The Cottage Private Day Nursery (Mansfield Road)

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy and settled. The inspiring and ambitious curriculum is well embedded by staff and effectively supports children's learning. Staff are responsive and skilfully adapt children's activities to ensure each child's individual learning needs are met. As a result, even the youngest children are highly motivated and eager to participate in the well-considered activities which staff provide. For example, young children thoroughly enjoy interactive singing sessions where they join in actions and learn British Sign Language. Staff bring the songs to life. Children relish in these sensory experiences as staff spray water bottles and blow bubbles while singing a song about a turtle. Older children confidently recall that tape measures are used to identify sizes and are eager to use them to read the numbers.

From a young age, children learn the importance of using good manners and understand the expectations staff have for their behaviour. Staff model politeness and offer gentle reminders when needed. Children develop excellent relationships with their peers and play harmoniously. They invite their friends to join in their activities. Staff plan activities that successfully capture children's imagination. Children immerse themselves in imaginative play. They strengthen the small muscles in their hands as they manipulate play dough and pretend to make 'pizza bases'. Staff encourage children to use a pestle and mortar to grind and crush different herbs and spices, which they use as pizza toppings. Children pretend to take orders, answer telephone calls and deliver pizza to their friends in cardboard boxes. Children show enthusiasm, curiosity and engagement in all they do.

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

• The management team and staff offer ongoing support for parents. They share information on matters such as oral health, promoting a love of books and toilet training. Staff provide parents with activities and ideas on how they can further support children's learning at home. For example, staff provide story sacks, sensory activities and ingredients to make play dough at home. Parents say that they understand the goals that their children are working towards and appreciate the home learning ideas they receive.
• Key persons know their key children well. They observe children as they play and complete precise assessments of children's learning. They continually use this information to plan targeted next steps, which help to move children's learning forward. Managers have an in-depth oversight of the progress of different cohorts of children. When additional support is needed, staff quickly implement targeted interventions. This includes liaising with a range of outside agencies to access specialist support. All children, including children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, make remarkable progress.
• All staff are highly focused on supporting children's communication and language skills. As young children play, staff model a wide range of rich vocabulary and weave language into all aspects of learning. They ensure children not only grasp the pronunciation of new words but also understand their meaning. Staff encourage older children to recall previous learning of specific vocabulary. They ask purposeful questions and give children time to think and respond. For instance, as children engage in water play, staff help them to recall that as the water overflows, it resembles a volcano erupting.
• Staff encourage children's independence skills and support new learning. For example, as children explore play dough, staff provide them with a pasta machine. They teach children what it is used for and how to operate it. Staff provide other authentic resources, such as tableware and crockery, in the home corner. They sit with children and teach them how to handle these resources safely. Staff support older children to use knives safely as they practise chopping fresh vegetables in the role-play area.
• The management team regularly observe staff practice to help them identify training needs. They plan and deliver high-quality training and provide exceptional ongoing support for staff. Staff have made excellent use of the knowledge they gained through recent training as they expertly weave descriptive language into conversations with children and extend their vocabulary successfully.
• Staff help children learn about the world around them. For example, they invite the police and fire services to visit the nursery and share their roles and talk to the children about how they help them. Staff help children develop a deeper understanding of the needs of others and make a positive contribution to their local community. For example, staff take children on regular visits to the local elderly persons' care home where the children sing songs, share stories and develop new relationships.