Life Bank Nursery at Kensington Children's Centre

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provider and managers have taken swift action to address the weaknesses identified at the last inspection. All staff are suitable to fulfil their roles and demonstrate good knowledge and understanding to keep children safe from harm. Children arrive excited and eager to see their friends. On arrival, staff greet children and ask how they are, and children run into the setting with confidence and delight, ready to start their day. All children access environments that are planned effectively and promote their learning through play. Babies and toddlers inquisitively explore heavy duty plastic trays using all their senses. Older children make smoothies to learn about keeping themselves healthy.

Support for children who speak English as an additional language is effective. Staff are highly qualified and skilled and have excellent partnerships with professionals and parents. Together, they plan the best ways to meet children's needs, both in nursery and in readiness for their transition to school. All children make good progress and are developing their skills for future learning. Children behave well throughout the nursery. Staff teach children to be polite and help them to learn to respect each other. Children take turns, share and show kindness to their friends and adults.

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

• Leaders and staff are committed to improving their own practice through professional development. All staff receive targeted training and ongoing, constructive feedback. The manager is proactive and works above and beyond in her campaign to improve children's oral health. As a result, staff access specialist toothbrushing training to teach children and their families good oral health routines. All staff feel well supported by the management team.
• Children learn about their diverse community and the world around them through exciting, well-planned events. For example, children learn about African culture and traditions. They celebrate Africa Day with Ghanaian dancers, acting out the story of 'Handa's Surprise'. During 'Safari month', children handle snakes, lizards and geckos. They learn about their habitats, which they later recreate. Children are beginning to make sense of the physical world and their own community.
• Overall, children's communication and language development is promoted well. For example, staff introduce new vocabulary, such as 'crunch' and 'stamp', as young children play with their dinosaurs in the cereal. Older children learn the names of the ingredients and utensils as they make their own smoothies. However, there are occasions when staff do not model the correct pronunciation of words. At lunchtime, children hear the word 'narna' for 'banana' when they are given their dessert, which can be confusing for children with growing vocabulary. This does not ensure that children learn the accurate pronunciation of all words.
• Babies are cared for in a calm and relaxing environment. Staff are kind and caring and inform babies of their personal care routines. Babies are asked if they would like to have their noses wiped, or if they would like to have their nappies changed, which promotes choice and independence.
• Staff support children to learn about keeping healthy. Children enjoy home-cooked, healthy meals and snacks, with a wide range of fruit and vegetables. They drink water frequently. Children learn to take care of their teeth and enjoy being active in the garden. These activities support them in forming healthy habits for their futures.
• Children have lots of opportunities to develop their mathematical knowledge and skills through exploration and play. When making smoothies, staff introduce the concept of 'half' when the children cut their fruit into two pieces. Children independently count down from five to zero before launching their rocket. Furthermore, staff support children using mathematical language to correctly stack blocks in order of shape and size. This means that children are developing their skills well, which supports their next steps in learning.
• Parent partnership is excellent. Staff and parents undergo professional training together with their local primary school to learn about how best to support their children. Staff hold daily conversations with parents about their child's day, and planned parent meetings are organised. Parents say that they are extremely well informed about their child's learning and development, and they are highly complimentary about the love and care their children receive.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• encourage staff to support children's growing vocabulary by modelling the correct pronunciation of words.