Squirrel Lodge Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Staff provide a stimulating environment for children to learn in. They deliver a curriculum centred on exploration and discovery through play. Staff focus heavily on encouraging children to be independent and confident, while placing a high importance on children's well-being. Staff develop a strong key-person system, which supports children to safely feel able to express their wants and needs. Children enjoy playful interactions where they show they feel comfortable and safe.

Staff use children's likes and interests to plan engaging and exciting activities. For example, children eagerly run to the water tray and outdoor potion-making station ready to explore textures and colours. Staff take the time to develop strong and trusting relationships with children, providing reassurance, comfort and cuddles when needed. Staff are good role models. Children treat their peers with respect and care, including them in play and offering them resources.

Staff expertly use forest school activities to support children to explore risk in a safe way and to be inquisitive learners. For example, children remind each other of the importance of staying in the designated area and to wear safety goggles. Children exclaim in awe as they use torches to discover wildlife and insects. They are developing a love of learning to take them forward to school.

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

• Leaders and staff use regular, robust assessments and observations to ensure they provide a stimulating environment where children make progress in all areas. Each area of the curriculum is carefully woven into activities the children enjoy and choose themselves. For example, staff introduce 'estimating' when children make potions, and patterns when they use building materials.
• Staff provide a language-rich environment. They encourage children to engage in conversations and they introduce new language alongside their play. Older children learn about 'liquids' and 'solids', while younger children learn words such as 'fierce' and 'volcano'. However, some staff are less confident in teaching children who have communication and language difficulties. This means the support for communication and language for some children is not consistent.
• Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities are well supported. Staff are quick to identify emerging needs in children. They are good at working alongside parents and professionals to seek and implement strategies to close the gaps in children's learning. Staff are sensitive to children's needs. They carefully consider how to use funding to ensure that children make good progress from their starting points and to support their emotional regulation.
• Staff use questioning to give children the freedom to make choices in their play. They are good at allowing children to take the learning in the direction they choose and follow their interests. This supports children's confidence and independence well. However, at times, this means that the activities provided by staff lack a thoroughly considered learning intention. Although the children enjoy them, engage well and get a wealth of vocabulary, they are not consistently being challenged and extended.
• Staff give children ample time to explore resources. They allow them time to finish what they are doing and give them warnings of when transitions will happen. This supports children to really have the time to concentrate and focus on an activity. Children spend long periods experimenting how to pour and scoop bubbles into bottles to create volcanoes. Younger children persevere when using magnets to make shapes.
• Staff show genuine affection and warmth towards the children. They speak passionately about them and the support they give them. Children frequently seek out staff's support. They giggle as they play with the doll's house together. Younger children smile and take staff's arms to do 'Row, Row, Row Your Boat'. Staff sing to children as they cuddle them and rock them gently. Children are learning the fundamental skills of building positive relationships and talk about their best friends, giving them hugs.
• Leaders and staff are highly reflective practitioners. They work well together and consistently evaluate the strengths in their staff and the physical setting. They are keen to adapt practice to provide the best care and education for the children.
• Staff value each parent's views and opinions. They regularly seek parents' feedback and use this to adapt practice and the environment. Their inclusive approach results in strong relationships with parents. Staff provide parents with advice about how they can support their children's learning at home. Parents report high levels of satisfaction about the care and learning their children receive.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• develop staff's confidence in their teaching strategies to consistently support children with communication and language needs
• strengthen planning to identify more precisely what children need to learn next so they are consistently challenged in their learning.