Redlands Day Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children show that they feel happy and secure in this home-from-home nursery. They benefit from warm interactions with caring and nurturing staff. Children demonstrate that they are happy and feel secure as they confidently leave their parents and quickly settle into their individual rooms.

Children enjoy spending time in the outdoor area. They enthusiastically engage with the interesting opportunities on offer. For instance, children delight in using the large swing and engaging in an adventurous obstacle course. Staff know when to step in to provide support and when to provide children with further challenge. This helps children to remain motivated and develop their large muscles, balance and coordination. Older children navigate around the nursery, excitedly choosing activities that spark their interest. For instance, children enjoy listening to staff and learning about nature as they observe frog spawn, and plant fruit trees and flowers in the garden.

Children behave well. Staff are excellent role models. They give children plenty of praise and model how to be kind and respectful to others. Staff encourage children's growing independence as they support children to serve their meals and wash their hands for lunch. This helps them to develop good self-help skills needed for their next stage of learning.

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

• Children behave well. Staff encourage children to share and take turns. They give praise and encouragement for acts of kindness. When children struggle with regulating their behaviour, staff take appropriate action to support them. For instance, staff remind children about the rules of the nursery. This helps children to respect each other and play well together.
• Parents are very positive about the nursery. They feel it is warm, homely and welcoming and offers a flexible service that meets children's individual needs. Staff communicate well with parents, both verbally and through an online platform. They inform parents of children's daily activities and provide ideas to support children's learning at home.
• Relationships with external partners are good. Staff in the nursery make swift referrals and collaborate with a wide range of other professionals, such as Portage, local schools and speech and language. Individual learning plans are devised to meet individual needs. This helps to ensure that children receive the right support, at the right time.
• Staff encourage children to develop a love of reading. They read to children in a way that excites and engages them, introducing new ideas, concepts and vocabulary. For example, children listen with awe as staff explain how tadpoles grow from frog spawn. Furthermore, staff encourage parents to read with children at home and provide story bags for them to take home. This helps to develop children's early literacy skills.
• Children's speech and language development is well supported. Staff understand how to support children to develop their language and communication skills. They engage children in meaningful conversations during play and introduce new vocabulary, such as 'rectangle' and 'diamond'. Children who speak English as an additional language are well supported. Staff learn key words and phrases in the child's home language and use this during play. This helps to develop children's speaking and listening skills.
• Overall, staff know the children well and plan a curriculum that reflects children's individual needs and interests. They gather some information from parents on entry about what their children already know and can do. However, they do not use this information to plan for children's learning from the very beginning.
• Staff provide a range of nutritious snacks and meals. They talk to children about how food and drink can help them grow and develop. Children enjoy daily fresh air and exercise. Staff teach children to wash their hands and manage their personal needs, such as toileting and wiping their noses. This helps children learn the importance of keeping healthy.
• Leaders are reflective and consider ways to develop the nursery even further. They provide professional development opportunities and meet with staff to support them in their roles. For instance, they recognised staff needed support around quality interactions and brain development, and organised training to support this. Staff say that they like working at the nursery and feel valued.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• further develop information gathered from parents to plan more effectively for individual children's learning, from the very beginning.