Smile Day Nursery & Out of School Club

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Friendly and enthusiastic staff welcome children and parents as they arrive. Staff get to know children and their families well and use this knowledge to engage children in conversations. Children quickly form strong bonds with the attentive staff, who welcome children when they come to them for stories or reassuring cuddles. Children show that they feel safe and happy. Staff play alongside children, acting as positive role models. They teach children how to share. For example, staff invite the youngest children to swap resources with each other. As children develop, they learn to ask their peers for a turn. Staff actively promote kindness and gentle hands. The atmosphere is calm, and children demonstrate good behaviour and manners.

The nursery has purposefully organised the environment to encourage children to explore. The provider carefully chooses resources to match the age groups of the children in each room. Staff help children to develop their imaginations, such as challenging them to think how they could use a chosen resource. In addition, staff add in topic-related resources to capture children's curiosity. Children show they are keen to engage in learning through play with staff and their peers. They eagerly join in activities and games. Staff are mindful of inclusion as they support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) to join in activities.

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

• The nursery prioritises teaching children about emotions. Staff read stories that explore how characters feel. Children practise matching their photo to colourful characters representing a variety of emotions. Children begin to say why they feel happy or sad from a young age.
• Staff read stories and sing songs with enthusiasm. They pause on repetitive phrases to allow children to fill in missing words. This helps to develop children's vocabularies. Furthermore, children share their developing love of books and rhymes at home. Parents report that children ask for favourite songs or talk about the stories they hear.
• Staff set up activities to help children to develop their core muscles. For example, they encourage children to crouch down as they roll small pumpkins to knock decorated cups over. Children develop stability and balance as they happily repeat this to take lots of turns. In addition, staff intentionally pick out key movements to practise each month. This helps children to gain strength and coordination as they progress towards early writing.
• The provider thoughtfully organises the staff team in each room. They work alongside staff to provide coaching. For example, the provider helps staff to focus on what children need to learn and be able to do next. However, provision for staff to access individually focused training is not consistent. This does not help staff to build on their knowledge of how children learn across the curriculum.
• The nursery works with parents to teach children about different cultures. Staff invite parents in to share their special celebrations with children. Children learn about what their peers eat at home as they sample food from a variety of cuisines. This helps children to develop their understanding of families and cultures outside their own experience.
• Staff promote children's independence. They teach them how to manage their own clothing. For example, pre-school children successfully change from their outdoor suits and wellington boots into slippers. As children move through the age groups, staff also encourage them to pour their own drinks and master the use of cutlery. Children show that they are confident in their own abilities.
• The nursery has a sharp focus on teaching children how to communicate. Staff deliberately model back-and-forth interaction at the children's level. Babies and toddlers begin to copy this modelling. They look at staff and peers as they begin to verbalise. Older children learn to hold meaningful conversations.
• Support for children from disadvantaged backgrounds and those with SEND is strong. The nursery works with other agencies to target gaps in children's development. The provider also gathers evidence to help children to access further support. This helps prepare children for their next stage of learning.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• target the arrangements for continuous professional development to help staff to build on their knowledge of child development across the curriculum.