Muddy Puddle Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children arrive eager to start their day at the nursery. They settle quickly, as staff take the time to find out their individual needs. Babies regularly receive reassuring cuddles, and they gain confidence to go and explore new experiences. Babies have plenty of opportunity to practise new skills. They start to learn to pull themselves up and take tentative steps using baby walkers.

Older children recall skills they have been taught. They practise getting themselves dressed, ready to play in the garden. They recall how to put on their shoes and coats. They expertly use the stairs, enhancing their physical development. Children concentrate as they carry out a threading activity. They learn how to thread cord through cotton reels. This supports their pincer grip, which in turn will help to develop early literacy and self-help skills.

The curriculum is tailored to meet children's individual needs. Staff have high expectations for all children, who make good progress in their learning and development. Children are all highly mindful of each other. Older children are considerate when playing around younger children, making sure not to bump into them as they run around the garden. Children behave well.

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

• Leaders evaluate the curriculum and learning intentions well. They review how successful activities are in meeting children's individual needs and next steps in learning. Children make good progress from their starting points.
• Staff teach older children some aspects of early mathematics, such as recognising written numbers and counting by rote. Occasionally, they do not help children to correctly match numbers to quantities as, for example, they thread cotton reels onto string.
• Children enjoy learning about plants and growth. They regularly water the plants and talk about seeing how they change over time. This helps children to learn about the world in which they live.
• At times, staff are not well organised. When children move between activities, routines are not as smooth as they could be. Children are left waiting and have reduced learning and time for play. Children become restless as they wait, which impacts on their learning.
• Mealtimes are social occasions. All children sit together. They talk with staff about the food they are eating and what they have been doing at home. Children discuss how vegetables make them grow up big and healthy. This helps to support children's language development. Children also learn how to pour their own drinks, which enhances their self-help skills.
• Staff work closely with other agencies. They regularly share information regarding children's stage of development and next steps in learning. This helps to support good continuity of care for children.
• Children describe how much they enjoy coming to the nursery. They explain how they love to play with their favourite ride-on bikes and that they enjoy the food. All ages of children are happy and settled.
• Children are highly confident learners and happily ask staff for different resources. Babies are supported by having a wide range of resources to choose from. They babble to staff, who help them to choose what they wish to play with. This supports children's language development.
• Staff are all consistent in their approach to behaviour management. They take time to talk to children about what is expected. When a child becomes upset by a robot spider, other children explain that it is not real and they will be alright. Children show great compassion towards each other, and they behave well.
• Staff work in partnership with parents. They share daily feedback and developmental reports. Parents and staff swap stages of learning and next steps so they can work together to progress children's learning further. This helps to provide good continuity of care for the children.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen staff's knowledge and understanding of how to support children's learning of numbers and counting
• review routines to better support children when moving between activities, to avoid unnecessary waiting and increase learning and play time.