Mini Merrys Private Day Nursery

Inclusion: Strong standard

Leaders create a highly inclusive culture in the setting, where all children are fully involved and access the full range of experiences. Leaders swiftly identify children's emerging needs and take decisive steps to implement targeted strategies. Robust assessments, individual plans and ongoing observations ensure that progress is tracked effectively. Staff review plans regularly in response to the progress children make. They adapt approaches quickly to maximise learning.

Leaders work closely with parents and outside agencies to ensure a collaborative approach to supporting children, proactively seeking out specialist advice appropriately. Leaders ensure staff have access to training, which helps them support children's individual needs. For example, staff effectively apply their learning from recent training in using 'objects of reference' to support understanding and communication and language skills for those children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

Staff have a thorough understanding of child development, and they also know children extremely well. They combine this knowledge to effectively adapt their teaching to meet children's needs in the moment and ensure that learning is based on children's interests. As a result, all children, particularly those with SEND and those who face other barriers to their learning and/or wellbeing, have a very positive attitude to learning and their progress is sustained over time.

Curriculum and teaching: Strong standard

The curriculum at this nursery is exciting, and staff are highly effective at ensuring that learning opportunities are based on children's interests. They consistently support children to explore themes that excite them, and this helps children to develop a sense of belonging and an understanding of themselves and the world around them. Staff help children to celebrate what makes each of them unique. Leaders ensure that communication and language is a central part of the curriculum, and staff consistently demonstrate a clear focus on developing children's language skills by modelling the use of vocabulary and encouraging children to repeat and use this in their play. Children of all ages enjoy stories, books and songs as part of their everyday routine. Staff understand the developmental stages of all children and adapt their communication and responses to meet individual needs, particularly for those children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those with other barriers to their learning and/or wellbeing. Staff plan mathematical learning systematically to ensure children have secure knowledge and understanding, and it is also embedded into the daily routine. Younger children hear and are encouraged to use mathematics vocabulary as they explore the climbing frame, such as up, down and through. Older children help staff to prepare and count snack to make sure that everyone has the same amount. Staff encourage and support children to develop their problem-solving and independence skills through the everyday routines. Children have daily access to the large outdoor learning environment, and they engage in a wide range of activities to support and strengthen their physical skills, such as digging and planting seeds in the garden, learning how to use a ball and racket to play tennis, throwing and kicking balls, and using large-scale mark-making tools such as brushes and chalks.

Achievement: Strong standard

Children are curious and excited about learning. They actively explore the learning environments, both indoors and outdoors, and confidently talk about what they are doing and what they notice. They seek out adults and ask questions, request resources and offer suggestions about activities and experiences to help them clarify their thinking and understanding.

Children develop problem-solving skills through everyday routines, such as sharing out tools during activities so everyone has what they need. They become increasingly independent and feel a sense of pride in their achievements. For example, younger children are supported and encouraged to crawl and then walk independently to seek the resources they want, and older children are supported to independently kick, throw and use rackets with balls. This helps children develop secure physical skills.

Children concentrate for increasing amounts of time and build their resilience when facing a challenge. For example, when using masking tape to create a picture, children are determined to find the end of the tape and then practise using scissors to cut the tape at the right length they need.

All children leave the setting ready for the next stage of their education, including those children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those with other barriers to their learning and/or wellbeing.

Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines: Strong standard

Leaders create a warm and friendly 'family' atmosphere across the whole setting. This helps children and families to feel valued and included. Leaders and parents value the positive relationships between the setting and their families. They recognise how this helps staff to support children.

Staff act as role models and treat children with kindness and respect. Children consistently behave well because staff have very high expectations of their behaviour.

Routines are established and give children the confidence to explore the environment. Staff ensure that all children have the support they need to develop their independence and thinking skills, particularly those children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and other barriers to their learning and/or wellbeing. Children have consistently positive attitudes and are excited to learn new things.

Children build positive relationships with staff and get on well with their friends. They enjoy playing games together, where they share and take turns. This helps them to develop skills in negotiating and communicating. Staff praise and encourage children's efforts, which supports them to develop secure personal, social and emotional skills.

Leaders have a secure understanding of their responsibilities and they monitor attendance closely. They work proactively with families to support attendance.

Children's welfare and wellbeing: Expected standard

Leaders prioritise creating positive relationships with children and their families. Children are happy when they attend the setting, and all staff know children well. They quickly establish attentive and supportive relationships with their key person. This means that children feel safe and secure.

Staff use robust information gathering systems. This enables them to gather all the information they need to care for individual children. In addition, this helps them to meet the care needs of children, including sleeping, weaning and managing personal needs. While practices relating specifically to mealtimes are generally positive across the setting, leaders have not sufficiently evaluated some mealtime routines. This means that staff do not always adapt practice quickly enough to support some children as they transition into a new room.

Staff consistently model kindness and cooperation. As a result, children learn to get along well with each other. Staff skilfully use characters from well-loved stories to support children to develop their knowledge and understanding of emotions. Staff talk about emotions and ensure that children have the vocabulary to name them. They have strategies to help children manage their own feelings, particularly for those children with other barriers to their learning and/or wellbeing.

Children enjoy healthy, nutritious meals and develop a secure understanding of a balanced diet. They talk about the healthy vegetables they have grown in the garden and enjoy eating the produce. Children talk about their favourite recipes, and the setting shares these recipes for families to use at home.

Leadership and governance: Expected standard

Leaders have an appropriate understanding of the context of the setting, and they use this information to ensure that the curriculum is based on the needs of the children and celebrates the uniqueness of the local area. They have established suitable arrangements for children's daily routines and transitions. However, they do not precisely identify where these practices need to be further strengthened. For example, leaders do not ensure that mealtimes are consistently high-quality experiences where children are fully engaged and that children are better prepared when transitioning into an older age-group room.

Leaders ensure that staff access appropriate training to meet the needs of the children. For example, staff use their recent training in sensory circuits to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) to regulate their emotions. Staff also use training in 'objects of reference' to support children with SEND to develop their understanding and communication skills. Leaders use funding effectively to support the individual needs of children, for example, purchasing specific resources, staff training and facilitating focused one-to-one support.

Staff recognise the support they receive from leaders and feel appreciated and valued. Leaders are mindful of workload and work with staff to effectively manage this and positively support wellbeing.

Leaders are firmly committed to fostering close, positive relationships with parents, and this supports the collaborative approach when meeting children's individual needs. Leaders are proactive in seeking support appropriately and engage well with other professionals.