Tenderlinks Day Nursery - Elstead

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children's learning is enhanced through the skilful interaction of staff. The curriculum is ambitious for all children, both indoors and outdoors. Children who are behind in their development when they start at the nursery quickly catch up.

Children are happy, active learners who thoroughly enjoy being at the nursery. Staff have clear expectations for children's behaviour. They support them well to understand and manage their feelings and emotions and develop confidence, friendships and social skills.

Staff provide a wide range of activities that develop children's understanding of the world. For example, during outings to a nature reserve, children learn about animals such as horses, use logs and sticks to build dens, and paddle in puddles of rainwater. Children also learn about differences and growing up through time, for example, as they look at photographs of members of staff when they were babies. Children learn about different cultures and religions, for example, Eid and Easter.

Staff support children to develop good physical skills. Children fill containers with sand and water and enjoy learning to balance with their arms stretched out. They play imaginatively, for instance, as they sit inside old car tyres and use crates and boxes to make beds for staff and their friends.

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

• The recently employed manager has been instrumental in improving the quality of the nursery, including children's safety and the quality of the curriculum. Together with staff, she has adapted activity planning and replaced most play equipment with a wide range of interesting natural resources. Staff now have a very good understanding of the intentions for children's learning, which they use successfully to support children's curiosity and motivation to learn.
• All children, including children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who speak English as an additional language make good progress. The special educational needs coordinator works well with parents, staff and other agencies to meet children's individual needs. Referrals are now made as swiftly as possible, so children receive any intervention they need from other agencies.
• Staff skilfully use the choices that children make during their play to extend their learning. For example, when children decide to make 'perfume' they teach them to use scissors to cut fresh flowers, which they combine with water in small glass bottles. However, during a small group cooking activity, the children had to wait for a small period of time to have a turn and began to get restless.
• Staff provide children with a language-rich learning environment. They use all activities and events to build their vocabulary, for example, when children are interested in watching the grass being cut at a recreation ground. Staff read to children throughout the day, sometimes using puppets that gain younger children's attention. They plan activities that inspire children to re-tell parts of stories they remember, for example, after reading a book about a Gingerbread man.
• Children develop the skills they need for the future, including independence. They confidently choose and use resources and learn to do things for themselves. For instance, they use safe knives to cut fruit to eat at snack and lay the table and serve themselves at lunchtime. Staff supervise children well at all times, including mealtimes, to keep them safe.
• Children behave extremely well. Staff teach children to share and take turns. For example, they patiently explain what is expected and introduce initiatives that help children play together cooperatively.
• The manager fully supports staff professional development. She consistently includes staff in decision making, encourages them to share ideas, try things and then review any changes as a group. The staff team are currently taking part in an accreditation scheme that is helping them to improve the quality of children's care and learning further.
• Partnership with parents is good. The manager shares information with parents about changes to the curriculum and the approach the nursery uses to support children's learning. Parents are now provided with detailed information, also translated into children's home languages, that helps them to support children's learning at home further.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• review and improve further the organisation of some small group activities so all children can participate at the same time with their own resources.