St Lawrence's Private Day Nursery Pre-School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Leaders and staff ensure that all children feel safe. For instance, they introduce them to visitors and encourage them to talk about themselves to promote a positive sense of security. Children are extremely sociable, and they enjoy sharing their experiences with others. For instance, while exploring real fruit, children encourage their peers to smell the lemon to extend learning through their senses. At mealtimes, they greet their peers by saying 'hello' and they wave. Furthermore, when riding a two-person bicycle, they show their appreciation by thanking each other for the ride. This demonstrates their positive behaviours.

Children enjoy being outdoors where they exercise their physical skills through running, jumping and balancing on wooden planks. They develop self-confidence and independence as they freely chalk on the floor and use a trowel to fill plant pots with soil. Staff act as positive role models to children. For example, they sit alongside them and model play. They introduce new vocabulary, such as 'pipette', to enhance children's speech and understanding. Staff encourage children to explore the resources to learn how they work. As a result, children enjoy practising how to use a measuring tape, and they confidently measure the size of their vegetables. Leaders and parents speak highly of staff, and they celebrate them as strong role models to children.

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

• Excellent communication with parents and carers is key to this setting's success. Leaders and staff value parents as key educators. Therefore, they provide them with a wealth of information, training and resources to enable them to continue their children's learning at home. Staff display children's home learning on a 'wow wall', including crucial milestones for children, such as an ultrasound scan of a sibling to provoke further conversations between staff and children.
• Looked after children and children with special educational needs and/or disabilities are very well supported. The designated special educational needs coordinator is extremely passionate about her role. She ensures that the appropriate resources and services are available to support all children's developmental and behavioural needs, including those who are in receipt of additional funding.
• Staff nurture children's independence through everyday routines, such as encouraging them to set up and clear away their own activities and independently accessing water from the drinking station. When children need assistance with self-help skills, staff kindly offer to help them. For instance, they show children how to do up their own shoes and then give them time to practise for themselves. This helps children to develop confidence in their own abilities.
• Staff strongly focus on helping children to regulate their emotions. For example, when emotions are beginning to escalate, staff quickly give children age-appropriate responsibilities to distract them. This helps to defuse the situation and promotes children's happiness. Staff remind children to 'be gentle' when interacting with others to reinforce the setting's 'golden rules', and they praise their positive behaviours.
• Through role play, staff create various opportunities for children to explore all areas of learning, including literacy and mathematics. For example, as staff fill up their shopping basket, they teach children about measure and quantity. They introduce language such as 'full' and 'empty', and they reference familiar stories to enhance children's play.
• Leaders establish strong links between the setting and its sister setting. This helps to promote a smooth transition for all new children. For example, staff meet with current key persons to gain valuable information about children to ensure they can address their individual learning and developmental needs. As a result, children settle well and continue to make good progress from their starting points.
• Staff plan the curriculum to build on what children know and can do. For instance, children regularly come together to take part in group times and activities to increase their listening and attention skills. However, there is scope for staff to further reflect on children's individual experiences to promote their involvement and engagement to an even higher level.
• Leaders create a positive culture where staff can contribute to their own continuous professional development as well as the setting's improvement plans. Staff regularly benefit from observations and supervisions, and training is prioritised as a result. Leaders know to evaluate any training that staff attend and to identify the impact it has on the quality of the provision.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support staff to further reflect on children's individual experiences during group times and activities to promote their involvement and engagement to an even higher level.