Monkeymoos Highdown

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children enjoy the time they spend at nursery. They benefit enormously from both the indoor and outdoor environments that promote their learning across all seven areas. Children are very confident to make decisions about their play. They are happy and have warm bonds with the staff who care for them. The nursery ethos thoroughly supports children's interests. Staff are particularly keen to ensure that they have a good understanding of children's home and family lives. For example, on the first day children attend following the weekend break, children are encouraged to bring in a photo from home. Children keenly share special events, meetings with friends and relatives, or outings with family. Discussions with friends and staff also promote children's self-awareness and developing language. All children show readiness for the next stages of their learning. Children are motivated and enjoy taking part in their activities. For instance, happy children show how relaxed, safe and secure they feel as they invite staff to be 'guests' at a wedding they perform during a role play experience. Children have plenty of fun dressing up and making jewellery to act out what they already understand about these special occasions. Older children show interest in a range of activities that promote their developing literacy awareness. For example, they practise sounding the letters of their name and show effective pencil control as they copy these letters. All children regularly listen with interest to stories.

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

• There are secure systems for the recruitment and vetting of staff and an ambitious vision for the nursery. The conscientious manager helps to ensure all of her staff feel valued and that all children, including those who are disadvantaged, children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those speaking English as an additional language, are helped to reach their potential.
• Staff are encouraged to develop their skills through training and research. The supportive manager also encourages staff to share their visions for future improvement. For example, staff successfully evaluated the reading/book area, which has made vast improvements. As a result, children make even more use of the cosy spaces to enjoy books, add to favourite selections and are re-telling and acting out their own stories. Equally, children are encouraged to have a voice and participate in the smooth running of the nursery. The pre-school committee, for instance, hold weekly meetings, choose future topics and have requested favourite meals to be added to their lunchtime menu.
• Staff implement a curriculum that is well planned, overall. Children enjoy a broad range of learning that they choose and initiate themselves or that staff plan for them. Staff interactions and deployment are successful, overall. However, at times, staff are not always consistent in how they plan for what it is they want children to learn or what they intend to build on to enhance children's skills and knowledge. In particular, this is most evident in resources that are readily accessible on a daily basis.
• Children form secure attachments with the staff who care for them. All children are encouraged to be confident in their self-care, ranging from handwashing, toileting and potty training, blowing noses and disposing of tissues and serving themselves during mealtimes. Children are equally obliging in how they help to clear away after a meal, for instance washing up their plates. Staff help young children to understand the language of feelings and emotions. For example, during group times, they discuss how they are feeling and if not wholly happy, how they can find a positive solution.
• Staff have high expectations for children's behaviour and this is rewarded as children understand what is expected of them. For example, pre-school children on an outing to a local shop for provisions were highly engaged and showed a positive attitude throughout. Children listened to instructions about road safety and expectations for when in the shop. They positively responded to all aspects of the outing. For instance, they followed the map and recognised aspects of the environment, including for some, what will be their new school. Children showed interest in shopping for produce, observing weighing and participating in how much change to expect following the shopping bill.
• Parents are positive about the care that their children receive. In particular, they highlight the 'family' online communication system that enables them to liaise with the manager and staff, and to have a clear understanding of children's achievements and tips for home learning. Parents state that children have very warm relationships with their key person and make good progress in their language acquisition and mathematical abilities.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• develop an even clearer understanding of learning intent to ensure children are challenged more to build on what they already know and understand.