Little Learners Nurseries

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are greeted warmly by the friendly and attentive staff. They develop strong attachments and therefore feel safe and secure. Children benefit from consistent routines and boundaries. Therefore, they quickly learn about expectations, such as washing their hands before eating. Children receive consistent guidance from staff, to support their positive behaviour. They develop excellent social skills and learn to moderate their behaviour well. For example, older children confidently use timers to help them take turns with the resources.

Children enjoy an ambitious and well sequenced curriculum that successfully builds on their skills and knowledge. The managers and staff have a clear vision of what they want children to learn and achieve. For instance, they know that children joining the setting often need help to develop their speech and build relationships. Therefore, there is a strong focus on language and social development, to help children succeed in these areas.

The nursery is highly inclusive and welcomes children from diverse backgrounds. Staff ensure that resources and displays represent a variety of cultures and communities. Consequently, children develop their understanding of different people and ways of life. Staff find out about children's experiences at home and ensure that these are included in the curriculum. For example, children celebrate religious and cultural events together. This helps all children to value their uniqueness.

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

• Managers provide strong and effective leadership for the staff team. They have a secure overview of the nursery and ambitious plans to develop the provision further. Staff say that they are well supported by managers and morale is high. They speak with enthusiasm about the opportunities for training and describe how they implement what they have learned. For instance, staff are developing a 'self-care station' for children, to promote their independence even further.
• Staff monitor children's progress closely and swiftly identify where they may need extra help with their learning. They provide an excellent range of support for children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). This involves close partnership working with parents and other professionals, where needed.
• Managers ensure that additional funding is used effectively, to enhance children's experiences and help them access the curriculum. For example, they have created a 'sensory area' to help calm and focus children with SEND, so that they feel secure and ready for learning.
• The support for meeting children's emotional needs is a real strength. For instance, staff provide individual resource boxes, which contain toys and other items to comfort and engage children. Staff describe how they use these to help children regulate their emotions and feel secure at nursery. As a result, children settle in rapidly and their behaviour is very good.
• Overall, staff promote healthy lifestyles for children effectively. For instance, they arrange visits from a dentist, to help children learn about good oral health. Staff ensure that children are active during their play and provide lots of fun ways for them to exercise their bodies. However, staff could do more to help children understand the physical benefits of exercise and healthy eating.
• Staff do all that they can to enrich children's learning and help them experience the awe and wonder of the world. For instance, they recognise that some children have not had the opportunity to visit a beach or go to the cinema. Therefore, they replicate these experiences at the nursery. This helps to ignite children's curiosity and to prepare them for life outside of home and nursery.
• Staff provide good support for children who speak English as an additional language. For example, they learn and display common words in children's home languages, to aid communication. Staff also use visual resources, such as pictorial timetables, to help children understand the nursery routine and settle well.
• Managers and staff work hard to engage parents, to provide consistency in children's care and learning. For instance, they arrange workshops on children's oral health and language development. Staff have regular discussions with parents and send home books and resources, to help them continue children's learning at home.
• Parents are delighted with the provision. They comment that staff are extremely caring and treat each child as an individual. Parents say that their children progress well and love attending the nursery.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• consider ways to further develop children's understanding of how exercise and healthy eating affects their bodies and contributes to their overall health.