Rise and Shine Day Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Staff help children to settle for their day and enthusiastically greet them. Children instinctively know where to put their coats and quickly become engaged in their learning. Staff support children in their chosen activity. They provide role-play areas that encourage children to engage in imaginary play. Children and staff constantly share ideas and talk about their play. For example, when they are playing 'doctors', staff introduce ideas about stethoscopes and how they help doctors to listen to a heartbeat. Children use a breadth of language to describe the things they are doing in their play.

Staff have established good relationships with the children. They are nurturing and support learning well. Children show good levels of attention as they play. Younger children have fun creating hedgehogs. They stick on paper and use paint to create their own hedgehog design. Older children use their fingers to paint leaves on a tree. Staff help children to recall previous learning. Children talk about the colour of the leaves turning red, orange, brown and yellow, and they explain that these are 'the colours of autumn'. All children make good progress in their development, including those with additional needs. They show positive attitudes to their learning.

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

• The leadership team has a clear and ambitious vision of what it wants children to learn. Leaders ensure that staff understand their vision. Staff plan activities that build on what children know and can do. Staff say that they feel well supported and value the continuous professional development they receive.
• Mathematical language is woven into everyday play. Children try to form different shapes from play dough by matching them to printed shapes. Staff support children with problem solving when they find it difficult. Children divide the dough and count the number of pieces. Children are making good progress in their mathematical development.
• Staff expose children to a language-rich environment. Children develop their vocabulary by learning new words, such as 'nocturnal', when talking about bats in relation to their current topic of autumn. Children who speak English as an additional language (EAL) are successfully supported by staff.
• Children enjoy fresh air, and they spend plenty of time outdoors. They use chalk to make marks on the wall, sit and share books with staff, and practise their physical skills. Children ride on tricycles, roll hoops and jump on mini trampolines.
• Children behave well. They listen to staff and follow instructions. Staff act as good role models for children. They support children to resolve disagreements. For example, when children struggle to share toys, staff explain that there are enough for all children and help them to distribute them fairly. Children receive lots of praise for their efforts and achievements.
• Managers provide extensive support for all children and their families throughout their time at the nursery. This includes children who speak EAL and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). The special educational needs coordinator (SENCo) works closely with parents and other professionals and ensures that additional support is in place while children with SEND wait for specialist services. This helps children to reach their full potential.
• Consistent routines help children know when it is time to tidy away and when it is time for outside play and group time. Children sit together for group activities. Initially, they show interest and sit to listen to the story. Staff ask children to remember their previous learning about authors and illustrators. However, sometimes, these group times are too large and do not meet the needs of all the children taking part. This results in children losing interest and becoming distracted.
• Partnerships with parents are good. Parents value the high level of care each child receives. Parents state that these special relationships and the bespoke support they receive have helped their children to make continuous progress in their development since starting at the nursery. Parents particularly enjoy the workshops offered by the nursery.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• review the organisation of large group times so that all children can become deeply engaged in the rich learning opportunities during this time as they do at other times of the day.