Sunshine Kids

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children thoroughly enjoy their time in this exceptionally welcoming setting. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, most parents leave children at the setting door. However, children come in readily and are settled and secure. Children calmly and respectfully access the wonderful choice of resources that are available at every turn, each with a clear purpose for learning. They use the resources well and become fully engrossed in developing new ideas. Children's behaviour is exemplary. They understand the rules of the setting and recognise the impact their behaviour has on others. Children have ample opportunity to take on extra responsibilities and contribute to decision-making, such as deciding which story to listen to. Children across the nursery are listened to by attentive staff and are given ownership over their learning.

Staff use every moment as an opportunity for learning. They encourage children to count and recognise amounts and quantities. Staff question children about the size, position and order of objects. Children demonstrate extremely high levels of engagement and concentration. They work collaboratively as they construct a train track that winds its way around a large table. Children make group decisions about where the curved, short and long pieces of track are best placed. They are extremely patient and kind to each other.

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

• Staff are highly proactive in providing children with new experiences. Children explore enticing real-life objects in play and are routinely introduced to new concepts, which ignite curiosity. Children concentrate and keep trying hard when digging with tools in the ice to find the toy insects. Staff ask open-ended questions, challenge thinking and model language. Children hear new words, such as 'technique' and 'scrape'. Children tell their friends with great enthusiasm and detail, which insect they will find.
• Staff support the needs of all children exceptionally well. This includes those in receipt of additional funding and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Staff work closely with parents and external agencies to ensure children receive prompt support. As a result, all children make excellent progress in their learning and development.
• Children gain an excellent understanding of the importance of healthy lifestyles. For instance, they discuss the impact of exercise on their bodies. They feel their heartbeats after exercise outdoors. Children participate in yoga and practise deep breathing exercises to promote their emotional well-being. They learn to understand and express their feelings in positive ways. For example, they choose to explain their feelings to staff, rather than becoming frustrated.
• The curriculum is coherently arranged to sequence children's knowledge and skills for their future learning. An outdoor activity extends on children's earlier sensory experiences, exploring natural resources. Children make potions using coloured water, herbs and flower petals. They concentrate hard as they use pipettes to transfer the coloured water into bowls. Staff ask open questions to promote conversation, and encourage children to count the petals being added, 'one more' and 'one less'. Children use mathematical language for capacity, such as 'full' and 'empty', as they pour their potions into containers.
• Literacy development is a strength at the nursery. Children have access to a wealth of books. They learn about the difference between fiction and non-fiction. Staff are animated as they read with superb expression to children and take time to talk to them about the books they read. For example, children are able to describe their favourite books. They competently name the author and describe that the 'spine' keeps the page together.
• The exceptional manager provides a culture of mutual support and is dedicated to ensuring that staff are fully supported. Staff are well qualified and are committed to ensuring that all children have the best start in life. Staff are provided with a comprehensive range of training and development opportunities, combined with regular meetings, mentoring and management support. This means that they continually update their knowledge and skills.
• Parents say the setting 'exceeds their expectations'. They describe staff as 'genuinely warm and caring' and say they provide 'bespoke care' for children. Parents praise the excellent learning programmes. They say staff speak daily to them about their children. Staff provide a wealth of information to support children's learning at home, such as through online software.