National Specialist Family Service

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

This unique and inspiring nursery provides high levels of care and education for the community which it serves. Babies make excellent progress from their individual starting points in development. They are extremely well prepared for the next stage in their learning and development. For example, staff make excellent use of flashing balls and colourful containers to help babies to learn that objects are permanent and do not go away just because they cannot see them. Staff have high expectations, which provide a firm basis for children's further development and future learning.

Babies are very safe and secure. They behave very well. For instance, babies learn to follow simple instructions and concentrate. They build very strong bonds with the experienced and very skilled staff who care for them. Babies rapidly acquire the confidence to explore the world around them. For instance, they love to challenge themselves by stretching and steadily reaching further for the many different fabrics, colourful lights and other enticing sensory objects that staff offer them. Babies, including those who are vulnerable for medical or other reasons, make very strong progress in developing their health and well-being. Staff work very closely with parents to support their children's safe sleeping routines, weaning and positive eating habits. Parents are highly appreciative of the professionalism, warmth and care which the manager and her staff show at all times.

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

• The manager is highly ambitious to ensure that every child makes the very best possible progress during their time in the nursery. She works very closely with her deputy and other staff to skilfully evaluate the effectiveness of the nursery to make sure that it constantly improves. They make very good use of training and research to provide very carefully planned, enriching and supportive experiences to promote babies' understanding of the world and their health and well-being.
• Staff develop babies' speaking and listening skills extremely well. They skilfully plan to introduce babies to a rich vocabulary, which builds on their interests and widens their knowledge of the world. Staff sing songs, tell rhymes and play games that introduce babies to key words and phrases that they need for future learning. They use pictures, sign language and puppets to very good effect to secure babies' knowledge of their names and to 'listen' and 'look'. Staff ensure that babies regularly hear many exciting new words as they play, such as 'astronaut', 'rocket', 'planets' and 'stars', to further deepen their language experiences.
• Staff provide highly effective support to babies who may be vulnerable and need further support. They identify gaps in babies' development at an early stage and act promptly to address them. Staff plan very precisely to help them achieve their key steps in learning. They work very closely with other professionals, such as health visitors, to ensure that children achieve their potential.
• Staff strongly encourage children to develop a love of books and stories. They identify a range of songs, rhymes and books that will motivate and engage babies and children as they progress through the nursery. All these books are available for parents to borrow and enjoy reading with their families. Babies love singing songs, such as 'Five little men in a flying saucer', as they play with finger puppets. They follow the pictures in a book and lift the flaps as staff recite, 'Zoom, zoom, zoom, I'm going to the moon'. Staff read stories with skill and enthusiasm.
• Babies' positive behaviour and attitudes are extremely well promoted. Staff are extremely mindful of babies' immediate personal and emotional needs. They use smiles, praise and cuddles to reassure babies and build relationships. Babies learn to follow simple instructions, such as to 'shake' their musical instrument or point to objects and find their toys through imaginative games and activities.
• Staff work very closely with parents to make sure that the curriculum fully meets their babies' needs. They have daily discussions with parents at the start and end of sessions, where they share information about their children's progress and interests. Staff provide regular activities to share learning with parents, such as craft and baking sessions and trips together to the seaside, local farms and parks.