Little Gems Nursery and After School Club

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Staff build good relationships with children in order to support their emotional well-being. In the baby room, staff create a nurturing area where staff and children can look at pictures of members of their family. Older children learn about their emotions and why they might feel a particular way. This helps children to feel safe and secure in the nursery. Staff observe the things that children are interested in and incorporate this into children's play. Young children take great pleasure in singing nursery rhymes independently. Staff provide children with lots of praise and encouragement. Children are keen to join in with the experiences available to them.

Children who speak English as an additional language are supported well. Staff find out key words in children's first languages and use these for familiarity with children. Staff assess children's communication and language stage of development and focus carefully on the areas they require further support in. Children make good progress in their understanding, listening and speaking. Staff identify children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and provide appropriate support so that all children can achieve good outcomes. They provide all children with a breadth of experiences. This helps all children to make good progress in their learning and development.

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

• Leaders and staff think carefully about what they want children to learn. They have sequenced the curriculum so that children learn and develop from their starting points in development. Babies take part in activities where they develop their skills in using and controlling spoons, such as by adding lemons to water and mixing it in cups. Toddlers use tongs to serve their own snacks and pour their own water and older children put on their coats and fasten the zips. Children grow in their independence, can undertake tasks for themselves and demonstrate positive attitudes to their learning.
• Staff establish a secure educational programme to extend children's physical skills. Indoors, they encourage babies to climb stairs and move down the slide. Outdoors, older children can jump and make things out of crates. This helps children to gain control of their bodies and to move with agility.
• Staff implement a good curriculum to enhance children's personal, social and emotional development. Staff use mirrors with younger children to help them to develop an understanding of their uniqueness. Older children take care of the nursery's rabbit and visit the vets to learn about what the rabbit needs. Children have a good sense of belonging and learn about care and consideration for others.
• Staff have not fully established routines and the organisation of the environment in some rooms. This means that there are occasions where children are not consistently supported to fully understand the expectations of them.
• At times, some staff do not fully enhance children's learning. For example, children enjoy playing with dough and in the water. However, in these periods, staff do not extend children's understanding to help them to build on what they already know.
• Staff teach children about the world around them. Children engage in first-hand experiences in their community, such as trips to the train station, doctor's surgery and local supermarket. Children use marks to describe their trip and explain their understanding. This helps children to understand about the community in which they live.
• Staff build good relationships with parents and carers. Staff talk to parents about the things children are learning at nursery and how parents can continue this learning at home. Children benefit from a consistent approach to their education.
• Staff engage in training opportunities, such as safeguarding and reflecting on the intent of the curriculum. This helps staff to identify areas in which they can improve. For instance, they now give children more choices and experiences where they can explore.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• arrange daily routines and environments more effectively to help all children know what is expected of them at all times
• strengthen staff's skills to engage children more and enhance their learning further.