Norfolk Park Daycare Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children enter happily and settle quickly on arrival, swiftly becoming immersed in their play. They form close bonds with the caring and kind staff. This helps children to feel safe and secure, alongside the consistent and well-organised routines that children are clearly familiar with. Changes to the drop off and collection arrangements, following the COVID-19 pandemic, have not affected children. Staff greet children at the gate and share important information with parents. Children make good progress because staff have high expectations of what they can achieve. This includes children who receive additional funding, those who speak English as an additional language and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities .

Children enjoy the activities on offer and there is a strong focus on outdoor play. Staff supervise children well to ensure that they are safe. They progress well with their communication skills and learn how to express their needs and wishes. Staff help children to develop a wide vocabulary that supports them to speak in sentences. For example, throughout the story of the 'Bear Hunt', children delight in joining in with the familiar story and use their 'action words'. They actively join in with the engaging story read by staff.

Staff recognise the impact that the pandemic has had on children. They have adjusted the curriculum, so that it focuses on children's personal, social and emotional development. They have supported children to learn how to share and take turns as they become used to engaging with others in social situations again. Children behave well and respond to the consistent routines and boundaries in place.

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

• The manager is supported to carry out her role and responsibilities by the dedicated provider. Collectively, they lead a staff team who are enthusiastic in providing good learning opportunities and experiences for children. Parents speak positively about the care their children receive. They feel that their children's needs are met and that they progress well in their learning. Parents appreciate the support staff offer them to help with their child's continued learning at home.
• Staff support children's early literacy and mathematical understanding well. Children demonstrate that they thoroughly enjoy listening to stories. They talk excitedly about the stories and join in with repeated refrains from the book. Staff working with younger children use strategies, such as labelling and repetition, to help support children's growing vocabulary. They use descriptive language and narrate children's play. Older children learn about letters and the sounds they make. They are keen to find the correct letters to form their own names. They develop their understanding of number and recognise numbers in their learning environment.
• Children benefit from warm and nurturing relationships with their key person, which leads to them being confident and happy in their environment. Children's emotions are valued, and staff encourage children to talk about how they are feeling. For example, if they are feeling happy or sad.
• Children gain a wide range of useful skills and knowledge that prepares them well for their future learning, and school. They are taught to be independent, for example, by feeding themselves, tidying up their toys and putting on their own coats and shoes. Children enjoy regular trips to the local park and into their wider community. They learn about the world around them and celebrate different festivals, cultures and religions.
• Staff plan the environment, so that children can freely access activities of their choice, such as play dough, puzzles, construction and role play. Consequently, children are motivated learners who are confident to express their wishes. Children experience quality interactions and a wide range of learning opportunities. However, not all staff react and provide support that consistently challenges and encourages children to fully explore and experiment during creative activities, to further extend their learning.
• Staff continually observe and assess children's development and plan an effective curriculum, overall. Staff know their key children well. They agree individual support plans for children with parents. They use these to reduce any possible gaps in children's development. However, managers do not consistently support all staff to share precise information with parents about their children's development, to support children's achievements further.
• Staff promote children's knowledge and understanding of healthy lifestyles and good hygiene procedures. For instance, children grow their own plants and vegetables and enjoy harvesting them. Staff promote effective oral health. Children understand the importance of teeth cleaning routines. Staff discuss the importance of providing healthy, balanced packed lunches for their children.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• develop even further all staff's understanding of how to encourage and support children's curiosity to explore and experiment fully during creative activities
• extend staff's knowledge to help them consistently share precise information with parents about their children's development.