Rafa Kidz

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children happily come into nursery, as it 'feels just like home'. They have warm and loving relationships with their key person. Children hold their hands out for a cuddle with their key person as they arrive. They settle quickly and are eager to start playing.

Children develop their independence skills as they progress through the nursery. For example, children learn how to use cutlery, starting with spoons in the baby room, and developing to the use of knives and forks in pre-school. Children behave well and all children make good progress. Children's listening and attention skills are skilfully developed by staff. For example, very young children sit engaged in group time. They enjoy listening to and doing the actions of favourite nursery rhymes. They remain fully focused on the activity far longer than is to be expected.

Children explore their artistic abilities as they use mini easels to recreate their own Van Gogh pictures, using his pictures as a prompt. Children are highly engaged in this and think carefully about their pictures as they use water colours with care.

Children are highly supported when it comes to parents being deployed. One of the ways in which the nursery does this is by teaching children about the 'invisible string' that connects them to the people they love, even if they are not in the same place.

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

• The highly driven leadership team have made significant improvements since the last inspection. They recognise areas of weaker practice, and are implementing action plans to raise the quality of teaching further. Leaders recognise that this is a journey and it will take time to fully develop the quality of teaching to the highest level.
• The leadership team have created a curriculum that is ambitious and challenging for all children. They build on children's knowledge as they progress through the nursery. The leadership team ensure that their curriculum is highly focused on communication and language and developing personal, social and emotional skills.
• The leadership team highly value their staff. They have built a culture of openness and honesty which means staff feel able to ask for support, if needed. The leadership team carry out supervisions regularly to review staff's well-being and performance.
• Staff are passionate and enthusiastic about attending training days. They are keen to cascade the knowledge learnt to their colleagues to develop practice further across the provision.
• Parents speak very highly of the setting. They explain the staff are supportive and very approachable. Parents enthusiastically talk about how the nursery staff inspire them with ideas on how to extend children's learning and development further.
• Older children learn to wash their faces with flannels, using a mirror as a guide after their lunches. This helps to promote children's understanding of self-care. However, fully supporting children with their personal hygiene routines is not consistent throughout the nursery. For example, younger children, at times, have runny noses that are not immediately addressed by staff.
• Children learn how to keep themselves safe during a heatwave. For example, very young children recognise that when it is hot they need sun cream on before they can go outside. Staff ensure children drink plenty of water throughout the day.
• Children understand the behaviour expectations of the staff and the reasons behind these. They follow the 'golden rules', which are displayed prominently in each room. For example, children learn not to run indoors, as they may trip and hurt themselves.
• Children's language is supported well by staff. They introduce children to new words as they play, such as 'carnivore' and 'herbivore'. Staff build on children's sentences as they model vocabulary. For example, when playing 'ice cream shop', staff extend sentences further, adding 'in a cone or in a tub', when children order 'ice cream.'
• Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) make good progress. Staff use a variety of methods to meet the needs of the children in their care. For example, staff use 'the colour monster' to help children understand their feelings and to be able to share them, such as by saying which colour they are feeling.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• continue to use training, coaching and mentoring to develop teaching even further to the highest quality
• further develop the personal-hygiene routines to ensure children's needs are consistently met.