Partou Smileys Day Nursery & Pre-School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Staff are very caring and nurturing. They shower children with high levels of love. This helps children to build strong bonds with the staff who care for them. Children of all ages regularly seek out staff where needed. Staff are responsive and recognise when children require more assistance.

Children are flourishing at the setting. The curriculum covers all areas of learning. Staff plan a wide range of learning experiences for children. Children show high levels of concentration as they play. Staff talk to older children about how they can maintain their own privacy. Older children enjoy mark-making experiences. They ascribe meanings to the marks they make. Babies have lots of space to practise their physical skills. Staff support them to climb and take steps. Younger children develop their resilience as they attempt to fit different sized blocks into the right space.

Behaviour within the setting is good. Staff are excellent role models for children. They actively encourage children to take turns and share. Children show kindness towards each other. For example, they give their peers toys to play with when they recognise they are upset. Children's confidence continually grows through the praise and encouragement bestowed on them by staff. As a result, children are keen to engage and have a positive attitude to learning.

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

• There has been recent change with the leadership structure of the setting. Leaders use their own observations alongside the feedback from others to help support the setting to make continuous improvement. They have regular meetings with staff. Leaders use these meetings to help identify training needs and to talk to staff about how they are getting on. However, some staff do not have a clear enough understanding of how their practice could improve further.
• The curriculum is ambitious. It is sequenced well to build on children's knowledge and understanding over time. Leaders are keen for children to leave their setting with knowledge about others and their local community.
• Children's love of books is nurtured throughout the setting. They access a wide variety of books that are freely available alongside planned story time. Staff use additional resources to enhance the stories and encourage children's involvement in discussions and re-telling stories. However, at times noise levels in the rooms can become loud, which impacts on the ability of those listening to stories to hear what is being said, which can lead to children losing interest.
• Staff model language well, providing children with words for objects. They give children time and space to think about their responses. However, staff do not consistently remove dummies from babies when they are attempting to communicate. This does not fully support children's early communication skills.
• Staff have secure knowledge of their key children. They work closely with parents to continuously assess children's development. Staff use this information well to identify what children know and can do. They then identify next steps and targets for the children to achieve. This process helps to ensure all children make continued progress in their development.
• The support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) is good. Staff work well with other professionals and parents. They identify areas where children may require further support. This information is used well to help develop support plans for children. This practice helps to ensure that children with SEND receive effective support and swift intervention.
• Staff use a range of methods to keep parents informed about their children's development, progress and support plans. Parents value the feedback they receive. They explain that they know how they can support their child's development further at home.
• Younger children strive to do things for themselves. They confidently help themselves to tissues when they need to wipe their noses and staff are always there to give a helping hand if needed. Children actively help to prepare the tables ready for lunch. They help staff to manoeuvre tables into position and make sure that there are chairs for everyone. Toddlers proudly identify their placemats and put them next to a chair in readiness for their meal.
• There is a key focus on transitions to school. Local schools are invited to visit the nursery so they can observe and find out key information about the children. Staff also share key information with other settings. This helps to ensure children receive the consistency they require.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• enhance further the monitoring and continual development of staff with an aim to support them to raise their skills and practice to the highest possible level
• support staff to improve the learning environment further, recognising the impact noise levels have on children's ability to fully engage with the learning experiences on offer
• review and refine practice in order to maximise children's early language development.