Seedlings Nursery and Pre-school

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy and settled in the nursery. Staff know how to meet their care needs effectively and have close relationships with them. Babies, including those who are new to the nursery, show contentment and enjoy a cuddle while they drink their bottle. Staff are kind, caring and nurturing towards children. They provide children with praise and encouragement regularly. Children benefit from this and develop good levels of self-confidence. They try hard to develop new skills, such as using scissors safely. Staff work hard to support children's personal, social and emotional development. Children develop social skills and begin to understand behavioural boundaries.

Staff provide an exciting curriculum, which is based on children's interests and stages of development. They add new themes and topics to activities to help children broaden their knowledge and experience. Key staff know their key children very well, particularly those who support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. They work closely with parents and other professionals to find out what children can already do. This helps to promote continuity of learning for children and build secure foundations for the future. Although the nursery opened after the pandemic, the manager recognised that staff needed to focus on promoting children's language skills to minimise delay. Some staff have accessed Makaton training, which they use to help children communicate their needs.

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

• Children show enjoyment in activities that are provided by staff. Toddlers concentrate for extended lengths of time as they explore sensory resources. Staff encourage them to use their hands to touch the 'gloop' and then describe how it feels. Older children focus intently as they make snips in their paper and access paint and glue independently. They show good levels of independence and enjoy making choices about their learning.
• However, very recently, children have been separated into smaller 'room groups' to help younger children settle. This is effective and enables those who need a quieter space to develop confidence. However, staff who are not currently with their key children do not pass on enough information to help other staff focus their teaching. This means that, on occasion, staff are unsure of children's specific learning goals.
• Staff provide smaller group times to focus on developing older children's listening skills and concentration in preparation for starting school. Children show enthusiasm to move into their group and are keen to share ideas about what might make a person feel happy. Staff read to children and help them to develop a love of books. They offer a lending library to encourage parents and families to read together at home.
• Babies benefit from a calm, nurturing environment. Staff focus on developing babies' physical and communication skills as babies play and explore. For instance, activities are purposefully arranged so that babies pull themselves up to access the resources. Staff model new words to them through stories and songs. Staff follow babies' individual routines and meet their care needs very well.
• Toddlers thoroughly enjoy using the sensory room. Staff show them how to use musical instruments, such as the triangle, and help them to make different loud and quiet sounds. Children explore the different lights and bubbles around the room. They show awareness of their routine as staff begin to sing a song, which indicates it is time to leave.
• Children's health is a priority in the nursery. They benefit from freshly cooked, nutritious meals, which are adapted to meet any specific dietary requirements. Staff teach children about healthy fruits and vegetables throughout the day. They encourage children to think about the importance of brushing their teeth. Children wash their hands before lunch and begin to learn to use the toilet, before they start school.
• The manager and the staff team regularly gather parents' feedback to help drive forward improvement. For example, the manager has taken on board parents' views to move to an online journal for easier access. Staff access training and professional development opportunities. The manager prioritises staff's well-being and ensures that they are happy in their role. However, leaders do not consistently focus on evaluating staff's teaching skills during observations of their practice. This means that staff do not always benefit from constructive feedback on how to improve even further.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• help all staff to understand what children need to learn, specifically when their key person is not there, so their teaching is consistently purposeful while changes are embedded
• support leaders to develop their skills in evaluating and reflecting on staff's practice through peer observations.