Little Legs Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

All children, including babies, are happy, confident and make good levels of progress in relation to their starting points. Babies enjoy snuggling with staff when they wake up. They develop their early independence skills as they sit and feed themselves at snack and mealtimes. Toddlers explore what happens when they shine torches in their little den. They look in awe as the torches create patterns on the wall and ceiling. Pre-school children confidently lead their own play, delighting as staff join in. They help themselves to art materials and stick tissue paper onto dinosaur shapes. Children form firm friendships with their peers and seek them out to share their ideas. All children behave really well. They share, take turns and respect the environment and resources.

Children enjoy playing in the extensive nursery garden. Pre-school children eagerly go on a mathematical hunt to find paper plates with numbers written on them. Children are keen to find the numbered plates. However, when they realise that there is still one missing, they excitedly tell staff that they have been into different areas of the garden. Children say that they have looked up in the trees, behind play equipment and under bushes. They carefully match the plates to numbers drawn on the pavement to find out which one is missing.

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

• Overall, children enjoy activities and experiences that are consistently challenging and exciting. They are motivated and curious to learn. For example, babies explore different textures in water, splashing about with their hands. Toddlers bath baby dolls and independently explore books. However, staff have yet to consider ways to enable children to extend their imaginative and creative skills through role play. For example, many resources are plastic and brightly coloured rather than reflective of children's home lives.
• There have been significant changes since the last inspection. The staff team and management have pulled together to raise the quality of education and ensure that legal requirements are met. Staff have frequent opportunities to talk to the manager through supervision and staff meetings. This enables them to discuss aspects of their practice and professional development to help raise outcomes for children.
• Staff place a high priority on supporting children's personal, social and emotional development. They continually praise children for their achievements throughout the day. Children smile and appreciate the kind words, which helps to support their emotional well-being and confidence.
• Staff work well with school teachers to help to support continuity in children's care and learning as they move on to the next stage of their education. Teachers visit the nursery and receive assessment reports to find out what children know and can do. However, where children attend more than one setting, information-sharing is not as well developed.
• Parents have a range of opportunities to find out what their children are learning and the next steps. Staff regularly update parents with information about children's achievements. For babies, staff inform parents about their daily routines and when they have slept and eaten. In addition, parents' evenings, special open days and lots of discussions when children arrive or depart further keep supporting continuity in children's care and development.
• All children, including babies, make consistently good levels of progress. They are ready for the next stage in their learning, such as moving from one age group into the next. Children enjoy their learning. Staff quickly identify any gaps in their development and plan activities to help children to catch up. Staff make good use of additional funding to provide activities that help and support children's individual needs. For example, a continually developing range of sensory resources provides children with opportunities to explore lights, sounds and find calmness when they need it.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• develop further the existing partnerships with other settings that children attend, to help to support greater continuity in their care and learning
• review and develop the range of opportunities for children to engage further in imaginative play that reflects their home lives more accurately.