Sunnyside Community Pre-School CIO

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Staff are good role models for children. They are kind and nurturing. There is an effective key-person system in place. Staff spend quality time with children to get to know them well, establish secure relationships and support them to feel safe and secure. Staff carefully and successfully meet children's individual needs.

Staff communicate clear expectations, and children's behaviour is good. They play cooperatively with each other and respond well to the routines and boundaries in place. Children thrive on the praise they receive from staff for their efforts and achievements. This helps to build their self-esteem and confidence.

Children benefit from plenty of opportunities that staff provide for them to learn about the world around them. Staff teach children about nature and the effects of the weather. For instance, they watch streamers dancing in the wind. Children nurture and grow vegetables in the garden and have previously enjoyed harvesting and tasting what they have grown.

Staff provide lots of opportunities for children to develop their physical skills. They support children to climb, run and accurately kick and throw balls. Children gain good balance and coordination skills and learn to carefully identify and manage risks when doing so.

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

• Partnerships with parents are strong. Parents and carers are extremely happy with the care their children receive at this setting. They highlight the kindness, care and attentiveness their children receive from staff, and state that they feel their children's needs are met well. Parents praise the continuous communication they receive about their children's learning and the support staff give to help children progress at home.
• The staff focus on supporting children with their communication and language skills. They are very attentive and interact with children during their play and exploration. Staff introduce new vocabulary through narration and storytelling. However, on occasion, some staff speak too quickly in their enthusiasm and ask questions without giving children the time required to think and respond effectively.
• Staff support children's independence well. For instance, children enjoy making choices about their play, based on their interests, and clear away after themselves at snack time. They have learned a technique to put on their own coats, ready to go out in the garden, and try hard to put on their own shoes and boots. Children's health and hygiene are also supported effectively. Children demonstrate that they understand good hand hygiene routines and follow these independently at appropriate times during the day.
• Staff plan appropriate activities to support learning, based on children's interests. They monitor children's progress and identify any gaps in learning. Generally, staff implement children's next steps in learning into their chosen play. However, staff do not always make the most of their interactions to fully extend older children's learning even further.
• Children are developing a love of reading and enjoy a wide range of books available in the setting. Children select books independently and listen as staff enthusiastically read stories. They join in with familiar words and phrases and make predictions about what might happen next in the story. In addition, children and parents borrow books to read together at home.
• Staff support children effectively to develop an understanding of mathematical concepts. Staff demonstrate a good knowledge of how to bring the teaching of mathematics into everyday routines. For example, staff encourage children to count and consider size and positioning during their play and exploration.
• The new manager has an ambitious vision for the nursery. She evaluates the quality of the provision effectively and identifies strengths and weaknesses in practice. Staff say they are happy and feel that they are well supported in their roles.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• enhance staff interactions to consistently provide children with the time required to develop their thinking skills effectively
• continue to improve teaching further to enrich older children's learning experiences and help increase their knowledge in relation to their interests.