Nuffy Bear Day Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children settle quickly with effective support. Staff are always on hand to offer gentle reassurance and to distract children to enable them to engage in their chosen play. Children are able to follow instructions. For example, when asked, they are able to collect the book they were looking at the previous day to explore further. Children show good physical and coordination skills. They can use a bat to hit a ball to their opponent and kick a ball to each other during a game of football. They have additional opportunities to take part in activities such as swimming and multi-sports. This boosts children's understanding of the importance of adopting a healthy lifestyle.

Children learn to be independent. They come in from outdoor play, find their indoor shoes, put them on and put their wellington boots away. Babies help to get themselves changed and put away their wet clothes with support and encouragement from staff. Children thoroughly enjoy their role-play experiences. They access real vegetables and enjoy peeling the onions. They make meals for each other and their babies and help to feed them. The manager and staff ensure that the curriculum is ambitious for all children, including children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

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

• The manager's ethos of providing a fully child-centred approach is evident throughout the setting. This includes her vision for staff to make sure that every second children attend counts as a learning opportunity.
• Support for children with SEND is good. Staff work in partnership with other professionals to enable them to make well-targeted changes to accommodate children's needs. For example, they have installed rugs of differing textures to help children with visual impairments to feel the difference in flooring. This helps children to know where they are in the setting and to explore independently.
• Staff teach children the importance of respect and tolerance to enable them to learn about similarities and differences. For example, they work with the local library team to seek books and resources to aid children's understanding of the differing needs of others. This helps children to build effective relationships and make friends.
• Children learn about complex words. For example, while reading a story they explore what the word 'extinct' means. However, staff sometimes step in too quickly to answer questions that they ask children. This does not allow children the time they need to assess what is being asked and to respond. This does not further extend children's communication and language development.
• Staff are very nurturing and kind. They understand the differing emotional needs of children and adapt their practice accordingly. For example, they recognise the impact of things that are happening in children's home lives that may affect the way they feel. They acknowledge children's feelings and help children to make sense of these.
• Children behave well. However, not all staff are consistent in their approach to further supporting children's understanding of the consequences of their actions. For instance, some staff tell children to 'get down' if they begin to climb or say 'no, thank you'. However, staff do not consistently follow this with an explanation to help increase children's understanding of why they must or must not do something.
• Staff are fully aware of their key children's learning needs and styles. They assess children's development successfully, which enables them to plan effectively for what children need to learn next. This means that children make continually good progress in their learning.
• Staff build effective relationships with parents. Parents comment that they have noticed great improvement in their children's confidence and independence skills. Parents explained that they receive real-time information about their children's day and about their learning and development.
• The manager and her deputy are effective leaders. They offer support and guidance to their staff, who work well as a team. Staff access a wide range of training courses, as well as opportunities to build on their professional development. There is a clear passion to encourage and develop staff to excel in their profession.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• build on staff's interactions with children to enhance children's speaking skills further
• strengthen staff's knowledge of how to support children to enhance their awareness of the consequences of their actions.