Little Acorns Day Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children and parents are greeted warmly by staff as they arrive at nursery. Staff enthusiastically engage them in discussions about what they have been doing since they last came to the nursery. Children develop positive relationships with the staff, who know them well. This helps children to feel safe and secure and promotes their self-esteem. Older children settle quickly and are eager to explore the resources and activities. They excitedly run outside to play with their friends and negotiate taking turns to go down the slide. In the baby room, staff secure strong bonds with babies as they help them to stand. Babies sit on the knees of staff as they share stories. Outside, staff praise toddlers as they teach them to ride on balance bikes. Children are delighted with their success and show positive attitudes to learning.

Staff encourage children to persevere to complete tasks and offer praise when they achieve them. For example, staff support children to find out information about different types of transport as they research facts together from photos, books and the internet. Staff have high expectations for children's learning and behaviour. They encourage children to be kind and thoughtful towards each other. Children invite each other into their play. For example, older children pass bubble blowers to each other so that everyone has a turn.

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

• The manager and staff provide a curriculum that encourages children to develop the skills that they need to be ready for school. For example, all children are encouraged to be as independent as possible with their self-care. Staff observe children as they play and make assessments of what children can do. They ensure children are engaged in their play, as they plan activities based on children's interests. However, occasionally, some staff are not clear about what they want children to learn from these planned activities so that they can focus their interactions more precisely to support children's learning. As a result, some children are not always provided with the experiences they need to learn specific skills.
• Staff support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities to make progress in their development. The special educational needs coordinator accesses information and advice from external agencies to ensure children's needs are met. She shares plans and targets for individual children with the child's key person and parents to ensure continuity in each child's care and learning.
• Staff play alongside children and model language as they play. They introduce new naming words to toddlers, such as 'cucumber' as they eat snack. They introduce mathematical language, such as 'full' and 'empty', as children fill buckets with sand in the outdoor sandpit. However, some staff do not fully encourage young children to engage in conversations or share their own ideas. They ask too many questions in quick succession without allowing enough time for children to answer.
• The manager, deputy and staff create a culture of respect and tolerance for others. They plan a wide variety of opportunities for children to learn about other people and communities. For example, babies smile as they point to photos of people who are special to them. Older children talk about festivals they have learned about at nursery. Children learn about what makes them unique and celebrate their similarities and differences.
• Staff teach children to develop their independence by taking care of some of their own self-care needs. For example, older children confidently manage their own toileting needs. They set the table for lunch and serve themselves. Younger children are given time to dress and undress themselves, and staff patiently show them how to do up zips.
• The manager and deputy offer staff support and ongoing training. For example, they have worked together to determine how they can make effective use of observations they make of children's play. This helps staff to build on their knowledge and skills and improve outcomes for children. Staff express how valued and supported they feel in their roles. The manager values the well-being of staff and has successfully built a happy and effective team.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• focus more precisely on the intention of planned activities to support all children's learning
• help staff implement the curriculum for communication and language to increase opportunities for toddlers to use newly acquired vocabulary.