St Nicholas Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children settle extremely well at the nursery and are confident learners. They learn many skills that give them an exceptional start to their education. Leaders have high expectations as to what they want the children to know and do. All staff are nurturing, and have an excellent understanding of what their key children know and need to learn next. This information is used to plan activities that capture the children's interests and help them achieve appropriate next steps in their learning.

Children are extremely confident at expressing their thoughts, using a rich vocabulary. Staff support this by planning activities that excite and engage the children. For example, when combining ingredients to make a volcano, the children enthusiastically spoke about how it was erupting and exploding like lava. This supports children to have excellent communication skills.

Children form strong bonds with staff and treat each other kindly and with respect, due to the high expectations that staff have of their behaviour. Children respond extremely well to these expectations. For example, when making a life-size skeleton, children persevere in placing the bones in the correct places, despite this being challenging. Children feel a great sense of pride when staff express how proud they are of the children's efforts.

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

• Leaders thoroughly consider the curriculum for communication and language. Staff use carefully guided approaches to introduce new vocabulary to the children through stories, rhymes and modelling new language. For example, they talk about 'exploding' and 'erupting' when making volcanoes. This supports children to make exceptional progress in their language development.
• Where children have gaps in their learning of communication and language, staff provide extra language skills support through planned small-group sessions. This enables children to catch up with their peers as quickly as possible.
• Children develop a love of reading through regular opportunities to listen to stories and rhymes. Stories are read in an exciting, engaging and interactive manner, in small group gatherings. For example, children were encouraged to act as different characters, using various voices, while sharing the story Little Red Riding Hood. All children learn new language from the regular sharing of songs and stories.
• Staff support children extremely well to understand their own emotions. Children learn to respect each other and listen to what others have to say. For example, they take part in small-group activities, naming emotions using photos of themselves. Staff encourage the children to talk about the reasons they may feel like this.
• Staff continually teach children important social skills, such as sharing and turn taking. This helps children interact well with their peers and form positive relationships.
• Staff carefully consider the curriculum for physical development, so that children make excellent progress. For example, the children dig, mix and stir in the mud kitchen, strengthening their arm and hand muscles. They participate in baby yoga or teddy tennis, developing their balance and hand-to-eye coordination.
• Provision for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities is exemplary. Staff are skilled at identifying children's specific needs early. They work with the local authority and advisory teachers to implement support strategies. For example, staff support children to learn how to communicate using actions alongside visual aids. Leaders carefully consider staffing to ensure that the right support is provided to help children reach their individual next steps of learning.
• Partnership with parents is exceptionally strong. Parents speak incredibly highly of the setting. They compliment the warm and caring nature of the staff. They are pleased with the regular sharing of information about their child's progress and how the setting provides extensive support to extend the children's learning at home. For example, story books are shared weekly to be taken home. This supports the children's communication and language skills and continues to expand on their vocabulary.
• Leaders place great emphasis on the well-being of staff, and have positive working relationships with them. Leaders work collaboratively with staff and are always available should staff have any concerns. This creates a positive working environment where staff enjoy coming to work and strive to help the children flourish.