Paddington Playstation Day Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Leaders and staff build strong, supportive relationships with children and families. They provide a welcoming environment where children are safe, happy and keen to learn, and parents feel involved. For example, parents come to events such as a Mother's Day tea. There is a strong focus on developing children's curiosity and interests and enabling them to become active learners. For example, pre-school children enjoy exploring coloured ice cubes, and younger children experiment with pouring cold tea from small teapots. Staff assess children's progress frequently and know what they need to learn next. This enables them to provide an ambitious curriculum for all children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), and ensures they all make good individual progress. The local school has given positive feedback about the children's readiness to learn when they move there after nursery.

Staff have clear expectations for children's behaviour and apply these consistently from the baby room up. Even the youngest children learn to be gentle towards others. Staff encourage children's developing communication skills well, talking to them as they play and introducing new vocabulary, such as 'clamp' when children use the pasta machine.

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

• Staff know the children well. They seek information from parents about what their child can already do before they start nursery and build on this. They carefully observe the children's interests and progress and use this information to plan a varied and interesting curriculum that covers all areas of learning. There is a strong focus on children developing good communication skills. Pre-school children take part in an exciting storytelling session and contribute their ideas about what might happen next. Children are confident to make decisions about their play. For example, a young child carefully selects wooden blocks and perseveres with laying them out in a neat line before running cars over them. Children learn about the world around them. For example, they visit the local woods. However, staff do not consistently place a strong-enough focus on recognising and valuing children's diverse home backgrounds and languages.
• Children and staff have warm relationships, and the key-person system is effective. Staff quickly build a rapport with babies and offer plenty of cuddles and support for new starters. They are sensitive to the babies' preferences, making sure that they allocate their preferred member of staff as their key person. This ensures a really strong emotional bond. Staff interact well with children most of the time, praising and encouraging them and engaging them in learning opportunities. However, this is sometimes inconsistent, which does not fully support all children's learning as much as possible.
• Children are well behaved. Staff provide consistent support for children from a young age to be respectful of others and to take turns and share. Children show care for one another. For example, one picks up another's hat and gives it to staff when the child has gone indoors. Staff make good use of funding to provide tailored support and resources for children that need extra help to recognise and regulate their emotions.
• Staff, parents and other settings have strong partnerships that ensure a shared approach to children's learning. Staff keep parents fully informed about their child's progress and any extra support they may need. Many parents contribute their observations of what their child is doing at home, which gives staff valuable information to build on.
• Leaders successfully evaluate the effectiveness of the provision and the quality of staff practice. They are able to accurately identify areas for further development and plan how to bring this about. They continually adapt the environment and planning to meet the needs of the children, and there is a strong focus on professional development. Staff have good opportunities to develop their skills and experience. For example, some go to model good practice at other nurseries in the group.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• extend staff interactions further to provide more consistent support for children to engage fully in their learning
• enhance staff's understanding of how to acknowledge and value the diverse nature of the children attending, including those who are learning English as an additional language.