Pirates and Princesses Day Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children arrive happy and separate from their parents with ease, as the friendly staff greet them and help them to settle. Children form strong relationships with staff and demonstrate feeling safe and secure in their care. Babies cuddle into staff and seek them out for comfort when they are tired. Older children involve staff in their games and confidently ask them for help during play.

Children are eager to explore the interesting environment. They demonstrate confidence with choosing what they would like to play with, and staff provide exciting activities to encourage children to focus and concentrate. Younger children spend time exploring sensory experiences as they taste and feel different foods in their play. Staff support them by encouraging them to be involved. Older children practise using different tools to develop their hand-eye coordination and to build the strength in their hands as they eagerly transport different resources and show staff their new skills.

Leaders and staff focus on helping children to learn through using their interests. Staff concentrate on supporting children to be independent and confident. The youngest children competently feed themselves, and older children prepare themselves to go outside and confidently wash their hands before mealtimes. Staff prioritises children's safety. They set clear and consistent boundaries, helping children to know what is expected of them. For instance, children swiftly line up and wait patiently to be counted before going inside from the garden.

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

• The management team has a good oversight of the nursery. It works closely with its staff team to ensure that additional funding is used well to enrich the experiences of the children that it is intended for. Staff provide a relaxed and calm environment for children. Staff say that they are well supported in their roles and that managers support them personally, as well as giving them support with their professional development. Staff have access to training, and the managers support staff to prioritise their coursework as they complete their qualifications.
• The key-person system is effective, and staff are very responsive to children's needs. They work closely with parents to follow children's routines and care practices with sleep, toileting and mealtimes to help them to precisely tailor their care. Children of all ages are confident, happy and enjoy their time at the nursery.
• Partnerships with parents are strong. Parents say that they are very happy and so are their children. Parents feel that their children are well looked after, and staff keep them well informed about their children's progress. Managers and staff involve parents in supporting their children's learning. For instance, they have regular meetings, staff ask parents what they feel their children need to learn, and they have a lending library with books and activities for parents to use at home with their children.
• Staff know children very well, and they assess children's progress accurately. They identify children who have delays in their development, and staff know what children need to learn next. Overall, they target their support effectively. However, the curriculum is still being developed and, at times, older children need more challenge to keep them engaged and to help them to make even better progress in their learning.
• Managers and staff promote good health for children. They provide parents with information on good oral hygiene and ensure that children have healthy meals and snacks, and they teach children the importance of good personal hygiene. Children have lots of opportunities to have fresh air and exercise. They enjoy being outside and develop good physical skills. Older children enjoy learning to balance as they ride scooters and do obstacle courses, and the younger children develop their walking and learn to go up and down the slide.
• Managers and staff consider children's needs and interests when planning the environment. They have introduced a quiet sensory area, and they have developed the creative space to give children more independence. However, they do not consider how some routines interrupt children's opportunities to learn and remain engaged. At times, children spend time waiting for snack or lunch, and this can cause them to be frustrated and the environment becomes loud.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• continue to develop the curriculum to give older children more challenge in their learning
• develop the organisation of routines to maximise children's learning opportunities.