Ruislip Stars Nurseries at St Mary's

Inclusion: Strong standard

Children who need additional support benefit from leaders and staff who know them well and respond quickly to their individual needs. Any gaps in learning or barriers are identified in a timely manner so that children receive the right help at the right time. Staff are knowledgeable about supporting children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and adapt support carefully to meet children's individual needs. Children benefit from adults who work closely with professionals and local agencies, ensuring that support is consistent, purposeful and helps them to thrive.

Children experience a curriculum that is adapted thoughtfully to help bridge gaps in learning. Focused one-to-one support and carefully planned experiences help children build confidence and make progress at their own pace. Staff make reasonable adjustments and respond sensitively to children's needs, helping them to feel safe, secure and successful. Funding is used effectively to provide tailored support and additional resources where needed, ensuring that children can fully access learning opportunities. From the very beginning, children experience nurturing care, while families receive meaningful support.

Children benefit from strong continuity of care, including thoughtful support during transitions to school. Parent engagement is embedded across the setting, with staff listening and responding well to families so that children feel valued, supported and understood.

Curriculum and teaching: Expected standard

Leaders deliver an ambitious curriculum that is reviewed regularly and adapted responsively to meet children's current needs and interests. Staff use ongoing assessment effectively to inform planning, ensuring that children's next steps are clearly identified and learning builds securely over time. The curriculum is purposeful and carefully considered so that children are supported to work within expectations appropriate to their age and stage of development, with a clear focus on building strong foundations for future learning.

Communication and language development is prioritised through small-group work and purposeful repetition, helping children to secure and retain new learning over time. Staff could help the children to extend their sentences and vocabulary further. Mathematical understanding is apparent across the setting through meaningful experiences. Children explore early mathematical concepts through everyday activities, such as using shape cutters in play dough and engaging in structured block building, helping them to recognise and apply ideas in context.

The extensive outdoor environment provides children with rich opportunities to develop their physical development through climbing, balancing, digging and exploring within a range of stimulating spaces, including the sand area and sheltered outdoor classroom. Personal, social and emotional development is strongly embedded within the curriculum, with sharing, turn-taking and helping others forming an important part of daily routines and expectations, supporting children to develop positive behaviours and relationships.

Staff know the children in their care well, and individual targets are clearly understood and shared across the team. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those with additional barriers to learning are making secure progress from their starting points due to well-planned support and effective adaptations.

Achievement: Expected standard

Children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those with other barriers to learning, are making steady progress from their starting points and are achieving well across the areas of learning. They are developing key skills in communication, early literacy, mathematics and personal development, supported by carefully planned experiences that build on what they already know. When a need is identified for a child, staff act quickly to provide appropriate support. Gaps in learning are identified using a tracking system used by the setting, which helps staff plan clear next steps so children can achieve within expectations for their age and stage of development.

Children achieve well in their ability to express themselves, share ideas and make choices about their learning, becoming increasingly confident communicators. They are supported to develop independence, curiosity and confidence, which enables them to achieve positive outcomes in readiness for their next stages in learning and development. Children are grouped in ways that best support their individual needs and next steps, ensuring that learning is purposeful and matched closely to what they need to achieve next. In some cases, parents are not fully aware of their child's targets, which means opportunities to support and extend children's achievements at home are not always fully maximised.

Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines: Strong standard

Leaders model exemplary behaviour and set exceptionally high standards across the setting. Staff are consistently positive, patient, nurturing and kind, and well-established routines are embedded seamlessly throughout the day. As a result, children behave extremely well, demonstrating kindness, cooperation and an understanding of how to share with others. Children form strong friendships, while warm, trusting relationships between parents, staff and children create a genuine sense of belonging. Children are highly secure with their key workers, feel completely at ease and confidently seek reassurance and support when needed. Staff show genuine care, compassion and dedication towards every child, contributing to a calm, harmonious and highly inclusive environment in which children, families and staff flourish and feel valued.

Children demonstrate a strong enthusiasm for learning, confidently exploring their environment and willingly sharing their thoughts, ideas and preferences, knowing that their voices are listened to and highly valued. Attendance and punctuality are positive and actively encouraged, with children clearly enjoying their time at nursery and engaging enthusiastically in experiences provided. Staff work exceptionally well together, operating as a cohesive and highly supportive team to ensure the very best outcomes for children. For example, during mealtimes, staff clearly explain expectations, roles and learning opportunities, supporting children to develop independence, understanding and positive routines.

Staff consistently and thoughtfully consider children's ages and stages of development when supporting them. For example, instructions and activities are skilfully revisited and reinforced when needed, enabling children to understand expectations, build confidence and successfully engage with routines and learning experiences across the setting.

Children's welfare and wellbeing: Expected standard

Leaders have clear systems in place to ensure that children are well cared for, with particular consideration given to children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those with barriers to learning. Staff build strong, positive relationships with one another, children and parents, working closely together to meet children's needs. Leaders respond flexibly when needs are identified by parents or staff, and staff generally respond quickly when children require help or support.

Children are supported to understand how to care for themselves and others, with kindness and consideration embedded into daily routines. For example, at snack time, children are encouraged to wait for others to be seated before beginning to eat, helping them to develop awareness of fairness and shared expectations.

All babies and children are valued as individuals and are listened to and responded to with care. Staff are attentive to their needs, ensuring that children feel safe, secure and understood. Younger children are supported in developing their independence and awareness of personal safety, while wellbeing is promoted through routines such as songs about feelings that help children recognise and express emotions from an early age. Children benefit from fresh, varied meals prepared on site, with dietary needs, allergies and intolerances carefully considered. Healthy choices are promoted across the setting, supporting children's wellbeing.

Routines such as nappy changing and handwashing are carried out regularly and appropriately, supporting children's hygiene and wellbeing.

Staff report that they feel valued and supported in their roles, which contributes to positive morale and has a beneficial impact on children's care and experiences. Parents report that they feel well informed and confident that their children are well looked after.

Leadership and governance: Expected standard

Leadership works effectively as a team and promotes an open-door culture, supported by regular staff meetings that ensure clear communication and shared understanding. Wellbeing is a key priority for leaders, who provide staff with access to an online portal that can be used at any time for information and support. Leaders also organise staff outings to support team-building and motivation, and they use regular quizzes to reinforce previous learning in an engaging way. Workload has been carefully considered, and leaders have made a deliberate and positive decision to reduce unnecessary pressures on staff.

Leaders provide a wide range of opportunities for continuous professional development, with ongoing training that supports staff to grow in their roles. This has a positive impact on morale, with staff demonstrating enthusiasm for their work and a strong desire to remain and progress within the setting. Staff report that they feel supported and encouraged in their professional development.

Parents are welcomed into the setting for a range of events, such as recent celebrations for Eid, and plans are in place for a summer fair involving the nursery community, including the local church. These events strengthen relationships and build a strong sense of community. Community involvement is central to the nursery's ethos, and leaders have created an inclusive environment where everyone feels valued and connected.

Leaders have a clear understanding of the setting's strengths and are aware of areas for further development. They consistently consider the needs of all children, particularly those with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those with other barriers to learning. However, parents' meetings are not always consistent, and, as a result, some parents are not fully aware of their child's targets.