Sarahs Little Stars

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy and confident in this home-from-home nursery. Staff take time to build close relationships with children and value each child's uniqueness. They have high expectations for all children. Staff use information gathered through their observations to provide meaningful experiences to help embed and extend learning. They help all children to make good progress in relation to their starting points. This includes those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

Children take part in a rich set of experiences as part of an inspiring curriculum. This focuses on children's interests, their communication and language skills and their personal, social and emotional development. This is embedded across the curriculum. For instance, children across the setting have developed a love of books. The youngest of children self-select books and enjoy cuddling up with an adult as they learn to turn the pages. Older children use books freely to find information and share their learning. When looking at planets, children eagerly tell staff that the sun is an 'enormous fireball'.

Staff have high expectations of children's behaviour. They are positive role models. Staff gently remind children to use their good manners and give them time to negotiate the sharing of resources. This helps children to manage their behaviour and develop kind friendships. For example, when they sit down for dinner, they remind their friends, 'You need to have your bottom on your chair.'

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

• The proactive leaders implement a well-focused, challenging curriculum that supports children to develop from their starting points effectively. Staff use what they know about the children to plan interesting and stimulating activities that are rooted in their interests. This helps children develop the key skills they need to move on to the next stage in the nursery and their eventual move to school. Leaders ensure that the curriculum is understood by all staff and is shared with parents and carers.
• The management team implements an effective programme of supervision and appraisal for all staff to manage their performance and foster a culture of mutual support. Staff are continuously supported in their professional development. They maintain mandatory training and access further training based on the needs of the children. For example, staff have recently undertaken training to support them in understanding how children prefer to play and use resources.
• Children are familiar with the consistent routines, promoting their confidence and sense of belonging. However, children become restless during whole-group activities and during transition times. Staff do not organise these times well enough to meet the needs of the children. For example, when staff get the babies ready to go outside, this process is lengthy. The babies become restless and unsettled and are not engaged in anything purposeful. Furthermore, staff do not consider the age and stage of development of the children when planning group times, resulting in children becoming restless and disengaged.
• Children respond positively to the high behaviour expectations that all staff support. Staff talk to children in a calm and respectful manner, reminding them about the need to use 'kind hands' and take turns with popular resources. They manage unwanted behaviour sensitively, considering children's understanding and stage of development. Staff show respect for children's creations and give meaningful praise for their efforts. Children have high levels of well-being.
• Staff create an inclusive environment in which children's individuality is valued. They promote children's home languages, and children learn about a variety of cultural festivals and traditions. For example, children and parents share their home customs and teach other children about what makes them individual. Staff work with parents and other professionals to support all children, including those with SEND. Staff skilfully adapt learning experiences to ensure that all children engage in activities and make good progress in their learning.
• Partnerships with parents are strong. Parents comment that they appreciate the variety of activities on offer and that their children feel happy and safe in the nursery. Staff work with parents to share children's key achievements and overall progress and to suggest ideas to support learning at home. This is further developed through parents' days out. For example, staff, children and parents plan trips to pick pumpkins and strawberries, as well as Christmas parties and fundraisers.
• Staff support children to develop their physical development, both indoors and outdoors. Babies enjoy using the slide and learning new ways of moving their bodies. Outdoors, children enjoy accessing the large well-resourced forest school and garden areas. All children have good opportunities to develop their small- and large-muscle skills.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support staff to improve the organisation of transitions between activities and the length of whole-group times to ensure that children continue to enjoy a good standard of play, teaching and learning.