Sunflowers Nursery (Holmgate) C.I.C.

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children show positive relationships with staff and listen to their instructions. For example, when the manager rings a bell, children understand it is time to tidy away toys. Children show a willingness to help staff put toys away, helping to give them a sense of responsibility for caring for the environment. Children show kindness to their peers. When children forget to get a spoon to eat cereal, their friends help them, passing them a spoon and saying 'There you go'. Staff help children to learn how to share and take turns when they play with toys.

Children are encouraged to keep trying in their learning. For example, when they try to pass a wooden puzzle to staff to complete for them, staff say, 'You can do it'. This encourages children to persevere. Outside, children show excitement to be physically active. When they access climbing equipment and wooden ramps, staff stand close to them, offering support and ensuring their safety when they climb and balance. Children have opportunities to develop a love of books. When staff read stories to children, they leave off the end of familiar sentences for children to finish, encouraging their speaking skills. Children are asked to lift flaps in books. This helps to maintain their attention and focus.

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

• The manager and staff focus the curriculum on supporting children's communication and language skills. For example, they sing and show children how to do actions to nursery rhymes. Staff use specific assessments to help identify any gaps in children's speaking skills and plan activities to help close these.
• Staff support children with their emotional well-being effectively. For example, when new children start attending, they adapt their practice to help children to feel comfortable in their surroundings. Before children start attending school, staff show them the uniform they will wear and photos of the school environment. They read stories to them about going to school.
• Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities are supported well. Staff work in partnership with parents and other professionals to help identify how best to meet children's individual needs. Staff plan specific targets for children and follow their interests to help promote their learning.
• Parents comment that they appreciate the support they receive from staff to help their children with toileting. Staff offer parents ideas and suggestions about how they can continue their children's learning at home. For example, this includes to use items they find around the house. This helps to provide a united approach to supporting children's development.
• The manager reflects on practice and makes improvements to support children's learning further. She gathers feedback from parents and this is taken account of.
• Recent changes ensure that parents are aware of what their children are offered at snack time. This helps to keep parents informed about their children's day.
• Staff help children to understand the consequences of their behaviour. For example, when children try to move away from sitting at the table when they are eating snack, the manager reminds them to sit down when they eat, or else they may choke. However, sometimes staff are not always consistent in implementing rules and boundaries. One example of this is when children want to throw a soft ball, staff allow them to do this sometimes and not at other times. This can be confusing for children.
• Children have opportunities to learn skills for the future, such as to complete tasks by themselves. For example, staff ask children to serve themselves cereal and fruit at snack time and to pour their own drinks. The manager and staff have introduced a step leading to the nappy changing area. This allows children to independently access the area. It also helps to avoid staff lifting children, to promote their health.
• Children are excited to join planned activities. Staff plan experiences for children to be creative with paint. Children show good hand-to-eye coordination when they use paint brushes in paint to mix colours. However, occasionally during planned activities, staff do not adapt their interactions with children to allow them to follow their own thoughts and ideas.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• help staff to give children clear and consistent messages about all rules and boundaries
• support staff to develop their interactions with children and allow children to follow their own thoughts and ideas during planned activities.