Maples Day Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Management and staff provide a welcoming and well-resourced environment for children to play and learn in. Children enjoy attending the nursery. They happily leave their parents at the door and go off to play with their friends. Children share and take turns well given their ages and developmental needs.

Staff have a good knowledge of each child's individual needs and have built strong bonds with them. They give clear instructions on how to use scissors and other tools in a safe manner, such as carrying them blades downwards and not pointing the blades at themselves or their friends when cutting. Children enjoy building on their physical skills and coordination. They negotiate resources in the garden, blow bubbles, make pictures with pens and use scissors in their creative work. For example, children use scissors to cut basil and rosemary, which they then add to some play dough to give it texture and scent. Staff use these activities to talk to children and build on their vocabulary. They recognise the importance of developing children's communication skills to enable them to express themselves.

Staff act as good role models and talk calmly to the children. They gently discuss with children how to resolve any minor conflicts that occur. Children learn what is expected of them and behave well. All children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), make good progress and are gaining the skills they need for their next stage of learning.

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

• The provider and management team have a good overview of the curriculum and monitor staff practice. They ensure staff-to-child ratios meet the needs of the children. Staff receive ongoing supervision, which helps to identify any training needs. Staff talk about how they work well together and discuss how they share ideas and activities they see while watching other professionals at their setting or while covering at other settings in the chain. These experiences assist staff to support children to make the best progress they can.
• Partnerships with parents are strong. Management has put additional communication in place to keep parents informed of what their children have done during the day. Parents comment that the increase in information and the developmental guidance leaflets, such as those around safer sleeping and oral health, are really helpful. The information board outside enables them to see what their children have done during the day and the online app shares their children's developmental progress and how to extend this at home.
• Children with emerging needs or SEND receive good support. Staff work in partnership with parents and other professionals to implement a consistent approach to supporting their specific care and learning needs. Management use funding to provide additional resources and equipment to support children's inclusion and target their individual support plans.
• Management and staff encourage children to lead healthy lifestyles. Children use the garden area daily and go on walks in the local community. Children build on their physical skills and understanding of the wider world. For example, children enjoy forest school sessions in the grounds of the local school, visit care homes and explore local greens and woods. Staff respect dietary requirements and follow rigorous processes to ensure that children only receive foods they are allowed to eat.
• Staff provide clear instructions to children on what is expected of them. They acknowledge children's feelings and talk about how they can share resources with their friends. There is a wide range of resources children can choose from, and staff ensure that they are complete and in good repair. Staff include children in the daily risk assessment process, and they learn to identify how to keep themselves and their friends safe. For example, children willingly tidy toys off the floor so their friends do not trip over them.
• Staff encourage children to try things for themselves and to persevere. However, this is not consistent across the session. For example, children use scissors and tools throughout the room with increasing confidence and serve their own lunch. However, at other times, such as snack time, staff do not encourage children to cut their own fruit. Therefore, children are not receiving consistent opportunities to consolidate their skills and learning.
• Staff are caring, and their direct interactions with children are positive. They engage children in story sessions and creative activities, and they join in their play. However, on occasion, staff are less aware of what children outside their immediate interactions are doing. For example, when a child is wandering around, it takes time for staff to notice and engage them in an activity. While some children race a vehicle across the room, some staff missed the opportunity to reinforce with these children how to play safely around their friends.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• extend children's learning further by giving them consistent opportunities to complete tasks for themselves
• support staff to consistently recognise when children need support to fully engage in learning experiences.