Omnipresence Children's Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children show high levels of engagement in their play. Most children are eager to arrive, excited to learn and show warm relationships with staff. Children who are more apprehensive are supported by caring staff to leave their parents and come into the welcoming play spaces. This helps children to settle and begin their day.

Pre-school children show enjoyment as staff support them in putting on their wellington boots and splashing in the puddles outside. They laugh with delight as the water comes over the top of their wellingtons. Staff help children learn about capacity as they leave a range of containers out in the rain and talk about how much or how little has been captured. They encourage children to think about why objects with holes in them are not able to store the water.

Staff provide children with a range of interesting activities to help them learn. They help children to understand the changing seasons as they talk about the weather. Children talk to visitors about what is happening to the trees and how the leaves are starting to grow, during a craft activity. Toddlers and babies enjoy exploring the safe outside area and show good control and balance. They skilfully use small sit- and-ride toys and show good dexterity as staff encourage them to place bricks on top of another one to form simple towers. Staff praise children highly for their achievements, boosting confidence and self-esteem.

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

• Children develop good manners and display positive behaviour. They listen to staff and are learning to follow simple rules and instructions. This is demonstrated as older children line up for snacks and meals and put their plates and pots on the side when they have eaten. Children, overall, patiently wait for their turn with toys. Those who struggle are helped to understand when it will be their turn and why they have to wait. Staff help children learn how to manage conflict and regulate their behaviour.
• Since the last inspection, the management team have taken steps to address gaps in staff practice. Staff have attended a range of training to help them understand how to support children to make the progress they are capable of. Overall, this is having a positive impact on the quality of teaching. However, there are some staff who are not yet as confident in delivering the curriculum as others.
• Overall, staff support children to develop appropriate communication and language skills. This includes children who speak English as an additional language and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Staff use objects of reference and cue cards to help children to express their needs and understand what is happening next. However, staff are not consistent in supporting children who are less confident to use their speech to have their voice heard. This means these children are not always encouraged to build on their speech.
• Activities offered to children are of good quality, and staff take account of individual learning needs and interests when planning the curriculum. Staff meet regularly to discuss activities and their impact on children and their learning. However, staff occasionally struggle to recognise when to offer support to help extend and build on children's learning. For example, as children make rockets, staff do not consider how to extend the activity further. This means that children are not always helped to make the rapid progress they are capable of.
• Support for children with SEND is good. Staff working with children who have SEND take time to get to know children and support any potential gaps identified in their learning. They adapt the environment and provide activities they know children will like and enjoy. Staff work closely with parents and engage the support of outside agencies, such as speech and language, to enable all children to access support appropriate to their individual needs.
• Parents are very complementary to the service staff provide to their children. They comment on how well staff have supported their children to settle and build secure relationships. Parents of the older children mention how well this was supported, particularly as children returned after the Covid-19 pandemic. They feel well-informed about what their children are learning and are given good ideas of how to help continue this at home. Such as reading to their child to help build on their speaking skills.
• Staff well-being is high on the agenda. The provider offers staff weekly or monthly sessions to talk about their feelings and find solutions to move forward in their work. Staff comment on how this supports their emotional well-being, giving them opportunities to reflect on their practice as well as any personal issues.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• help staff to better support all children, particularly those who are less confident, to use their speech at every opportunity
• continue to build staff skills to enable them to implement the curriculum and support every child to make the progress they are capable of.