The Greentop Nursery Ltd

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Staff offer families a warm and friendly greeting. This helps children to feel safe and settle quickly in the bright and welcoming nursery. Staff display words in different languages and create a 'family' board. This helps children and families to feel valued. Children take great delight in looking at their family photos with each other and staff, who also display photos of their own families and pets. Children have formed secure attachments to the nurturing staff, which helps them to feel content, at ease and emotionally secure. Newer children, who are a little upset on arrival, are soon keen to play after a comforting cuddle and reassurance from staff.

Staff enthusiastically join in with children's play, which motivates children and helps them to develop a love of learning. Staff plan challenging and generally effective educational programmes that prepare children well for starting school. Children demonstrate a positive and inquisitive approach as they play and explore. For example, toddlers peer in mirrors while learning about facial features. Every child makes good progress. Staff are good role models who help children to learn important social skills, such as sharing, taking turns and being kind and respectful to one another. This leads to children playing harmoniously with their friends. They share ideas, for instance, while making 'pancakes' in the exploratory kitchen.

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

• Overall, staff plan a broad and effective curriculum. However, after merging the two-year-old children with older children, some activities and care routines, such as mealtimes and 'carpet' time, do not fully align with the younger children's stages of learning and development. Similarly, when resourcing the baby room, staff do not consider toddlers' interests and stages of learning to the highest level.
• Staff gather a wealth of information from parents to support new children's excellent transitions to the nursery and build on their existing knowledge and experiences. For example, because some children only travel by car and some are without grandparents, staff plan outings on the bus and visit a local care home.
• Children enjoy staff's good-quality interactions, resulting from their qualifications and continued professional development. Staff expand children's learning and essential early speech. For example, as toddlers excitedly explore water, staff enthusiastically narrate and sing a song about ducks. Staff read familiar stories with great animation; children recall complex words, such as 'cocoon'. Staff model words and actions during the 'song bag' activity.
• Staff encourage children to develop good levels of independence during daily routines. For example, children learn to put on their coats, pour drinks and serve themselves at breakfast, snack time and lunchtime.
• Older toddlers getting ready to move up enjoy visiting their new room. However, staff do not always recognise when they would benefit from more age-appropriate activities and greater levels of attention and support as they play.
• Staff use a sand timer to prepare children for changes in the daily routine and sensitively intervene where minor squabbles occur over the same toy. This helps to support children's emotional well-being and understanding of expectations. Children beam with pride as they receive a sticker for helping to tidy up.
• Staff undertake detailed assessments of children's progress. They swiftly identify and address any emerging developmental delay through timely discussions with parents and other professionals.
• Staff have some excellent arrangements for sharing children's progress and their next steps in learning with parents, although this is sometimes inconsistent. In addition, staff do not maximise opportunities to guide parents on how they can support children's learning at home.
• Staff promote children's physical health and well-being exceptionally well. For example, children from the age of two and older have free access to outdoors throughout the day, and children enjoy hearty and nutritious home-made meals. Staff reinforce messages about healthy lifestyles through displays, stories and activities, for instance. Staff meet children's specific health or dietary needs to the highest level.
• Staff provide a wide range of opportunities for children to develop their physical skills. Toddlers negotiate rocking toys, and two-year-olds use the indoor slide. Older children confidently negotiate the indoor climbing dome and carefully balance on planks. Toddlers squeeze and prod dough, and two-year-olds use rolling pins and varied utensils to scoop, pat and mix sand. Older children use tools, such as scissors and tongs.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• take greater account of the individual learning and development needs and interests of children under three years when planning care routines, the environment and the curriculum
• provide increased levels of attention and support for older toddlers during the periods where they join up with other age groups
• consistently share information about children's next steps with parents and how they can support these at home, to help children to make even better progress.