Teapots Day Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children arrive at the nursery full of enthusiasm and ready to start their day. Toddlers and pre-school children greet staff by name and settle into their chosen play immediately. Babies and younger children happily hold out their arms to familiar staff as they arrive. Children show that they feel safe as they move easily and confidently around the spaces available to them and play with a range of equipment.

Pre-school children are eager to learn and show good mathematical skills as they recognise numbers from zero to at least 10. They enjoy discovering how scales work by adding and removing items. Staff support them to challenge their skills and praise them highly for their achievements. Babies and young children thoroughly enjoy exploring the experiences provided. They show curiosity as they immerse themselves in a variety of sensory and messy play with items such as cereal, dough and paint. Children use their imaginations well. For example, pre-school children use a large cardboard box as their 'stage' and enjoy singing and dancing to their 'audience'. Toddlers use their imagination as they move cars and other vehicles in flour, pretending this is mud and sand. Babies play with role-play cups and pots and share these with staff, as they pretend to drink and eat.

Children behave well and are supported to understand how to do so from an early age. When younger children push each other, they are reminded about 'kind hands' and to play together. Pre-school children are encouraged to 'take a breath' and then explain to staff what it is that has made them sad. They are praised highly for listening to staff and following instructions. As a result, children have high levels of confidence and self-esteem.

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

• Children enjoy developing their physical skills in the outdoor area and large soft-play area. Pre-school children have fun as they jump 'up to the sky', do star jumps and run fast and slow. They enjoy using wheeled toys and hiding in the 'hobbit house'. However, even though staff know that some children prefer learning outdoors, there are limited opportunities for them to do so.
• Staff have high expectations for children's learning. They plan a worthwhile curriculum that follows children's interests and helps them to make good progress. Staff know the children well. They successfully draw on ad-hoc opportunities to extend children's learning, which helps children to become deeply engaged in their play. For example, as children draw around their hands, staff suggest that they draw their nails as well and then provide paint with mini brushes to challenge their physical skills.
• Partnerships with parents are good. Staff share a wealth of information with parents verbally, through meetings and by email. They obtain information about children's learning and experiences when they start at the nursery and use this to inform learning and play opportunities. Parents speak with fondness about all staff and express how well their children are learning. Staff exchange information with parents about children's development and progress, to support continuous learning at home.
• Overall, staff recognise the importance of supporting children's communication and language development. They engage in conversations with children as they play. Most staff introduce, model, and repeat the correct use of words. They ask children questions and listen to what they have to say. However, at times, staff are not quick to notice when some younger children would benefit from more adult interaction, to build on their growing speaking skills further.
• Staff work hard to ensure that children with special educational needs and/or disabilities have their needs met. The special educational needs coordinator has a good working knowledge of the children. Staff support families and work with other professionals to implement strategies, to help children to make the best progress they can.
• Children form close bonds with the caring staff, who know the children and families well. Staff place a strong emphasis on developing children's personal, social and emotional skills. They ensure that children are offered praise and lots of encouragement to persevere and achieve their chosen goals.
• The management team works hard to ensure that children and staff are well supported in the nursery. The team recognises that the COVID-19 pandemic has left some children and staff feeling anxious about attending the nursery. Therefore, regular well-being sessions are offered for children and staff to help alleviate this anxiety. Staff speak highly of the management team and the positive support they receive. Regular meetings and appraisals are offered to staff to enable them to talk about issues and gaps in their skills. However, this process is not sharply focused enough on how staff can improve quality of teaching further.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• provide greater outdoor learning opportunities for children who prefer this way of learning
• help staff to recognise when children would benefit from more adult interactions to extend and encourage their early speaking skills further
• strengthen procedures for staff's professional development opportunities, to raise the standard of teaching even higher.