Scallywags (Medway) Limited

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children flourish in the attractive, nurturing and stimulating nursery. They form extremely strong attachments with the empathetic, warm and kind staff. Children's laughter and happy voices can be heard throughout the day. Staff create a home-from-home environment for children that is safe and joyful.

Children confidently explore and discover exciting resources and inspiring activities in the calm and relaxed rooms. They have time and space to experiment and try out new ways of doing things. For instance, young babies eagerly copy and make sounds when they bang wooden spoons together. Older children become deeply focused and fascinated when they stir and dissolve colourful sweets in water. Toddlers relish the sensation of sticky 'gloop', that is scented with lemon, on their hands.

Children develop a strong sense of who they are when they negotiate and think about the needs of others. Their behaviour is exemplary, and they demonstrate an excellent understanding of the age-appropriate rules of the nursery. This supports them to develop their self-control and resilience. Staff lead by example, modelling positive attitudes and an understanding of children's feelings and emotions. For instance, babies are instantly soothed to prevent them from becoming overly distressed or tired.

Children learn to respect and value one another. Their cultures, languages and festivals become an integral part of nursery life. Children learn about the world around them as they begin their own exciting adventures as enthusiastic life-long learners.

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

• The nursery is superbly led by an inspirational team of directors and managers. Their dedication to staff, children and parents is exceptional. A culture of safety and well-being is fully embedded and at the heart of everyone's practice. Staff describe their love of working at the nursery and praise the excellent support they receive. An outstanding programme of training, mentoring and supervision helps all staff to maintain their strong professional skills and knowledge.
• Staff know the children extremely well. From the moment children start, staff plan and deliver a curriculum that is closely tailored to their individual needs and interests. Staff accurately record children's progress and development. This helps them to sequence children's learning precisely as they move through the nursery rooms. Children are fully prepared with the skills they need to support their future learning, including when they go to school.
• Staff support children to develop their communication and language skills extremely well. They consistently repeat songs, rhymes and sounds for babies. Older children engage in long conversations with attentive staff. Additional funding is used exceptionally well to further support children's speaking and communication skills, including those children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. For example, a speech therapist regularly works with staff and children to provide specific interventions and activities.
• Children benefit from inspirational teaching to support their interests and learning. For instance, when older children learn about eyes and their senses, they use words such as 'vision' and 'sight'. Children make links between themselves and others when they notice their similarities and differences. Children are fascinated when they look into the eyes of staff to see the contact lenses they are wearing.
• Staff create an exceptional environment inside and outside to help all children gain confidence and develop their physical skills. Staff are superb at letting children explore and discover while providing them with age-appropriate challenges. For example, babies confidently extend their physical abilities when they crawl and climb over the low climbing frame. Older children expertly and steadily run across the bridge, and up and down steps.
• Staff foster children's love of books. For instance, children snuggle up to staff wherever they are to listen to stories, such as under the climbing frame or next to the sand tray. Parents borrow books to take home to read to their children, including some written in their home languages. This helps to instil a love of reading in children.
• Staff skilfully help children to be fully independent and capable of looking after their own personal needs. Young children put on their shoes and feed themselves, while older children confidently get dressed, use the toilet and eat using cutlery. The dedicated chef provides exceptionally well-balanced and nutritious meals to support children's awareness of healthy eating.
• Partnerships with parents are superb. During the COVID-19 pandemic, a full schedule of learning was delivered by staff online and in learning packs to any children not attending the nursery during this time. Parents praised the staff for going 'above and beyond' in maintaining contact with them and their children throughout. Parents are fully welcomed into the nursery at the beginning and end of the day. They build a very strong rapport with staff when they share information about their children's learning and development.