Partou Safehands Day Nursery & Pre-School

Inclusion: Strong standard

Leaders' inclusive ethos ensures parents and children feel valued. They ask parents for information about home traditions and celebrations. Staff sing traditional songs with children in their home languages and use home languages during care routines to help children settle. Leaders promote links within the community. Children regularly visit a nearby care home, where they share stories and sing songs with the elderly residents, building relationships between the generations.

Leaders swiftly identify children's individual needs and act promptly to reduce any barriers to learning. Leaders ensure staff working with children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who have adverse childhood experiences have the training they need to provide experiences that are tailored and effective. Staff also conduct their own research to ensure they have the knowledge and skills to support children. They work closely with parents and external professionals to ensure children receive coordinated help. For example, staff have designed a pack for parents that gives them detailed information about their children's condition, including strategies and resources for them to continue children's learning at home.

Leaders use additional funding effectively to ensure children benefit from purposeful, well-considered strategies that accelerate their progress. For instance, puzzles linked to children's specific interests support attention and concentration.

Curriculum and teaching: Expected standard

Overall, leaders design an ambitious, broad curriculum that supports all children's positive progress from their starting points. Staff use information from parents and accurate assessments of children's progress to identify next steps in children's learning. Staff provide warm, positive interactions and use daily routines well to build children's independence and confidence. For example, children enjoy group activities where they welcome each other and discuss the days of the week and the weather. Staff share familiar stories with children. They introduce new words, such as giraffe and bamboo, to build children's vocabulary. Staff use stories to help children talk about their home lives. For instance, they discuss the nursery's pet potato and talk about the pets children and staff have at home.

Staff use sign language, physical gestures and facial expressions to convey meaning and help children communicate successfully. In general, children begin to develop their knowledge of mathematical concepts. Toddlers think about shape, size and colour. Older children consider how many cups they need for their group. However, leaders have not identified that staff do not promote early mathematics consistently across the nursery. In addition, the curriculum for outdoors is not designed well to ensure children engage in purposeful activities that enhance their learning.

Achievement: Expected standard

All children make positive progress from their starting points and develop the skills they need for the next stage in their learning, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities. They participate in discussions in small groups where they share their ideas and discuss plans for the day. They repeat single words and short phrases, which they start to build into sentences. As a result, children develop effective communication and language skills. They are keen to talk about their resources, which include a shark and an octopus, and link them to the book they are reading. Children grow in confidence and independence ready for the move to school. They build social skills and establish secure friendships. They dress themselves and manage their own self-care. Children learn about climate change and how to recycle. They explain how their food waste decays and is used as compost for their herbs, which they water and care for to ensure they grow healthily.

Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines: Strong standard

Leaders work closely with parents to promote children's regular attendance. Their inclusive culture supports children's confidence, resilience and positive attitudes to learning. For example, toddlers show perseverance when trying to use a spray bottle filled with water. Older children take pride in wearing job lanyards, which gives them a sense of responsibility and belonging. This stems from children taking an interest in the lanyards staff wear. Children choose the job they want to do, such as feeding the fish, watering the herbs and taking the compost outside.

Daily routines are well embedded and help children feel secure. Staff working with babies explain routines to them, such as when it is time to change their nappy. This supports children's emotional wellbeing. Staff have clear expectations for children's behaviour, which they apply consistently. They are positive role models and give children clear guidance that helps them behave well. Children demonstrate care and kindness towards one another. They cooperate, share, take turns and show empathy. Staff adapt expectations considering children's developmental stages and individual needs. For example, key people provide dedicated support for children who may struggle during group activities.

Children's welfare and wellbeing: Strong standard

Children's welfare and wellbeing are at the heart of leaders' practice. The indoor learning environment is welcoming and designed to help every child thrive. Staff meet children's individual care needs successfully. Babies benefit from nurturing, responsive interactions. Staff engage them in face-to-face play, follow their lead and build strong bonds through talking and singing. Embedded, well-organised routines support children's physical and emotional wellbeing. For instance, children welcome each other into the nursery each day. They enjoy a wide variety of healthy meals and practise brushing their teeth.

Staff use stories, discussions and everyday experiences to help children understand, express and regulate their feelings. They encourage and recognise positive behaviours to build children's self-esteem. Staff teach children to keep themselves safe. For instance, they help children understand what clothes they need to play outside in cold weather. Children take managed risks during outdoor play. Leaders provide information about online safety. They work with parents to help children understand the risks of using digital technology and reduce their screen time.

Leadership and governance: Expected standard

Overall, leaders understand the setting's strengths and take prompt action to address areas identified for improvement. They make decisions in children's best interests, such as using additional funding to raise outcomes for children. Partnerships with parents are highly successful. Leaders value parents' opinions on changes and they give feedback, such as voting for employee of the month. Parents speak positively about the care their children receive. They describe staff as accommodating, warm and caring. They greatly appreciate the consistent communication they receive about their children's progress.

For children with barriers to learning, strong partnership working and commitment from staff to enhance their own knowledge and understanding ensure these children make rapid progress. Leaders support staff wellbeing effectively and encourage staff to undertake professional development. However, leaders do not evaluate staff practice precisely to identify all gaps in teaching or fully assess the impact of training. As a result, the teaching of mathematics and implementation of the curriculum, especially in outdoor learning, is inconsistent.