Little Legs Day Nursery & Pre School Ltd

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy and extremely settled attending the nursery. Staff provide an ambitious curriculum that helps all children make good progress with their learning and development. Staff make good use of children's next steps in learning. They plan fun and exciting activities to help children make good progress towards the early learning goals.

Children are highly skilled in serving their own meals. They develop key skills in using tongs to serve food. This helps towards their early literacy skills. Children further practise this skill when using chalk boards. They thoroughly enjoy making different marks and working with staff to draw and name different shapes. This also helps to support children's early mathematical development.

Care of children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) is a key strength. All staff are fully aware of children's backgrounds and receive specialist training to help meet children's individual needs, such as specialist feeding and use of equipment. Children thoroughly enjoy singing and dancing along to nursery rhymes. Staff support younger and less mobile children to dance along. This helps to support children's physical development and ability to listen to instructions.

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

• Leaders are proactive in ensuring staff have training to improve their practice. Recent training has supported staff to enhance their knowledge and understanding of reporting safeguarding concerns and whistle-blowing. This helps staff to keep children safe.
• Staff do not always extend activities to provide challenge for the most-able children to reach their full potential. Older children enjoy activities such as sand play, however, staff do not adapt their level of questioning to extend further the most-able children's language development.
• Parents are extremely happy with the care staff provide. They relish feedback staff provide to help them understand their children's progress and their next steps. Parents explain the progress children are making since joining the nursery with the support of hard working staff.
• Staff do not always plan for the younger children when they first play outside. As a result, younger children do not settle straight away into their play and learning when they go into the garden area, to fully support their development.
• Staff work extremely well with other agencies. They attend regular meetings, sharing reports and progress towards targets. They use information gathered to reassess their targets to help children reach their next milestone.
• Leaders make good use of extra funding to help meet children's individual needs. They research resources that will support children's learning and use these to work towards progressing children's learning further.
• Children behave extremely well. They readily help and support their friends in getting resources to support their play and learning. Children are all highly mindful of each other as they play. Older children are mindful of younger ones toddling around and make sure they do not bump into them. This further supports children's behaviour.
• Staff are fully aware of the impact COVID-19 has had on some of the children. They work closely with parents to narrow gaps with children's development. They make good use of resources, such as climbing frames and ride-on toys, to support children's physical development.
• Children are able to choose where they wish to play and learn. Staff are aware that some children learn best when outside and others inside. Staff are mindful and considerate when children need some down time to relax and to have cuddles or reassurance. This helps to promote children's personal and social development.
• Staff ensure children have plenty of space to move around safely. They are mindful that younger children require space free from trip hazards so they can practise their new found skills, such as crawling and/or walking. This helps to keep children safe and supports their physical development.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support staff to adapt activities to provide more challenge to most-able children
• improve planning for the outdoor area to enable younger children to engage and start their learning as soon as they arrive.