Riverside Grosvenor House Nursery School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provider has high expectations of children. The curriculum supports children's emotional and social development, physical development and their language and communication skills. Staff plan rich and varied activities and experiences to help children make good progress. Children have positive attitudes to learning and relish seeing the effects of their actions. For example, they capably use tools to hammer away at blocks of ice or create replica volcanoes, adding ingredients delighting when they erupt.

Children's beaming smiles show they are happy, content and feel safe in this warm and welcoming setting. Enthusiastic leaders and staff meet parents and children at the door. They greet children affectionately with kind words and cuddles. This contributes towards children's high levels of emotional security. Children truly belong and excitedly enter each day, seamlessly separating from parents.

Staff support children to settle, right from their first day or during the move to the next room. The key-person system is effective in helping children to develop close bonds with caring staff who get to know them well. Wonderful relationships between staff, children and their friends are evident and children show high levels of confidence and self-esteem. For example, staff praise children and provide positive assurances as children admire their reflection in the mirror when wiping their faces.

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

• There is a strong leadership team who have made a number of well-considered changes and improvements since the last inspection. Additional policies and procedures have been implemented which contribute towards the smooth running of the setting. Leaders reflect on the positive changes made and invite parents to meetings to provide them with information. However, some of the methods used to gather and share feedback with parents are less successful, in order to gain a wider view of the setting and support continuous improvement.
• Children are well cared for and show they are comfortable. They readily reach their arms out wide for cuddles. Children laugh and giggle during meaningful interactions with staff. Children are helped to become independent. They develop confidence and the resilience to have a go. For example, children move across large climbing equipment. Younger children fall down and jump straight back up for another attempt, eager to conquer the challenge.
• Leaders encourage staff to gain higher qualifications and develop their knowledge by accessing a wealth of training. However, at times some staff fail to implement the curriculum that leaders intend, and provide activities that do not fully focus on the key skills that children need to learn right now.
• The special educational needs coordinator is an advocate for ensuring that all children are valued, included and receive the help they need. Staff work closely with professionals and use effective methods, such as visual prompts to indicate a change in routine. All children are provided with the education that they quite rightly deserve. Additional funding is utilised well, for example, to provide mobility equipment to improve accessibility and enable children to participate fully in the learning opportunities on offer. This strong focus helps children to make the progress they are capable of.
• Children's behaviour is excellent. Staff model positive language when communicating with children. They use effective strategies to help children to recognise feelings and regulate their behaviour. For example, staff use colour recognition and carefully chosen books to generate conversation about how children are feelings and why. Staff encourage children to sit nicely at the table and develop awareness of expected behaviours. Children readily clean and put away plates after eating a healthy and nutritious lunch. This helps to prepare them for future learning and school routines.
• Staff provide a number of additional activities to widen children's experiences which supports them in preparation for life in modern Britain. Yoga and music sessions contribute towards children's physical health and well-being. In addition, children are becoming aware of the similarities and differences between themselves and others. For example, staff teach them about physical differences and why their friends hair is curly and why they eat food that is different to what their friends are eating.
• Partnership with parents is well established. This has been a real focus for the provider. Parents are kept updated with children's good progress. A number of events are planned to help to encourage parents to become involved in what is happening in the setting. Methods, such as sharing activity bags are helping to support parents to be involved in children's learning.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• monitor practice more precisely and provide incisive feedback to help all staff to consistently deliver the intended curriculum
• enhance self-evaluation processes and include the views of parents to continue to drive forward with identified improvements.