Leaps Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children receive effective support from staff to settle swiftly at the nursery. Staff ensure that they individualise this settling-in process, depending on each child's needs. Therefore, children make strong bonds with staff from the outset. Children actively seek staff's support and reassurance, which staff give warmly and without hesitation. Children are beginning to understand their behaviours and the impact they have on others. Staff are always on hand to help children to manage their behaviour and to learn to share and compromise. Children have lots of opportunity for pretend play. They explore being at a salon and having their fingernails and toenails painted. Staff use these opportunities to explore colours and counting, and also to actively support children's awareness of gender stereotyping and equality.

Children show empathy for other children. For instance, they are concerned if their friends have an accident. Staff recognise and praise children for their kindness. Children develop good independence skills. They find their coats with ease from their pegs and make decisions about their play and learning experiences. Children show high levels of physical skills. They climb up rope ladders and steps on to the climbing frame and delight as they come down the slide. The manager has a secure knowledge that learning has a sequence and she supports her staff team in their understanding of this. She and her team understand different learning styles and how to enable all children to make the best possible progress in their learning.

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

• The manager has a thorough understanding of the children and families for whom she provides a service. She plans the whole nursery environment to great effect to meet their needs. For example, she has completely overhauled the interior and exterior areas to support children's development. There are also clear plans for the continual evolution of these areas to benefit children's ever-changing needs.
• The manager uses her clear knowledge of early years education to develop an effective curriculum. She bases this directly on what she understands about what children know and need to learn next. Staff have a secure knowledge of their key children. They understand their current levels of development and the skills they need to gain next in the sequence of learning. Staff use additional funding in support of each child's care and learning needs.
• Staff do not consistently support children to securely understand the importance of adopting good hygiene routines. For example, children visit the bathroom without washing their hands and sometimes use their sleeves to wipe their noses. Also, staff do not always set a good example, such as by modelling effective hygiene habits.
• Staff actively seek support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. This enables them to get an early diagnosis and for staff to implement support plans without delay. Children who speak more than one language receive good levels of support. For example, staff learn key words in their home language and embrace their cultures and heritages.
• Children thoroughly enjoy group games, such as 'Duck, Duck, Goose'. When more children join the group, others make space for their friends. They choose children from the group to be the goose, encouraging them to understand turn-taking. Children giggle as they run with skill and try to catch each other.
• Staff do not always consider the size of the group when conducting activities. For example, they gather all of the children together for circle time, but some find this slightly overwhelming and do not participate directly. Although staff include the children in the welcome song, this does not consistently support their full engagement and enjoyment.
• The manager is fully supportive of her staff. She evaluates their practice and then targets their professional development opportunities effectively, with the intentions for the curriculum in mind. She carefully plans for aspects of change and takes swift and immediate action where she identifies need. For example, following assessments of children's needs, the manager and staff implemented a breakfast bar. They have seen a direct improvement in how children behave and then engage in their play and learning.
• Partnerships with parents are very good. Parents report positively about the levels of communication from staff. They praise the system for settling children who are new to the setting. For example, parents can stay for sessions, and staff use different and effective schemes to help children to adapt.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen how staff support children to securely understand the importance of adopting good hygiene routines
• consider the group sizes of children at certain times of the day, to further enhance children's personal and social skills.