Paskals Day Nursery Limited

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

All children are supported to make progress. Staff interactions are positive and respectful. Children eagerly participate in an interesting range of hands-on learning experiences, which are planned around their individual needs and interests. The special educational needs coordinator is extremely skilled at supporting children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Targeted interventions are identified and implemented skilfully, supporting achievement gaps to narrow. For example, objects of reference, visual props and pictures enable nonverbal children to have a voice so that they can make their needs known. It also enables staff to identify children's abilities and levels of understanding so that they can plan further quality interactions to support each child.

Staff implement the nursery curriculum well, helping children to develop a broad range of skills and knowledge over time. Through staff's ongoing observations and monitoring of children's progress, they have identified a need to focus on supporting children's listening and attention skills. Children's good behaviour is encouraged and their safety maintained through the introduction of clear routines, boundaries and expectations. Staff help children to learn new words, extending their vocabulary. For example, when exploring pasta, staff pick a handful up and squash it. They advise the babies that this makes a 'crunchy' sound. When staff come across more complex words in stories, they ask children about these. For example, staff ask older children if they know what 'furious' means. Children confirm that it means 'angry'.

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

• Leaders and managers review staff's practice, ensuring they understand their roles and responsibilities to promote the welfare of children. Following a recent safeguarding concern, managers established they had not correctly followed relevant procedures. They have taken their own action to update their safeguarding knowledge and implement further risk assessments and supervision of children procedures. This all contributes to ensuring children remain protected from potential harm.
• Staff strongly encourage all children to develop their independence. Babies learn to use cutlery to feed themselves. Staff plan activities to help children to develop these skills as babies use tools to scoop, aiding their hand-eye coordination. Babies progress from drinking out of lidded beakers to glasses. Older children are able to serve their own meals. Most older children can put their own coats on and staff help them to learn how to zip these up.
• Staff plan daily group singing, story and 'welcome time' activities to promote children's communication, sitting and listening skills. However, these are not always organised effectively to ensure all children remain actively engaged. For example, the younger children in each room, and children with SEND, quickly lose focus when stories are read. This is sometimes because the story is too long or there is a lack of resources used to maintain their full interest.
• Children's good health is promoted. Babies learn to wash their hands and wipe their own faces when capable. Older children are encouraged to learn independence in their self-care skills. Accessible resources and planned activities help all children to learn about developing good oral health.
• Activities are planned around chosen storybooks to enhance children's learning. For example, after listening to the story of 'Jack and the Beanstalk', children explore their creativity as they paint and stick their own beanstalks. On another table, staff encourage children to copy reoccurring patterns using different-coloured beans. The play dough table has been set up to encourage children to make different-sized beanstalks and then order them in size. However, not all staff are confident to support children's learning effectively in this area.
• Parents feel well informed about their children's ongoing care and learning. They confirm that staff provide them with ideas for how they can continue to support their children's learning at home. For children who have specific dietary or healthcare needs, parents feel reassured by the information obtained that these will be met.
• Children consider how to solve problems when trying to balance a plank of wood between two logs. They work out that if they move the logs closer together the plank of wood will balance on top of them. Staff praise the children for continuing to try until they solved the problem.
• Children develop close bonds and attachments to the caring staff team. Staff are respectful, asking and explaining to children before completing nappy changes. They ensure clear routines and boundaries are in place, which helps children to become familiar with expectations for their behaviour.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• consider children's varying abilities when planning large-group activities, including story times, so that all children benefit fully from the learning provided
• help all staff to develop confidence in their abilities to implement planned activities that support children's awareness of size.