Prime Time Day Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Leaders and staff design the rooms with similar furniture and shared themes to help children feel comfortable as they move through the nursery. They plan indoor and outdoor spaces to encourage children to explore, be active and learn through play. Children understand expectations and are well motivated to learn.

Staff show warmth and kindness. Children trust staff and form close bonds with them. Staff watch children carefully and step in with support when needed. Children show they feel confident to try new things and enjoy their time at nursery.

Overall, leaders thoughtfully plan the curriculum, which is delivered through a carefully chosen book of the month. These capture children's interest and promote language development. Leaders have designed a clear and well-sequenced curriculum that builds over time. Each room reflects this progression. For example, staff design the baby room with low furniture and open space to support crawling and cruising, helping babies build strength and confidence. As children grow, staff adapt the environment to extend learning. In the pre-school room, staff place a stronger focus on small-muscle control, with carefully planned areas for drawing, cutting and model making. These changes help children build the physical skills they need for writing and self-care.

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

• Leaders use self-evaluation well to guide improvements. They have recently focused on strengthening the mathematics curriculum to support children's understanding of number and quantity. They work closely with other settings and local organisations to identify and respond to community needs.
• Leaders set high expectations for staff and use regular monitoring to identify individual strengths and areas for development. They tailor professional development to meet each practitioner's needs, helping staff to improve their teaching and better support the children in their care. Staff have recently completed training on early communication strategies, which has strengthened their focus on supporting children's language development across the setting.
• Leaders and staff build strong and trusting partnerships with parents. Families receive regular updates through face-to-face conversations, an online app and parents' evenings. Parents say staff help them stay involved in their child's learning and offer ideas to support progress at home.
• Staff know children well and use regular assessments to check their progress. They identify what children enjoy and where they may need extra support. However, staff's planning is not always sharply focused across all areas of learning. This means that there are times when activities and planning are not closely matched to each child's stage of development to maximise learning and engagement.
• Overall, leaders and staff support communication and language development well. For example, they use baby signing with essential words, like 'please' and 'stop', to help younger children express their needs and wishes. Staff model new vocabulary clearly and extend conversations based on children's interests. They deliver targeted language interventions and link the communication curriculum closely to emotional well-being, using stories and circle times to help children talk about feelings. Children gain the confidence to express themselves and build strong foundations for future learning.
• Staff set clear expectations and support children to manage their feelings and actions. They use calm reminders and model respectful interactions, helping children learn to take turns, share and resolve small disagreements. Children show high levels of self-control and confidence in social situations.
• Children mostly show positive attitudes to learning and enjoy thinking for themselves. They create their own games with friends, such as making birthday cakes from play dough, singing together or working as a group to solve problems. Staff follow children's lead and adapt activities to build on their interests, helping them stay motivated, focused and eager to explore.
• Staff embed healthy habits through daily routines. For example, they promote oral health and offer children the opportunity to brush their teeth each day. They encourage discussions about healthy food choices at mealtimes. Children play outside daily and develop their physical skills through purposeful activities, such as ball games, climbing and yoga. Children learn how to care for their bodies and stay healthy.
• Leaders promote an inclusive culture, where children learn about different beliefs, celebrations and communities. Staff use books, discussions and children's own experiences to help them understand and respect diversity.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• use assessment information to plan across all areas of learning so that teaching is precisely matched to each child's individual needs.