Little Treasures Day Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

This nursery is very welcoming and safe. Children enter the nursery happily and confidently as they hang up their coats and bags. Staff greet children warmly. They chat together about what they might do that day. Children are able to access a wide range of resources and enjoy taking part in the activities provided that inspire and motivate them. They are eager to start to play and learn as a result.

Children behave well. Staff support children's emotional well-being sensitively and with patience and care. Children learn to be kind to each other, to share and to take turns. They develop good social skills as they play together. They learn to cooperate, negotiate and be considerate of others. This helps to prepare them well for their move to school.

The nursery places a strong focus on making sure that children develop their communication and language skills well, including a love of books and stories. Children can choose from a wide range of books. They have lots of fun while listening to stories read by staff. Staff discuss the stories with children, for example, pointing out the things they see in pictures and asking children questions. This helps to introduce children to new words and vocabulary. Children are given the time they need to think and respond. Children make good progress in their learning.

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

• Leaders work well together, as a team, to develop an environment in which children can thrive. The nursery is bright and clean. Staff fill display boards with the children's drawings, paintings and pictures, valuing their achievements. Rooms are well laid out so that all children can choose from and easily access a wide range of resources.
• The curriculum is clear and ambitious to ensure that it builds sequentially on what children already know and can do. Staff provide interesting and exciting activities and learning spaces for children to explore, develop their confidence and to ignite their imaginations. In the construction area, for example, children enjoy experimenting in building a tall tower using large bricks. As it grows, the tower becomes increasingly unstable and it subsequently falls. Children pretend that the floor has become lava and so they need to 'be careful'.
• Leaders and staff support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) effectively and passionately. They work closely with professionals and parents to ensure that children with SEND receive any additional support they need. Leaders use additional funding to good effect to support children's learning and development and enable them to make good progress.
• Children are provided with opportunities to play in the nursery's garden, which helps them to successfully develop a range of skills. For example, staff encourage children to throw coloured beanbags into the matching coloured hoops of different sizes. They offer plenty of praise in recognition of their achievements. Activities such as these help to promote children's physical and mathematical development.
• In readiness for learning outdoors, staff encourage and support children to put on their own coats. This helps to promote children's independence and fine motor skills as they zip or button them up. However, at times, after being outside for only a few minutes, children's play is interrupted while staff take them inside to have their nappy changed. The timing of important daily routines, such as nappy changing, is not consistently well thought out to minimise the impact on children's learning.
• Children learn the importance of keeping themselves healthy. They thoroughly enjoy the hearty and nutritious meals on offer. Staff have embedded good hygiene practices for handwashing and using the toilet. Children are offered drinks throughout the day, which helps them to stay well hydrated. Older children can access their drinks independently at the 'Hydration Station' during the day.
• Effective partnerships with parents reflect a very easy and open approach to communication between the nursery and home. Parents are extremely complimentary about the nursery. They praise the high levels of care and attention the staff give to themselves and their children. They say that staff are very approachable and that nothing is too much trouble. However, while parents share lots of information about their children with the nursery when their children first join, this does not routinely include an account of what their children already know and can do. This hampers staff's ability to assess and identify swiftly and effectively what children need to learn next.
• Staff are well supported by leaders through supervision sessions and opportunities for professional development to enhance their skills and knowledge even further. The atmosphere in the nursery is positive. Staff show support and care for each other. Managers and leaders are committed to ensuring that staff are happy in their work.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• ensure that any daily routines are planned so as to minimise any disruption in children's learning
• seek information from parents about what children already know and can do when they join the nursery and use this to inform staff's assessments and planning for children's next steps in their learning and development.