Rainbow Nursery - Firs Farm

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy and settled at the nursery. They develop strong and affectionate bonds with the caring staff. This supports their emotional well-being and gives them a secure foundation for learning. Children demonstrate that they feel safe in the warm and nurturing environment. They are confident to interact with others and to explore the resources and activities. Children know that their unique backgrounds and abilities are valued by staff. They enjoy sharing their experiences from home and celebrate special events, such as Christmas and 'international days', together. This helps them to understand and respect their similarities and differences.

Staff have high expectations for children's learning and behaviour. They provide a wide range of interesting resources and activities, which spark children's interest and help to instil positive attitudes to learning. For example, children are curious to discover how a balancing scale works. They learn how to compare and describe the weight of various items as they explore the activity with staff. There are consistent routines and boundaries; therefore, children know what is expected of them and behave well. For instance, children recognise the tidy-up time song and willingly help to put away the toys. They learn to be kind to others and develop firm friendships with their peers.

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

• The manager is committed to providing high-quality care and learning for all children. She constantly reviews the provision with staff, and they successfully implement plans to further improve the service. For example, they have introduced an online app to help exchange information about children's learning with parents. Parents say that the regular photographs and information give them a good insight into their children's learning.
• Staff provide a balanced curriculum, which supports children's progress in the seven areas of learning. They monitor children's progress closely and identify where children may need more support. Staff work alongside parents and other professionals where needed to help all children reach their full potential.
• Children are motivated to learn and make the most of the activities on offer. For example, children are excited to discover that they can create new colours by mixing paints. They explore how to make various marks using their hands, fingers and paintbrushes, and are keen to share their findings with others.
• Staff are enthusiastic in their approach and demonstrate good teaching skills. For instance, they initiate discussions with children and introduce new words as they play. This helps children, including those who speak English as an additional language, to become confident talkers and develop broad vocabularies. However, staff have not considered how to organise large-group activities, such as circle time and story time, to ensure that they meet the needs of all children. Therefore, at times, some children lose interest and miss out on these learning opportunities.
• Children learn to become independent with their hygiene and personal care. For example, they pour themselves a drink of water at the 'water station' and keep their noses, hands and faces clean at the 'self-care station'. This helps them to develop confidence in what they can do and prepares them well for starting school.
• Staff successfully support children's emotional development. For instance, they have created a 'well-being area', where children can calm down, relax and take time out of the busy nursery routine. Staff use stories and discussions to help children recognise feelings and develop empathy for others. This helps them to moderate their emotions and behaviour.
• Children learn the importance of healthy lifestyles and develop positive habits to support them in later life. They discover that there are lots of fun ways to keep fit, as they play outdoors and enjoy activities such as yoga. Children are offered healthy snacks each day and help staff grow vegetables in their garden. They are confident to sample new foods and chat happily about their favourite fruit and vegetables.
• Parents comment that their children are extremely happy and settled at the nursery. They describe how children have developed their social and communication skills since joining. Parents value the supportive relationships with the manager and staff, which ensures consistent support for children's care and learning needs.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• review and improve the planning and implementation of large-group activities to ensure that they support all children's engagement and learning as well as possible.