Nanny Bears Childcare

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children form very close and trusting relationships with staff and loving bonds with their key person. They are happy and settled, and children of all ages move around exploring freely and confidently making their own choices. Staff have high expectations of children's behaviour. Children behave very well, learn to take turns, share and play kindly. Staff provide activities to help them understand and manage their emotions. For example, older children join 'gratitude time' when they talk about how they feel and what makes them happy.

Children benefit from a broad curriculum of activities to support their personal interests and developmental needs. For example, older children learn to use tools, such as tongs and pipettes, in their creative play. They learn about shape and size and enjoy story times. Babies explore many different sensory resources, develop their early mobility safely and enjoy listening to staff sing and read to them. All children benefit from physical play throughout the day, including yoga and baby massage sessions. Staff facilitate all-weather outdoor play and walks on the farm so that mobile children can enjoy the activities without restriction. This includes puddle splashing, creating in the mud kitchen, balancing on planks and water play.

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

• Staff know the children well and are clear what they intend for them to learn next. They use their good teaching skills to build on what children already know and can do. For example, children learn lots of new words and the sounds and names of letters. Staff provide exciting materials for the younger children to investigate and introduce numbers and colours to their language. However, on occasion, staff do not organise walks as effectively for some of the youngest children, to meet their needs. At such times, these children are not fully involved and do not benefit from all of the learning opportunities.
• Children are curious and motivated to learn. Younger children crawl into trays of sensory objects to explore, and they find books for staff to read. Older children engage in drawing, painting and playing imaginatively. Staff adapt the activities to support children's own ideas.
• Staff prepare children well for their transition within the nursery and in readiness for starting school. Younger children confidently communicate their needs and feelings to staff. Older children enjoy engaging in discussions and answering questions to help them become confident communicators. Children learn to manage tasks for themselves to build their independence, such as chopping foods and registering themselves on arrival.
• Staff follow good cleaning routines and the sickness policy to maintain a hygienic environment. The nursery provides fresh and healthy plant-based meals according to children's dietary needs. They teach children the importance of handwashing routines to support healthy lifestyles. However, staff do not consistently help older children learn to manage aspects of their own personal hygiene as well, such as when they cough and sneeze.
• Partnerships with parents are excellent. Staff follow successful procedures to settle children into the nursery and to support their transition from the baby room. They provide reassurance to new parents, such as sending a 'Bear Hug' home to support them while children settle in. Staff keep parents very closely informed and involved in their children's all-round development.
• Staff work closely with parents and professionals to meet children's additional needs consistently. This includes undertaking any specific training and providing additional activities to meet their needs.
• The strong and efficient management team monitors the quality of the provision effectively to identify and make continuous improvements. This includes providing a programme of training for the well-qualified team of staff. Parents provide positive feedback, particularly regarding how well key persons know their children and the staff's communication.
• The management team nurtures staff welfare and well-being. Their personal and work-related achievements are celebrated, and care is given to monitor their emotional well-being. This helps staff to feel valued in the roles they feel passionate about.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• develop staff practice further to help older children learn how to manage all aspects of their personal hygiene consistently well
• develop the organisation of walks for the youngest children to ensure they are all fully supported and able to benefit from the learning opportunities.