Mon Ami Children's Nursery @ The Chimes

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are invited to attend settling-in visits when they first start attending. This helps children to become familiar with the staff and environment. Children settle quickly and show they have close bonds with staff who support them emotionally, giving cuddles of reassurance when needed. Children are supported to understand their feelings and emotions. For example, staff read children in the pre-school room stories about colours that link to emotions. This encourages children to discuss why they think characters in a story are feeling a certain way.

Children are supported by staff to understand the behaviour they expect from them. For example, in the baby room, when children start to climb on tables to reach objects, staff ask them to put their bottoms on a chair. Children have opportunities to learn how they can keep themselves safe. For example, staff show children in the pre-school room how to use safety knives safely to cut up vegetables. This encourages children to try to complete the task on their own. Staff help children to learn new skills. For example, they show children in the toddler room how to use a pipette in water. Children watch staff and copy, helping them to develop the small muscles in their hands. They laugh with staff when they squirt the water from the pipette into the air.

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

• The manager and staff work well in partnership with parents. Information is exchanged daily with parents about children's care and learning. This helps to keep parents informed about their children's day. Staff offer children resources to take home, such as books. This encourages parents to continue their child's learning at home. Parents say that staff are attentive and friendly.
• The management team support staff with their practice and well-being. Staff attend meetings with the manager to discuss how to extend their professional development. Recent training helps staff to develop their knowledge of how to implement sign language, to support children's understanding of words. This is particularly effective for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).
• The manager places a strong focus on supporting children's communication and language skills. She completes training courses to develop her knowledge of how to help staff support children with this aspect of their learning. For example, staff use picture cards to show children the daily routine and activities available. This helps all children, including those who speak English as an additional language, to follow routines and make choices in their play.
• The manager is highly praised by parents for the support they receive for their children with SEND. Children have individual targets in place, that staff implement, to help them progress in their development. The manager uses additional funding for children with SEND to provide one-to-one staff support to meet their individual needs.
• Younger children in the baby room are supported by staff to pull themselves up to standing, supporting their physical development. However, staff in the baby room do not fully build on the older children's large physical skills indoors. This limits opportunities for children to develop this aspect of their learning.
• Staff help children learn skills for school, such as to be independent. For example, children in the toddler room are given time to take off their shoes on their own before they enter the playroom. Staff ask them to get their own plate and to peel their banana at snack time. Children in the pre-school room are asked to wash and dry their plates when they have finished snack. They receive praise from staff for working as a team to achieve this, helping to promote positive behaviour.
• Staff support children to listen and follow instructions during their self-chosen play. For example, when children make sounds on a toy drum and guitar, staff sing a song. When staff ask children to stop playing their instruments at certain points during the song, children follow instructions. However, during some planned activities, staff do not fully support children to focus and pay attention. For example, occasionally, group times take place where there are toys close by and children become distracted by these and are not supported by staff to focus on the learning being offered.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support staff to help older children in the baby room to build on their large physical skills indoors
• help staff to minimise distractions during planned group times with children in the pre-school room to help maintain their focus and attention.