Manorcroft Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children confidently arrive at nursery, happily waving goodbye to their parents. They are familiar with the daily routine and complete tasks for themselves independently, such as hanging up their coats and finding their name tag. Children wait for their friends to arrive and greet them excitedly with a cuddle. They quickly find their favourite activities to do together and joyfully engage in conversation.

Children are highly motivated and eager to learn. They concentrate for extended periods of time in a range of learning experiences, such as water and sand play. Children are polite, respectful and kind to each other. For example, they offer their friends their favourite coloured cups as they know it will make them happy.

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

• Children develop excellent communication and language skills. Staff read to children with enthusiasm, and children listen intently. Children confidently describe key parts of the stories that they have read. For example, they explain how King Charles went to boarding school and talk about his upcoming Coronation. This teaches them about significant events. Children use their wide range of vocabulary to describe pictures, using descriptive language such as 'gooey', 'sticky' and 'sloppy'.
• The manager has embedded positive changes into the setting. For instance, she has supported the staff team to deliver a child-centred curriculum. Staff use the children's interests to plan stimulating learning opportunities. They extend children's thinking through their interactions, supporting children to achieve their full potential and preparing them well for the next stage in their education.
• Children complete many tasks independently. For instance, they pour their own milk and water during snack time and wash their hands before they eat. During mealtimes, children have good manners and are sociable with their friends. However, staff do not consistently use opportunities at mealtimes to talk to children about the importance of healthy eating and a balanced diet.
• Parents are actively encouraged to be involved in the setting. They are given specific tasks to help the day-to-day running of the nursery, such as shopping for snack and helping to change the reading books. Children take home books each day to share with their parents and carers. This helps to promote children's love of reading at home. Parents describe the progress that children make as 'incredible'.
• Children are encouraged to celebrate their individuality. They learn about the festivals and traditions of families and people that are different to their own. Staff invite visitors to the setting to teach children about their culture. They display images of the children alongside a world map and promote the languages that children speak at home. Children who speak English as an additional language make very good progress.
• Staff quickly identify when children need additional support to assist their development. They work with parents and other professionals to put individual learning plans in place. This helps to ensure that children with special educational needs and/or disabilities make good progress.
• Children show a keen interest in the world around them, which is promoted through the current topic of 'growth'. They excitedly point out different insects and bugs that they spot in the garden. Children take part in growing vegetables and herbs in their sensory garden. They take responsibility for the plants by watering them. This helps children to learn about sustainability and how things grow.
• The manager provides effective supervision to the staff team. She identifies training opportunities to benefit their practice. As a result, staff bring new ideas to the setting and develop the learning space. The manager prioritises the well-being of her staff team, which leads to a positive working environment that staff enjoy being a part of.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support all staff to provide positive and consistent messages about healthy eating to help children further understand the importance of a healthy lifestyle.