Sunny Kids - St Mary's

Inclusion: Strong standard

Leaders embed an effective settling-in process, which helps staff to form strong bonds with children and their families as soon as they start at the setting. Leaders and staff have a clear understanding of children's emerging needs, taking swift action to reduce barriers to their learning and development. For example, leaders have regular meetings with parents to share what children are learning during their time at the setting so that parents can continue to build on this at home.

Parents speak fondly of the setting and the support that leaders and staff provide. They value the regular communication, photo updates and opportunities to discuss their children's next steps. This allows parents to play an active role in their child's education. Leaders and staff place emphasis on building long-lasting relationships so that all families feel a sense of belonging in the setting community.

Leaders work cohesively with other professionals, ensuring that children who may need additional support receive intervention at the right time. For instance, staff work closely with the local authority special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) team to discuss children's needs. Individual plans are developed and consistently reviewed based on children's developmental needs. This helps to ensure that children with SEND make continuous progress from their starting points. Staff use strategies such as simplified language and visual pictures, and make adaptations to the environment to ensure children's development and wellbeing needs are met.

Curriculum and teaching: Expected standard

Leaders and staff provide a curriculum that is broad and balanced. Overall, leaders and staff use observations effectively to find out what children know and can do. Staff subsequently plan activities which cultivate children's curiosity, confidence and independence.

While teaching generally supports children's development positively, at times, children lose focus during adult-led activities, due to distractions around them. For example, carpet sessions have been tailored to children's varying needs, and staff begin to deliver different carpet sessions concurrently, but these finish at different times. As a result, children who are still sitting and listening to staff become distracted by the noise of their friends returning to play, losing focus on the teaching that staff are aiming to deliver. Staff do not always recognise this impact in the moment, meaning that the quality of teaching at these times is not consistently of a high standard.

Leaders place emphasis on children getting enrichment opportunities outside of the setting to build a wider understanding of the world around them. Leaders are mindful of the experiences that children typically come to the setting with and try to build on these. For example, children enjoy regular visits to the local care home, the farm and the aquarium.

Staff support children's early literacy skills securely. For instance, they read books to children based on the topics they are learning about. They encourage children to look at the pictures and identify key features of animals. Children engage well with books and continue to read these independently. Staff sing a range of lively songs, which children lovingly join in with.

Achievement: Expected standard

Children achieve well in their learning and development based on their starting points, including children who face barriers in their lives. Children learn skills which are useful for their future development. For example, staff encourage children to independently manage their own care routine, self-select their play resources and explore their knowledge through discussion.

Overall, children gain effective communication skills. Children articulate and proudly discuss their home lives, talk about their preferences and share their feelings, which are acted upon by staff. Children happily join in with songs, stories and nursery-rhymes sessions led by staff. Children have secure understanding of early mathematics and show a keen interest in numbers. This is gained through explicit teaching from staff. Children confidently count with staff to find out how many children are in the garden, identify numerals and look at the concepts of more and less, using popular books, such as 'The Hungry Caterpillar'.

Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines: Expected standard

Leaders provide a welcoming environment where children generally develop a positive attitude to learning. They show secure concentration as they practise writing numbers, continually looking between the magnetic numbers and their board to confirm they are doing it correctly while smiling.

Staff are caring and calm in their approach to managing children's behaviour. They adapt their strategies to meet the needs of individual children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, and other vulnerable children. For example, some children are given targeted support to aid their social interaction with others. Children learn to play cooperatively together with support from staff. For instance, staff discuss children's emotions when they struggle to share much loved toys. Staff explore emotions with children before providing them with solutions, such as using sand timers. This supports them in beginning to understand their own feelings and the feelings of others.

Leaders and staff understand their role in promoting good attendance, to make sure that their impact on children's development and wellbeing is effective. Leaders promote children's regular attendance through conversations with parents, and have put effective procedures in place to monitor attendance. Leaders are aware of barriers which may affect children's attendance and swiftly work with families to address them.

Children's welfare and wellbeing: Strong standard

All children receive a high level of care which supports their emotional wellbeing. Leaders and staff value the importance of all children feeling included. In turn, children feel safe and secure during their time at the setting. Parents speak positively of the wellbeing culture at the nursery and the support staff provide.

Children confidently seek comfort and reassurance from all adults as they express a range of emotions. For example, children seek out staff to proudly show them what they have made for their parents, while other children approach staff when they need support. In all situations, staff respond with empathy which supports children's emotional security.

Leaders and staff also place emphasis on children's physical health. Healthy lifestyles are promoted effectively through meaningful experiences and strong engagement with families. Children develop a clear understanding of healthy eating through activities and the snacks provided by the setting. Staff work with parents to ensure that children are provided with healthy meals and provide ideas so that all children benefit from a balanced diet. Staff sit and eat with children at mealtimes, ensuring that children eat safely. Leaders are also mindful of the amount of physical activity children receive each day. They highly regard outdoor learning and ensure that children are able to explore the outdoor environment throughout the day.

Leadership and governance: Strong standard

Leaders are passionate and work tirelessly to ensure that all children thrive. They consistently reflect on strengths of their provision and consider what areas of practice need to be developed. For example, leaders reflect on their vision for their curriculum. They use regular staff meetings to deliver training so that all staff are aware of what they are working towards. This work is ongoing, and leaders are supporting staff to embed this consistently throughout the setting.

Leaders and those responsible for governance are mindful of staff wellbeing. Leaders ensure that staff workload remains manageable through regular discussions, meetings and daily catch-ups. All staff report how happy they are in their roles and how well supported they are by leaders. The setting operates with an open culture where staff feel that they can share any queries or concerns as soon as they arise.

Leaders are deeply committed to providing high-quality care and learning for all children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Leaders and staff get to know families well so that they can support children's needs consistently. They work cohesively with outside agencies to make sure that any additional support children may need is actioned rapidly. As a result, parents share that they feel well informed about their child's progress, and they feel confident in approaching staff for advice on their children's next steps. For example, they work with the local authority to provide children with targeted support and parents with advice. Parents comment, 'I just don't know what I would do without them'.