Merritime Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The nursery provides children with a nurturing home-away-from-home environment. Staff design a curriculum successfully to follow children's interests. Children enjoy investigating a wide range of creative resources, which they use to develop their imaginative play. For example, they build castles using wooden blocks and natural materials of all shapes and sizes. They weave imaginary spider webs using coloured rubber bands and pegs, which also helps to develop their fine motor skills. They use emerging language effectively to describe their play to others.

Children behave very well. They take turns and help each other. Toddlers offer to help sweep the floor when sand is spilt and hand each other bowls ready for their snack. Very young children move between rooms in an orderly manner. Pre-schoolers excitedly use syringes to squirt water outside but take care not to wet each other. Children show respect for their peers. This helps everyone to learn and play in a calm, safe environment.

Staff make sure that children are always actively engaged. Babies excitedly sing songs and rhymes in preparation for lunch. Pre-school children have freedom to explore tasks independently. When toddlers struggle to share a toy vacuum cleaner, the room leader suggests children work together to operate the toy. These creative and timely interventions promote children's independence and teach them important team-building skills.

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

• Staff demonstrate activities well for children. For instance, staff play 'ready, steady, go' games with babies using funnels and jugs to focus their attention on the sound and movement of liquid. In pre-school, staff help children to create castles and homes for a variety of imaginary creatures. This encourages children to become fascinated and helps them to show interest as they play.
• Staff have a friendly and nurturing manner towards children. They demonstrate how to resolve any issues quickly. They speak in gentle and reassuring tones, helping children to communicate calmly with each other. This helps to reduce background noise levels throughout the nursery, which further supports children to hear each other's language as they play.
• Parents are positive about the nursery. They report that their children have progressed with their social skills and their communication and language. Parents describe how their children greet staff at the door by holding out their arms. They say their children love coming to the nursery. Parents of children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) feel that their children have been welcomed into the nursery. They say that their children thrive there.
• Overall, babies' care needs are met. However, on occasion when staff are busy with routines, they do not always respond quickly enough when babies need additional help. For example, children are not always supported promptly to be ready for the next activity.
• The manager and her deputy communicate well with their team. They provide regular opportunities for staff to discuss any concerns or questions they might have. Staff who are working towards a childcare qualification feel well supported by their room leaders and by managers. Managers have fostered a motivated, knowledgeable team where staff well-being is promoted effectively.
• Staff ask interesting questions in group activities to help children explore what they know and can do. However, at times, more confident children can dominate the responses to such questions. This means that quieter or less confident children do not always participate in discussions as fully as they could.
• There is effective support in place for children with SEND. A well-established key-person system means that staff take time to research the individual needs of children in their care. Leaders in the pre-school and toddler rooms collaborate well with specialist agencies. They ask for advice and follow recommendations from outside professionals. Children make good progress from their starting points, particularly in their personal and social development. Strong partnerships between all agencies mean important assessment information is regularly shared. This contributes fully towards the good progress children make.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• review and improve staff deployment in the baby room during busy periods to ensure children are comfortable and ready for the next activity
• improve the organisation of group activities so that the views of quieter and less confident children are always heard and valued.