Merry Poppets Nursery Ltd

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy and enjoy the company of their friends. They have access to a good range of age-appropriate resources. Children develop the skills and knowledge they need for the next stage of their development, including their eventual move to school. From a young age, children are encouraged to develop a love of songs, rhymes and stories. Younger children enjoy looking at the illustrations in books. Older children attentively listen to stories. They enthusiastically repeat familiar phrases and predict what will happen next. Older children count with growing confidence, and younger children are introduced to mathematical concepts, such as big and small, as they learn to compare the sizes of autumn leaves.

Younger children explore leaves, pine cones, sand and water. They place their hands in shaving foam and reach out to pop bubbles. Older children play in the mud kitchen, plant and harvest tomatoes, grow pumpkins and search for minibeasts under the logs. This effectively supports children to learn about nature, planting and growth. Children learn to take responsibility and to become independent. They help to tidy away the resources and dress themselves for outdoor play. Younger children carefully thread cereal hoops onto dry spaghetti and stack building blocks on top of one another. They receive praise for their efforts and achievements, which develops their self-esteem and motivates them to continue to persevere at the task.

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

• The management team supports staff to understand what they intend children to learn and achieve from their time at the nursery. They provide a curriculum that follows the children's interests and builds on what children already know and can do. Staff know the children well. They complete observations of the children's achievements as they play and evaluate this information to plan what children need to learn next. This supports children to make good progress.
• The management team continues to review and monitor staff practice. They encourage staff to attend training sessions to help build on their skills and knowledge. For example, staff have recently completed training to further enhance children's language development. However, on occasions, staff do not always make use of spontaneous opportunities to extend and challenge children's learning as they play. Furthermore, on occasions, staff focus on the planned daily routines and interrupt children's play and opportunities for them to develop and complete the activities they are enjoying.
• Staff support children to understand and implement the nursery's 'golden rules'. They calmly reinforce boundaries and give clear explanations as to why certain behaviours are not acceptable. From a young age, children are encouraged to be kind and respectful to their friends, to share resources and take their turn. Children are encouraged to use good manners. For example, they are encouraged to say 'thank you' when they receive their lunch.
• Staff working with children with special educational needs and/or disabilities are committed to ensuring their specific needs are met. They work closely with parents and other professionals to understand and implement targeted support. For example, children benefit from a range of sensory play experiences to support their development, such as placing their feet in bubbly water and using their fingers to feel the texture of jelly.
• Staff effectively promote the good health of the children in their care. They ensure they adhere to a child's dietary requirements, such as known allergies and food preferences. Children are provided with nutritious meals and snacks, which they thoroughly enjoy and ask for more. They learn about the importance of brushing their teeth, and follow secure hygiene routines, such as washing their hands before meals and after using the toilet. Children participate in yoga sessions and enjoy taking part in physically active play outdoors.
• Staff understand the importance of supporting children to develop their communication and language skills. Babies and younger children are introduced to new words associated with their play, such as 'scoop, pour' and 'round and round', as they pretend to make leaf soup. Older children use language to describe what they are doing. For example, children talk about their dough creations and recall events from home.
• Staff develop effective partnerships with parents. They find out about children's care routines and experiences at home before they start at the nursery. This contributes to children receiving a consistent approach to their care and learning. Staff then build on these experiences to further enhance children's development. They regularly share information with parents about their child's day, achievements and progress.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• make more effective use of spontaneous opportunities to extend and challenge children's learning
• review and improve the organisation of planned routines to support children to develop and complete the activities they are enjoying.