This has a positive impact on children's learning and development.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• develop staff's questioning skills further to check children's prior learning and understanding consistently
• support staff to recognise when less-confident children would benefit from their interaction to enhance children's learning further.