Kinderland Day Nursery Ltd

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy and settled. Staff are caring and nurturing, supporting children to make good progress with their learning and development. There is an effective key-person system in place. Children are given time to settle and bond with staff. Staff know their key children well and plan good-quality activities to enable them to make progress towards their next steps of learning.

Special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) is a key strength of the setting. Staff work closely with parents and other agencies supporting children. Staff adapt activities and the environment to meet children's individual needs. They have regular meetings with other agencies to share feedback and the progress children are making. This helps to support continuity of care for children.

Children behave well. Children are highly entuned with their own feelings and of their peers. Children are seen to wipe the tears of their peers and exclaim they will be OK. Staff teach children about their feelings through well-planned activities. They make good use of resources, such as a 'feelings mirror', to help children to learn how they feel. They are encouraged by staff to talk about feelings, helping them to manage their thoughts and avoid conflicts.

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

• Leadership is strong. Leaders are ambitious, and this is reflected with staff, the curriculum and the care they provide. Leaders are good role models, who regularly support staff and help to identify further training needs. This benefits children's learning and development.
• At times, staff become too focused on routines and are not aware of what is happening around them. Consequently, they do not always make the most of opportunities to extend children's learning as they free play.
• Staff carry out daily safety checks throughout the nursery. Risk assessments are reviewed and adapted as necessary to keep children safe. Staff teach children the importance of using resources safely. This helps to keep children safe and helps children to learn about taking controlled risks.
• Staff do not always allow children to move resources between learning areas. This does not allow children to extend their imagination further during free play.
• Staff are consistent in their approach to behaviour management. They teach children to use their voices to express their feelings and thoughts. They also make good use of props, for example, teeth and books. They teach children how biting can hurt their peers. This helps children to learn about consequences for their actions. Children behave well.
• Staff provide an ambitious curriculum that supports children's learning and development. Staff are skilled in identifying children's next steps of learning.
• They use these effectively to progress children's learning. Given children's starting points, they make good progress with their learning.
• Children explain how much they enjoy coming to the nursery. They explain they enjoy playing with their friends and also how they like their teachers. Children explain how they enjoy cuddling with their teachers when it is needed.
• Leaders support staff's well-being. They provide healthy snacks and drinks throughout the day. They also make sure staff can take time out from the rooms, should they need breaks. Leaders know staff well and can see when they may need some extra support. This helps staff to share any concerns to support their own mental health.
• Staff benefit from regular training. They work with leaders to identify training needs. For example, they review the needs of children to see what training will support them. Recent training is supporting staff to learn British Sign Language to help with communication with children in their care.
• Staff and leaders are fully aware of the impact that COVID-19 has had on children's development. They work closely with parents and other agencies to support the transition to toilet training. This helps children to progress with their personal and emotional development.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support staff to be more aware of their placement when carrying out routines, so they are aware of what is happening around them
• teach staff to support children's natural curiosity to move resources around to further extend their learning.