Teddy Bear Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children hold out their arms as they are greeted by warm and friendly staff. They part from their parents well because they see familiar smiling faces waiting for them. Children show they are happy. Their key person is dedicated to supporting their personal care needs and knows them very well. This successfully helps them to make lovely bonds and relax into the routines of the day. Children receive genuine affection from all staff, who clearly enjoy their time interacting with them. Staff help them to develop their early communication skills, using facial expressions and introducing simple language. This contributes to children's overall high levels of well-being and contentment at the setting.

When children first start, their key person finds out about their routines and previous experiences. They use this knowledge well to ensure that children settle quickly and make progress in their early development. Babies smile and eagerly reach out as staff offer toys and resources they know they like to play with. Staff applaud babies and shower them with praise as they take their first steps or when older children do something for the first time. This gives all children a sense of achievement and helps them to develop high self-esteem.

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

• Staff are knowledgeable about early childhood development. They follow an appropriate and ambitious curriculum to help children to develop new skills and make good progress. They accurately assess children's progress in the prime areas of learning. This helps them to be prepared for the next stage in their learning.
• Communication and language skills are supported well. Staff use props and objects that help children to learn new words. Children learn new keywords that are linked to current interests and stories, which builds and develops their growing vocabulary.
• Children's physical development is well sequenced. Staff working with the smallest babies plan opportunities for 'tummy time'. This helps them to strengthen their bodies in preparation for crawling. Staff guide babies to take steps and use carefully positioned furniture to help them learn to pull themselves up independently. Older babies participate in more challenging physical play to test their skills further. They learn how to safely climb up the ladders and delight as they then 'whoosh' down the slide. Children progress well in their physical development.
• Children are provided with balanced, healthy and nourishing meals. Staff are knowledgeable about weaning. They ensure the food provided is safe for children's own stage of weaning. Children enjoy the varied food offered and begin to learn how to feed themselves with a spoon.
• Older babies learn from hands-on and rich real-life opportunities. They often go on nursery outings, to the library, local pets home and supermarket. This helps them to develop an awareness of the community in which they live. Books and images about different cultures and lives are displayed in the nursery for children to look at. This helps them to learn about people and lives different to their own.
• Older babies know when it is time to have a sleep as routines are consistent and embedded. They look for their name on their bed. Children that need personal comforters are given them to help them settle. However, the organisation of sleep time is not always effective at helping older babies to settle quickly. Children who are awake and do not need to sleep are curious to play. This distracts and prevents others from falling asleep swiftly.
• The manager provides staff with positive feedback about their direct work with children. This positive leadership contributes to staff being happy and feeling valued. Staff have one-to-one meetings with leaders to talk about any concerns they have about their key children's progress. They are supported well to make plans to further help children. However, opportunities for staff to receive individual coaching and critical feedback to improve their teaching even further are not consistently provided.
• There are frequent opportunities for parents to participate in support sessions held at the nursery. They appreciate the ongoing advice and support offered, which helps them to continue to support their child's learning at home.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• review the organisation of sleep routines in the older babies' room to help children to settle to sleep quicker
• increase the frequency of coaching and targeted support offered to staff to help them raise the standard of teaching even higher.