Little Lattons Nursery Limited

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children enter the nursery where they are warmly welcomed by staff, who know them well and are attentive to their individual needs. Staff spend time getting to know children and their families during the settling-in period. Children develop secure bonds with staff, and they feel safe at this nurturing nursery. Staff are good role models. They provide children with clear expectations for their behaviour. Children show positive attitudes towards their learning and are caring towards others.

Staff support children to gain good communication and language skills. They introduce children to fun rhymes, songs and books that promote children's understanding, and use of new vocabulary. Staff carefully monitor children's language development and if concerns are identified they provide extra help and support. Children, including those who speak English as an additional language, become confident learners.

Staff support children's physical development well. Children enjoy lots of time outdoors to support their core strength and well-being. They use a range of resources to help them to move in different ways, such as using walkers, bicycles and balancing equipment. Children show developing levels of independence as they wash their hands, use the toilet and pour their own drinks. They develop the necessary skills in readiness for their eventual move to school.

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

• The leadership team effectively review the nursery to make improvements. Staff receive good guidance and support from managers and complete all required training, such as child protection and paediatric first aid. Managers monitor staff performance to help identify their strengths and any areas for development.
• Staff create a well-sequenced curriculum that successfully builds on what children know and can do. For example, children in the baby room have fun as they explore jelly using their hands and fingers. Staff encourage toddlers to engage in more complex and precise activities, such as using tweezers to pick up objects. By the time children move on to the pre-school room they are confident in using scissors to cut around different shapes they have drawn. The support that children receive equips them with the control and coordination they need in preparation for writing.
• Parents say that staff are supportive and welcoming, and children enjoy their time at nursery. They comment on the warm and caring relationships between staff and children. Staff make sure that they provide daily feedback to parents at pick-up times. However, not all parents receive the information about their children's progress they need to be able to further extend children's learning at home.
• The curriculum provides children with a rich and diverse range of learning experiences. For example, children enjoy learning about different countries around the world. They learn about what makes them unique and explore the cultures and beliefs of others. For example, children have recently learned about Romanian, Italian and the Greek cultures.
• Staff support children's communication and language development well. Staff listen to children and use lots of repetition to support their speaking. Children of all ages love looking at books with staff when they are indoors and outside in the nursery garden. Older children are supported to make their own story lines based on their favourite books. This helps children develop a love of reading and builds on their vocabulary.
• Staff use a range of opportunities to support children in their emerging understanding of mathematics. Staff model counting and use opportunities to extend children's mathematical language. For example, staff teach children about numbers on road signs. Children use magnifying glasses and binoculars to search for bugs and count how many insects they see.
• Staff enable children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) to make progress from their starting points. They use visual aids to support children to know what is happening next in the nursery routines. This supports children with SEND as they transition through the day's routines and meets their needs effectively.
• The development of healthy lifestyles is fostered by staff. They help children to learn about healthy habits for their future. For example, children are provided with nutritious meals and snacks. They learn to try new tastes and textures. Children know to drink water in warm weather and after being physically active to stay hydrated.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• build on the good partnerships with parents to ensure that all parents receive guidance on how to support their children's learning further at home.