Rock Cottage Day Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children show that they are happy and safe in this caring and well-organised setting. An effective key-person system ensures that children build positive relationships with staff. Young babies settle extremely well. Routines are flexible to meet their individual needs and enable babies to flourish.

Children's behaviour is good. Children are respectful and kind to their friends. They share their resources extremely well. Children of all ages play harmoniously alongside their peers. Young children laugh and giggle as they hold hands and play together. They wave goodbye to their friends as they leave at the end of the day. Pre-school children engage in conversation about their self-portraits displayed on the wall. They recall the features of themselves and their friends. They laugh together as they review each other's artwork. Children are building secure and enjoyable friendships.

Staff promote children's love of books. Children enjoy selecting their favourite stories and handle books with care. Young children thoroughly enjoy story time sessions. They cosy up on the laps of staff and listen intently to a story about Christmas. Staff involve older children in storytelling. They skilfully pause and ask questions, allowing children to recall words and phrases of familiar stories. As a result, children are making excellent progress with their early literacy skills.

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

• The manager and staff have created a well-sequenced curriculum. It builds on children's skills and knowledge and prepares them well for their next stage of learning. Staff consider children's interests and developmental needs, and plan a range of engaging activities that motivate them. As a result, all children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, are making good progress in their learning.
• Staff plan activities to broaden children's imaginative skills. Children develop their understanding of the world around them through activities relating to festivals and celebrations. This helps children to learn about similarities and differences in an enjoyable way. Children visit the on-site care home and explore the private grounds that surround the setting. However, there is scope for staff to plan even more experiences to deepen children's knowledge and understanding of the wider world around them.
• Staff support children's mathematical development well. They use mathematical language in a range of enjoyable ways as children play. Children enjoy developing their early mathematical skills. For example, children use a range of tools to create 'big' and 'small' snowmen out of play dough. Pre-school children recognise the numbers one to 10 in an exciting game.
• Children are learning about healthy lifestyles and good hygiene practices. They wipe their own hands and faces with their own individual cloths after lunch. Staff work closely with parents to ensure that toilet training is consistent and successful. Children have daily exercise outdoors. There are effective systems in place to ensure that children's specific dietary needs are met.
• Children develop the essential skills that they need in readiness for school. They develop independence through daily routines and activities. For example, at lunchtime, they pour their own water or milk and self-serve their own vegetables. However, on occasion, staff do not always encourage older children to practise independence skills that they have identified as key milestones in their curriculum. For instance, there are times when staff cut up children's food for them without fully encouraging them to try to do this for themselves. This prevents children's personal development being promoted to the highest possible level.
• Partnership with parents is a real strength of the setting. Parents warmly describe the friendliness of the staff and feel that their children's individual needs are met. They comment that their children are incredibly happy at the setting. Parents are kept very well informed of every aspect of their child's progress. They know their child's next steps for learning. This helps to build on children's learning in their home environment.
• Leadership within the setting is strong. The manager is reflective of the provision and regularly evaluates the care and teaching that staff provide. Staff benefit from regular supervisions to discuss key issues, including their well-being and professional development. Regular training opportunities enable staff to continually build on their already good teaching skills.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• plan further experiences to deepen children's knowledge and understanding of the world around them, to help inspire awe and wonder of the world in which they live
• further enhance the range of opportunities available to older children to practise their independence skills, to build on their personal development even further.