Priory Day Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children arrive happy and are warmly greeted by the caring staff, who help them settle and feel comfortable. They form good relationships with staff, who support them to be independent. Children learn to pour their own drinks and use a knife to prepare their own snack. They serve their own food and talk to their friends and staff members.

Staff give children ownership of their decisions and encourage them to make choices. Children choose their favourite activity and staff support them. Staff praise children. For example, when children get the play dough, staff praise them as they pat, squeeze and squish it. This helps children to develop the muscles they will need later for writing.

Children play in a calm, peaceful environment. They feel safe and secure. They enthusiastically explore their play space in all rooms, returning to their key person for reassurance to try new skills and to experiment in their play further. Staff support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) well. They identify children's specific needs early on and work with other agencies. This ensures that children with SEND receive specialist support when needed.

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

• The experienced manager supports the staff team well. She ensures that staff have access to regular training and development opportunities so they can meet all children's needs.
• Children enjoy group time. They listen with interest to familiar stories and sing songs. This helps to develop their literacy and language skills. In the toddler room, staff encourage children to 'sit nicely and listen carefully'.
• Books play an important part in the nursery curriculum. The curriculum is well sequenced and builds on what children know and can already do. Staff implement the curriculum and follow the children's lead in play. They develop the emerging interests of the children.
• Parents attend settling-in sessions with their child. This helps children to settle in with ease. Parents praise the setting and value the input that they receive from the manager and staff. Staff meet children's dietary needs and provide parents with healthy meal ideas.
• Staff encourage children to talk about their feelings. Staff use the book 'The Colour Monster' to help younger children identify and explore their developing emotions.
• Staff talk to babies while they are playing and the babies respond by babbling and smiling. Babies delight in a water activity and develop their fine motor skills by filling and emptying jugs. They giggle and smile when they explore the water activity. Staff encourage babies to take steps independently and learn how to safely move about the room.
• Children behave well. Staff support children to recognise when they need to think about their behaviour. Children show care and concern for others. When children disagree, staff help them to understand how their behaviour affects others.
• Staff teach children good hygiene routines and understand the importance of handwashing. Staff encourage children to be independent. On occasion, staff do not model good hygiene practice and do not wash their hands after wiping children's noses. Children access the toilets independently and nappy-changing routines are effective.
• Staff support children to stay safe. Staff ask older children how they can stay safe while building an obstacle course. Staff teach babies to recognise which objects are safe to climb on at the setting.
• Staff encourage younger children to feed themselves. Children have good manners and say 'please' and 'thank you' without prompting from staff.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• review hygiene routines so they are consistently adhered to and hygiene standards are of the highest quality.