Palacefields Daycare Centre

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Staff create a calm, friendly and nurturing environment for children. As a result, children are happy and thoroughly enjoy their time at the nursery. They arrive excited to spend time with their peers and staff. Staff create strong bonds with children. They stay close to children and provide lots of cuddles and reassurance, which helps them to feel safe and secure.

Children behave well. They are kind and caring to their friends. For example, pre-school children give aprons to their peers before they begin playing in the water tray. Staff are positive role models and have high expectations of all children. They teach children to take turns and share the resources. Toddlers wait patiently for their turn to choose a nursery rhyme puppet out of the bag, during their singing activity.

Staff teach children about different emotions as they read books. For example, they talk to toddlers about how characters may be feeling. Pre-school children use emotion bags to discuss how different activities make them feel and they discuss the reasons why. Children take part in yoga sessions and relaxation activities. This helps children to regulate their emotions.

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

• Staff create a broad and balanced curriculum for all children. They identify the prior experiences children arrive with. Staff have a secure understanding of where children are up to in their development. They plan appropriate next steps in children's learning by focusing on their current interests. All children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), make good progress from their starting points.
• Children show positive attitudes towards learning. Staff plan a range of exciting activities for children. Toddlers take turns to add ingredients into the bowl and mix them together, as they make their own play dough. Pre-school children paint the planets in the solar system and confidently talk about the features of different planets. These opportunities help to develop children's listening and attention skills as they participate in group activities.
• Overall, children's communication and language skills are promoted well. Children join in singing nursery and action rhymes. They also repeat familiar phrases in books as they listen to stories together. However, the curriculum for communication and language is not always implemented consistently throughout. For example, staff do not always model the key vocabulary that they want children to learn. This does not help children extend their vocabulary further.
• Staff promote diversity well. They teach children about the different cultures of those children that attend the nursery. Staff discuss the dynamics of different families. They celebrate what makes each other unique. This helps children to learn about the similarities and differences between themselves and others.
• Children's physical development is promoted well. Toddlers use spoons to scoop up the rice, as they fill metal teapots. They use spades to dig in the soil, as they make an environment for the dinosaurs. This helps to build children's small-muscle movements. Pre-school children ride around on tricycles and scooters. They climb over and under equipment on the obstacle course. This helps to develop children's large-muscle movements.
• The special educational needs coordinator is skilled at supporting children with SEND. She works collaboratively with parents and professionals to ensure staff are meeting the needs of individual children. Children with SEND benefit from knowledgeable staff, who get to know their unique needs well.
• The manager completes regular staff supervisions. She prioritises staff well-being and staff comment on how valued and supported they feel in their job roles. Staff access a range of professional development opportunities. This helps to develop their practice further, which has a positive impact on children's care and learning.
• Parent partnerships are strong. Parents comment on how friendly and supportive staff are. They praise staff for keeping them up to date on their children's development. Staff also share activity ideas with parents so they can continue their children's learning at home. This helps to provide continuity in children's learning and development.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support staff to effectively implement the curriculum for communication and language.