Little Rascals Day Nursery (Station Rd)

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are very happy and settled at this welcoming nursery and develop secure relationships with the kind and caring staff. They display a strong sense of belonging and demonstrate that they feel safe and secure. Staff are kind and calm with children. They are sensitive to the needs of babies and offer them good physical and emotional comfort when they need it. Older children and toddlers engage in play that interests them. For example, toddlers explore the foam and giggle when they clap their hands and see the foam floating in the air. Older children manoeuvre wheeled toys skilfully in the outdoor area. They talk enthusiastically about how they enjoy swinging on the monkey bars and balancing on the beams.

Children have opportunities to revisit previous learning. For instance, older children make their own play dough. They follow the sequence adding the different ingredients and describing the changes in the mixture. They develop an understanding of colour mixing and what happens when they combine the colours of paint. Children are supported well to manage their own feelings. Staff give clear instructions and children know what is expected from them. They consistently praise children for their efforts, achievements and positive behaviour. As a result, children's behaviour is good.

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

• The newly appointed manager has a clear vision for future developments at the nursery. She is aware of staff's strengths and aspects of their practice that can be developed further. She is confident in her intention to provide a curriculum to support children's learning. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who may need extra help in their learning and development are well supported. Additional funding is used appropriately to meet children's needs.
• Generally, staff know their key children very well. However, there have been some staff changes meaning that not all staff are aware of other children's precise next steps in learning when working with them. This means that when a child's key person is not present, other staff do not consistently maximise children's learning at every opportunity.
• Staff provide opportunities for children to choose books to take home and share with their families. All children have cosy spaces to relax in and read books. Toddlers make marks and patterns by rolling toy cars through the paint. They practise using plastic tweezers when serving their food. Older children begin to make meaningful marks using a range of writing tools. This supports children's fine motor skills in readiness for early writing.
• Overall, staff interact well with children, they model new words and ask questions to test children's understanding. They listen when children talk and value what they say. Older children confidently hold conversations with staff and describe past events. Staff respond to babies babbling. However, staff do not always consider appropriate ways to limit toddlers' use of dummies during the day. This potentially could affect children's language development and contribute to unclear speech.
• Children benefit from well-planned menus which means that they eat healthy meals and snacks. Staff ensure that children's individual dietary needs are met so that they do not eat any food that would cause them harm. Mealtimes are sociable events where children develop good independence and self-care skills. Children understand the importance of following good hygiene routines. However, very occasionally some staff do not ensure that nappy changing mats are cleaned after each use. This has the potential to impact on children's health.
• Staff benefit from regular support and supervision from the manager. They receive frequent feedback about their teaching practice and are given good opportunities to further enhance their professional development. This helps raise staff morale and improves outcomes for children.
• Parents are complimentary about the service the nursery provides. They state that their children enjoy attending the nursery. Parents feel that staff keep them well informed about what their children are learning. They appreciate the online journals that staff keep for their children, demonstrating their learning.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• enhance staff communication to ensure that key persons consistently share children's updated next steps with other staff working with their children, to maximise children's learning at every opportunity
• support staff to promote children's speech and language skills even further by reducing the time children use dummies
• strengthen the procedures for hygiene practices, such as cleaning nappy-change mats after each use.