Painters Cottage Day Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children arrive at this warm, welcoming, and friendly nursery ready to join in with their chosen play. Children excitedly greet their friends and happily include them in their play. Babies snuggle with staff and accept reassurance when they are feeling tired or in need of comfort. This helps them to feel safe and secure. Toddlers learn to take care of their own needs. They learn to feed themselves at mealtimes using their knife and fork and begin to manage their own toileting needs. Pre-school children demonstrate curiosity in their learning. For example, when a wasp is seen, some children become confused between a wasp and a bee. Children confidently approach staff to ask them the difference between these before returning to their friends to confirm that it is a wasp rather than a bee.

Children's behaviour is good. They share toys and resources. Children readily use good manners, saying please and thank you as their food is served to them during mealtimes. Children of all ages are keen to engage in play with staff and their friends. They are well supported by staff throughout the day. As a result, children are learning new skills and are well prepared for their future learning, including their eventual move to school.

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

• The quality of teaching is good. Staff use their observations and assessments of children to keep them informed of what children need to learn next. Staff have a clear learning intention for adult-led activities. However, on occasion, staff do not always fully explain to children what is expected of them, hindering their ability to fully join in with the activity from the very beginning.
• Children's communication and language skills are promoted particularly well. Staff working with babies babble back to their emerging attempts at speech. They introduce new words for children to listen to and attempt to repeat. Toddlers excitedly join in with familiar songs and rhymes. Older children enjoy listening to well-read stories, joining in with familiar phrases. Pre-school children are confident communicators. They readily engage with visitors, telling them what they enjoy about their nursery.
• Children of all ages thoroughly enjoy the time they spend outdoors. Babies explore their own space, where they have opportunities to gain new physical skills, such as climbing the steps to the slide. Toddlers and pre-school children enjoy negotiating space as they ride around the garden on trikes and scooters. They giggle with excitement as they learn to balance on the steppingstones to avoid falling into the 'crocodile infested water' below them.
• Staff act as good role models to children. They offer children gentle and age-appropriate reminders about the rules of the nursery, which children respond to well. Children listen and follow instructions as they learn to follow rules that keep them safe. For example, children walk in single file and hold onto the handrail as they walk up and down the stairs.
• Parents are extremely happy with the nursery. They say that the staff are 'brilliant'. Parents appreciate the regular updates they receive through the online app and the daily discussions during handover and collection times. They appreciate the progress their children are making and express how well the staff have helped to prepare them for their move to school.
• Children enjoy home-cooked meals prepared by the nursery cook. These are prepared with children's individual dietary needs in mind. Children understand the importance of following good handwashing routines. They readily wash their hands before mealtimes and after using the toilet. Children's good health is further promoted through daily opportunities to be physically active, both indoors and outdoors.
• The manager works closely with the staff team. This means she consistently observes the quality of teaching. She provides staff with ongoing support and with opportunities to discuss their roles and responsibilities. Staff express how valued and supported they feel in their roles. They say that the manager is a great support to them, both professionally and personally.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• help children to understand what staff what them to learn during activities so that they can be fully engaged in their learning from the very beginning.