The Alphabet House Nursery School Baby Unit

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children enjoy their time at the setting. Staff greet them with warmth and care, helping them to detach from their parents with ease. An effective key-person system helps babies and young children to form strong bonds with familiar staff. Staff work closely with parents to help them provide children with comfort and continuity from home.

Staff provide a broad and balanced curriculum that enables children to make good progress in their learning and development. They know children's interests and use these to engage them in meaningful learning. Children often persevere during activities and show good levels of engagement. For example, children use sponges and foam to clean toy cars in a car wash activity in the water tray.

The curriculum has a key focus on encouraging babies' personal, social and emotional development, promoting their early language and communication skills and supporting their physical development. Staff skilfully weave these priorities into the daily routines. For instance, staff help babies to engage with play dough by encouraging them to roll and pat it with their hands. This sensory experience helps to build their fine motor skills. Staff ensure that all children regularly sing songs and rhymes, which builds their language and communication.

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

• Children form secure and trusting relationships with staff. They respect babies' individual routines and discuss these with parents. Babies demonstrate they are very happy, confident and secure in their homely and cosy environment. They enjoy cuddles and reassurance from staff and are well supported throughout the day.
• Babies improve their physical skills and confidence. They develop their walking skills as they steady themselves and cruise around between play resources. Staff praise and encourage babies during their play.
• Although there is no designated outdoor play area, all children have daily opportunities to go on outings to explore the outdoors. Staff make the best use of outings in the local park to support children's learning. For example, children observe the birds and ducks by the river while singing familiar songs with staff.
• Children develop their independence well. Young toddlers know where to find their shoes when going outdoors to play, and staff encourage them to put on their shoes and coats themselves. Babies begin to use cutlery and serve their food from a young age.
• Staff continually teach children new vocabulary. They model new words, repeat key sounds and phrases, comment on what babies are doing and sing nursery rhymes. However, occasionally, the pace at which staff ask questions and give children information during their play and activities is too fast for some children. This does not support children to consider, respond and use this new vocabulary to fully enhance their early communication and language skills.
• Staff have good opportunities to develop their own skills and abilities. The leadership team places a good focus on staff training and ensures that all staff keep their knowledge up to date. Leaders are good role models for staff and provide effective coaching and mentoring.
• Staff enthusiastically talk about their role at nursery. They say that they feel fully supported through supervision sessions and that their well-being is considered. Staff comment that their own professional development is positively encouraged and that they enjoy working at the setting.
• Parents comment positively about staff and say communication is good. Staff liaise well with parents to help their children settle in the nursery happily. Parents speak highly about the introduction of the parent app, which encourages them to engage and promotes a good way to find out information about their child's day at nursery.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• give children more time to think about and consolidate the information staff give them during activities, to enable them to process information and practise their emerging communication and language skills.