Rainbows Childcare, Hungerford

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Leaders and staff provide a nurturing environment for children. They greet children with warm smiles, which helps to set a positive tone for the day. Staff demonstrate love and support for children in their care. They build trusting relationships. All children feel safe and comfortable. Staff gather detailed information about each child before they start. This helps staff personalise their approach to children's learning and development. For example, they offer activities based on children's interests that enhance children's engagement and enjoyment.

Leaders design an ambitious curriculum, which focuses on developing children's curiosity, independence and respect. Staff teach children these values and skills in an age appropriate way. For instance, babies learn signs for 'please' and 'thank you'. Toddlers readily wash their hands with soap, trying hard to use bottles with a pump dispenser. Preschool children listen attentively to their friend's ideas, ask questions and work collaboratively. For example, they want to create a bee out of various shapes. Children discuss and try out different shapes for the body and finally agree on a hexagon as the best fit.

Staff have high expectations for children's behaviour. They help them to understand and follow the 'golden rules', such as walking indoors. The well-established routines also help children behave well, as they know what is happening next. Staff celebrate children's efforts and achievements with great enthusiasm, which helps develop each child's positive self-image.

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

• Leaders evaluate the quality of education and care staff provide to help drive improvement. They readily identify areas for improvement. For example, leaders support individual staff to undertake specific training to further enhance children's learning outdoors. They coach and mentor staff to develop and implement an outdoor curriculum which promotes children's natural curiosity, problem solving and team building skills even more.
• Leaders and staff provide a language-rich learning environment. For example, babies choose song props to indicate the song they want staff to sing next. When staff encourage them to put on the finger puppets, babies smile in delight. Toddlers wear larger hand puppets and hold interesting two-way conversations with staff about them. Pre-school children proudly interact with staff and enjoy sharing facts they know, such as that a Tyrannosaurus Rex eats meat and uses its tail to protect itself. Staff intelligently extend children's vocabulary by introducing describing words, such as 'aggressive'. In this way, children become confident and capable communicators.
• Staff are quick to identify any emerging gaps in children's development. The special educational needs coordinator (SENCo) is instrumental in ensuring a shared and targeted approach to help address any identified gaps. She seeks advice from external professionals to help staff implement personalised interventions for children. For instance, they have set up a sensory room for children who may need a quiet place to play if they are worried or get frustrated. The SENCo also encourages parental support for children's learning at home. This benefits children by providing continuity in their learning.
• Leaders and staff effectively raise children's awareness of different cultures, traditions and languages represented in the setting. They work in partnership with parents who speak various languages. For instance, parents share stories in Italian. The chef liaises closely with parents to create children's favourite meals from their home cultures, such as falafel from the Middle East. This helps children make comparisons between their own ways of life and those of others.
• Staff know children well. They carry out ongoing assessments of children to establish what children know and can do. This information helps to identify children's next steps in learning. However, on occasions, some staff do not plan and implement activities that precisely build on each child's existing knowledge and skills. During these times, children's learning is not always maximised.
• On the whole, staff help to develop children's awareness of making healthy food choices. For example, they grow vegetables in the garden and children eat them as part of their balanced, home-cooked meals. Staff remind children to wash their hands at appropriate times. They encourage physical exercise outdoors, such as climbing large equipment and running around. However, at times staff do not always recognise how to extend children's understanding of the benefits of adopting a healthy lifestyle, including learning about the positive impact on their bodies. This does not fully support children to learn about their physical health.
• Parent partnership is highly effective. Staff share photographs and videos of their children's busy day at the nursery. Parents value information staff share about their children's progress in their development. Staff offer ideas for parents to continue their children's learning at home, which is proving successful.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• review and improve the planning and implementation of activities to build more precisely on individual children's existing learning and development
• support staff more consistently to identify opportunities to broaden and extend children's understanding of the benefits of leading a healthy lifestyle.