Little Oaks Children's Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are confident, happy, emotionally secure and enjoying their learning. They are developing good skills for their future. Children behave extremely well and are highly motivated, excitedly joining in with whole-group activities. For example, when asked, children immediately go to the carpet for circle time and eagerly participate in a range of puppet-based songs and action rhymes. Children develop a love of books and stories. They excitedly share their own books, such as 'Postman Bear', talking about his birthday pie and comparing the story to their own experiences.

The caring, family atmosphere which staff create enables children to feel very safe and secure. Children develop extremely strong attachments with their key person. The manager and staff keep children's well-being and enjoyment at the centre of everything they do. They talk to children in a calm and respectful manner, gently reminding them about the need to share and take turns. Children are developing an awareness of their emotions and are caring towards each other.

Staff support the development of children's communication and language skills well. For example, they use Makaton signing with children. Staff speak key words in both English and children's home language, which benefits children who speak English as an additional language. For example, staff learn how to say 'my pillow' in Polish when playing on the carpet with Polish children.

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

• Children make independent choices, explore their environment and are inquisitive. Staff provide exciting experiences and activities. For example, children find out about Holi, before they explore mixing paint while decorating a huge branch they found. They manipulate dough, making marks with natural objects, such as pine cones and leaves. This helps strengthen their hands ready for writing.
• Children's physical development is well supported. They run, balance, jump and climb while outside. Younger children are supported to become independent, as staff provide them with many opportunities to do things for themselves. For example, children put on their coats, scrape their plates after lunch and manage their personal hygiene.
• Staff use what they know about children to plan a wide range of activities that support children to develop new skills and knowledge. However, older children are not always given opportunities to explore their ideas and experiment for themselves. For example, when children paint butterflies, staff ensure they create a butterfly shape with paint before folding the paper for them. Staff direct the children in how to add leaves and twigs. This limits children's independence and their ability to make choices and be creative for themselves.
• Parents are extremely happy with the care and education their children receive. They are kept informed of their children's progress through daily conversations and discussions. Staff share planning with parents and give them activity ideas they can do with their children at home. For example, parents are informed about upcoming themes, such as 'daffodils' or 'beaches', and encouraged to send in pictures of their child exploring these at home.
• The manager is dedicated, ambitious and passionate. She maintain a keen oversight of the setting, staff, children and families. Staff turnover is very low due to an emphasis on supporting development and well-being. Staff feel extremely supported and encouraged to evolve and progress in their careers. The manager completes supervisions with all staff. However, systems are yet to be fully embedded to observe and review staff's teaching practice to help them develop further. As a result, there are some inconsistencies in teaching.
• Staff encourage children to celebrate differences and varying ways of life. All children learn about key festivals and the various cultures of the staff and children who attend the nursery. They consider foods, similarities and differences, music and other exciting aspects. This helps to encourage children to respect others and to embrace the diverse world they live in, which in turn prepares children for life in modern Britain.
• The manager strives for the best possible outcomes for children. She introduces new opportunities to enhance the curriculum, widening children's knowledge of the world around them. For example, children experience theatre trips, hatching eggs, visiting animals and trips to the construction site and dentist.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support staff to help them understand when to give older children freedom to make choices and decisions for themselves in their learning
• enhance current monitoring and staff observations so that these focus more specifically on raising the quality of teaching to a consistently high level.