Paint Pots Old School House Day Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children have fun and enjoy their time spent at this busy setting. They explore with immense curiosity and intrigue. Children show a wonderful can-do attitude and repeatedly try until they succeed. For instance, they complete difficult jigsaws, concentrating and working through puzzles until they eventually succeed. Children's good attitude towards their play creates a secure foundation for success in future learning. Staff are active participants in children's play and join in with enthusiasm and engagement. They make suggestions to develop children's games, introducing ideas to extend learning. For instance, children are encouraged to count how many toes dinosaurs have. They successfully count up to six, developing their numeracy and sequential counting skills. Staff are effective role models for children and teaching is consistently good.

Babies are cherished and nurtured by kind and caring staff. They receive plenty of reassuring cuddles to build their emotional resilience. Older children are provided with genuine praise and lots of verbal encouragement. Children respond well and are confident and self-assured. Children learn to be independent. They complete tasks for themselves in a responsible and confident manner. For instance, children tidy away after eating and look after their toys. They record their attendance each morning by completing a self-registration procedure. Older children look after pet insects by feeding and cleaning them. Children show a sense of pride in their achievements and are independent, helpful and confident. They learn the importance of self-care and personal hygiene. For instance, they brush their teeth daily and learn about oral hygiene and how to keep themselves healthy. Children are happy, settled and thriving emotionally and developmentally.

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

• This is an inclusive nursery where all children and families are welcomed. Each child's unique background, personality and needs are fully understood. Staff strive to ensure that all children have the opportunity to flourish in a welcoming and friendly environment.
• Staff work well as a team. They are respectful of each other, sharing responsibilities and delegating workload. This helps to ensure that children's needs are quickly met by attentive staff. Furthermore, good teamwork creates a respectful atmosphere and children witness first-hand how to treat others.
• The manager works tirelessly to offer families and children a high quality service. She regularly reviews and reflects upon the quality of practice and takes steps to improve. Coupled with support from the directors, the nursery benefits greatly from a motivated and dedicated senior leadership team.
• The curriculum is carefully planned and designed. Each child, regardless of their age and stage of development, receives age-appropriate learning opportunities.
• There are subtle adaptations to teaching and environments to ensure that children encounter sufficient challenge and stimulation as they progress through the nursery. All children, including children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, make good progress.
• Children enjoy learning outdoors. There is a strong emphasis on learning through nature and the curriculum is enriched by plenty of trips in the local community. For instance, children enjoy visits to the airport, nature trails and meeting local residents at a nearby care home. Each trip is carefully planned with specific learning objectives to enhance children's learning experiences.
• Partnerships with parents are good. Parents are very complementary about the flexible and attentive service they receive. They comment that their children are happy and credit this to the dedicated and caring staff team.
• Staff routinely observe children and know what they can do and where they require additional support. However, sometimes, staff do not focus their teaching precisely on what children need to learn next to help them make even more progress.
• Children enjoy a broad and varied curriculum. They remain continually occupied and enjoy many imaginative and fun activities. However, occasionally, larger group activities do not sustain older children's concentration and engagement.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• develop staff skills and focus teaching on what children need to learn next to help them make rapid progress in their development
• ensure the organisation of group activities supports all children to participate and benefit from the teaching provided.