Muddy Puddles Nursery and After School Club Ditton

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy and safe in this warm and welcoming environment. They have good attachments to staff and enjoy the adult involvement in their play and exploration. Older children are eager to share their experiences. They happily chat about what they have been doing at nursery and at home. Children's behaviour is good, and staff act as positive role models. They encourage children to use their manners, and children learn how to cooperate with each other. They are learning to understand how their actions may affect other people's feelings.

Children have a good understanding of the nursery routines and are beginning to undertake some tasks independently. Children learn the importance of healthy lifestyles. They help to prepare nutritious snacks and wash up afterwards. Children follow effective hygiene routines and engage in physical exercise each day. For example, children participate in weekly 'Cycle tots' classes and this helps to enhance their balance and coordination skills.

Children are enthusiastic to learn and keen to explore their surroundings. The nursery is well resourced to support learning opportunities, which cover all areas of learning. Children learn through an effective balance of child-initiated play and adult-led activities, which capture their curiosity. Children make good progress from their starting points.

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

• Parents are highly complimentary about the nursery and staff. They say they feel well informed about their child's progress and what they need to learn next. Parents value the daily feedback provided by staff when they collect their children. They appreciate the information staff share with them to help support children's learning at home.
• During the COVID-19 pandemic, staff kept in regular contact with children and their families. Consequently, children returned to the nursery feeling relaxed and settled. The manager sent out 'learning packs' and seeds for the children to grow at home. Staff shared recordings of 'story time' and a range of activities for children to watch at home.
• Additional funding, such as the early years pupil premium, is used appropriately to meet children's needs. For example, the outside area has been significantly enhanced. Children can now freely move between the indoor and outdoor area according to their own interests.
• Children who might need additional support are identified quickly and plans are put in place to help them to achieve. Staff work closely with parents and other professionals to ensure that children receive the extra support they need. The manager has high expectations for all children's learning and development. For instance, children have learned to concentrate and remain engaged for long periods. Children manage their behaviour well and are able to share and wait their turn.
• Regular self-evaluation and effective team working contribute to a well-organised provision. There are good opportunities for staff professional development. For example, staff access a wide range of training topics and support from the manager. However, this support and the training content is not currently focused to consistently make improvements in the teaching of the curriculum to the very highest levels.
• Staff follow children's interests and, generally, support them in a way that is appropriate to their level of development. As children enjoy making play dough, staff help to enhance their mathematical skills. For example, they encourage children to think about the different quantities of ingredients and count as they add them together. Staff clearly emphasise key words within their interactions, such as 'flour, sticky' and 'mix', to help enhance children's understanding and speaking skills.
• Overall, the quality of the curriculum is good. Staff support children's communication and language skills effectively. They use some signing within their interaction, ask good questions and encourage children to critically think and solve problems for themselves. For example, children consider if a longer or shorter string will be most effective when flying a kite. However, strategies to help children who speak English as an additional language to become familiar with the setting and develop their language skills, are not as well embedded in practice.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• increase the focus of support and professional development for staff to help raise the quality of teaching even higher
• develop strategies to further support children who speak English as an additional language, to help them to settle quickly and to further enhance their communication and language skills.