N Family Club Reading

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provider creates an extremely nurturing and welcoming environment. This helps children settle well and feel safe and secure. They develop a positive attitude towards learning and show lots of enthusiasm for the interesting and useful learning opportunities on offer. Staff are excellent role models, showing children how to be polite, kind and helpful. This good practice has a positive impact on children's behaviour. For instance, even the very youngest children are reminded about good manners at mealtimes, as staff teach them how to say thank you in their home languages, such as English, Italian and Polish. This also contributes to children's growing sense of identity.

The provider's curriculum is ambitious and varied for all children, including those children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). It enables all children to make good progress from their starting points. Staff create activities that ignite children's natural curiosity. For instance, children enjoy mixing potions as they measure, scoop and pour water and ingredients that they have grown themselves in the garden. They become fully immersed in their imaginative play and exploration of their own ideas. Children enjoy plenty of opportunities to be physically active. For example, older children pull themselves up as they scale the castle tower of the climbing frame and carefully navigate the assault course, which staff have skilfully planned to extend children's learning about safety. Staff recognise how physical play benefits children's understanding of healthy lifestyles and support this area of learning well.

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

• The provider's overarching curriculum is clear and well sequenced. Within the setting, there is a focus on promoting children's growing independence in regard to their self-care and learning as children progress through the setting. Overall, leaders empower and enable their staff to understand and share this with parents and children well. As such, children make good progress and are well prepared for their future learning, including their eventual transition to school.
• Staff understand the importance of reading, singing and rhyme time to help children's growing vocabulary and understanding of the world. They make effective use of the repetition of song and rhyme to support all areas of children's learning. For example, children sing a safety song that reminds them of the rules when moving between rooms and when using the stairs and includes 'holding the hand rail tightly'. This helps ensure children's safety by making it clear what is expected of them in a fun and child-centred way.
• In general, key adults have a good understanding about what they want children to learn and know next based on the differing needs of the children. Children enjoy a variety of opportunities to follow their interests. However, in some instances, teaching is less effective, and some staff are not clear about how activities and daily care routines will build on individual children's existing skills and knowledge to help fully extend their learning and development. This is particularly evident where children are supported by temporary staff other than their key adults, who know them and their families well and have the experience and skills to fully support and nurture them.
• Staff value each child's unique background and experiences. Children who speak other languages at home benefit from hearing familiar words at the nursery. Staff plan a range of opportunities for children to find out about each other's lives and different cultures and beliefs. Children are delighted to hear about how staff members and other parents celebrate special festivals at home or to taste traditional food from other countries. For example, children enjoy exploring the bright colours that signify the rainbow of the Pride flag as they paint and explore creative art and craft materials. This helps children's understanding of diversity, tolerance and respect, promoting British values and preparing them well for life in modern Britain.
• Leaders monitor all children's progress closely. Those with lead responsibilities for SEND accurately identify where children may need extra support to meet their full potential. They work closely with parents and other professionals to put in place support as needed. Leaders use additional funding thoughtfully, always with children's best interests in mind.
• Leaders are passionate about staff well-being and parent satisfaction, and they continually seek feedback. This filters down to staff and results in them recognising parents as children's first teachers, leading to strong, trusting relationships and overwhelmingly positive parent testimonials. Parents are confident in the level of education and care that their children receive and are kept well informed about their children's learning and daily care routines. This effective two-way information-sharing promotes strong parent partnerships.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen existing systems in place to monitor the consistency of staff practice for all staff, including temporary and cover staff
• review and improve arrangements for staff deployment to further support staff workloads and enhance the key-person system in place.