The Barn at Riverbank

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The welcoming and friendly atmosphere, which greets children as they arrive at the nursery, helps children to separate easily from parents. Older children hurry to remove their coats and hang up their bags. Babies readily hold out their arms towards their key person. This shows that children feel exceptionally safe and secure in the nursery.

Children have a positive attitude to their learning. For example, older children learn to squeeze oranges and lemons. They position the fruit on the juicer, press and twist their wrists. As children watch the juice appear, their faces light up with pride in their achievements. They delight in the very genuine praise they receive from staff and other children.

Children enjoy the opportunities that the exceptionally well-resourced outdoor environment offers. Children of all ages independently explore their environment with interest and confidence. Older children use their imagination to show their understanding of keeping themselves safe. As children ride bicycles, they pretend to reach traffic lights. They talk about waiting until the light turns green before moving away. Younger children practise their balancing skills as they move themselves across different slopes and levels. They work out to hold on with their arms before lifting their legs onto a higher step.

Staff are exceptionally caring and nurturing. For example, when babies show they are tired, staff cuddle them in closely. They use comforting tones of voice as they soothe children to sleep.

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

• Staff support children's learning very well. They use observations of children at play to make ongoing assessments of children's development. Consequently, they understand children's interests and development needs. For example, staff put furniture in place to enable babies, who are learning to stand, to be able to pull themselves upright.
• Support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities is a key feature of the nursery. The management team and staff work in close partnership with parents and a wide range of other professionals. This ensures that children and their families get the relevant support for their individual needs.
• Staff place a high emphasis on developing children's communication and language skills. They know to speak slowly to children and to give children time to think and answer questions. Staff talk to children about what they are doing and introduce new words into children's play. For example, children concentrate intently as staff encourage them to smell 'cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg'. Children excitedly talk about these as being 'the smells of Christmas'.
• Parents speak very highly of the nursery. They praise the management team and staff for going 'above and beyond' in the support given to parents. Parents feel fully included in their children's learning. They appreciate the home-from-home environment the nursery offers and the progress children are making in their development.
• Staff promote children's love of books exceptionally well. They use different tones of voice and encourage children to ask questions about the stories they are reading. Children visit the nearby library where they take part in songs, rhymes and stories. This enables children to build relationships with adults and children outside of their immediate family and friends.
• The management team and staff ensure that additional funding, such as early years pupil premium, is used effectively to promote the well-being and learning of children. For example, staff follow children's interests and purchase role-play items. This helps children to feel settled and confident in the nursery.
• Staff are proud to work in this nursery. Managers and staff work together as a tight-knit team. Their high aspirations for children to achieve to the best of their abilities is at the centre of everything they do. This is reflected in the enthusiasm for learning that is shown by children of all ages.
• Overall, children behave very well. Older children happily share resources as they invite other children into their play. Staff skilfully support younger children to learn to share. However, some parts of the daily routines are not organised as well as possible, to fully support children's learning. For example, children can become bored and distracted when waiting for snack and lunch.
• Older children know to wash their hands before eating. Staff teach younger children to dry their hands properly after washing with soap and water. However, some hygiene practices, such as ensuring children only touch food they are going to eat, are not always consistent across the nursery.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• review some parts of the daily routines to maximise learning for all children
• enhance staff's practice to ensure children develop a greater understanding of keeping themselves healthy.