The Italian Day Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children's uniqueness is at the heart of this well-established and nurturing day nursery. Staff confidently speak to children in their home languages to help them to settle quickly. Children quickly find their labelled coat pegs and register their attendance to help to promote their sense of belonging.

Children demonstrate that they feel safe and emotionally secure, and they behave very well. For example, children keenly remember and follow the routines of the nursery, such as when staff ring a small bell. Children enthusiastically help staff to tidy away.

Children's social skills are developing well. Older children form secure friendship groups. Outdoors, they excitedly play a game of catch, and keenly tell visitors who their friends are. Younger children develop close relationships with their designated key person. Less-confident children tightly hold hands as they move from one activity to another to help them to feel safe. Mealtimes are a very social time for children and staff. Positive interactions among them also help children to become confident communicators.

Children are independent and motivated learners and staff have high expectations for all children. Children keep trying even when they face difficulty. For example, older children successfully build a sandcastle. They say to their friends 'we will just keep trying' as the castle tumbles down.

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

• The manager, who is also the provider, has a clear vision for the nursery. She is passionate about her role and strives to ensure that children's individuality is at the heart of the curriculum.
• Staff provide many opportunities for children to look at books and successfully link stories to experiences, play and learning. Children develop a very strong interest in books and stories. For example, when children eagerly plant seeds, they enthusiastically link a story about a beanstalk. Staff and children act out key parts, such as pretending to be a giant. This helps to further promote children's imagination and love for early reading and books.
• The designated key person effectively plans individual experiences based on what children know and can do, and their interests. Staff successfully recognise what children need to learn next to help all children achieve well and in readiness for when they move on to nursery and school.
• The curriculum provides children with sequenced and very enjoyable learning experiences to help to develop children's love for learning. Nevertheless, on occasion, children's play and learning are interrupted. This means that children do not always have the time they need to become fully engaged in experiences that they independently choose for themselves.
• Children who speak English as an additional language are supported well and their home languages are valued wonderfully. Children are immersed in a language-rich environment both in English and the languages they speak at home. For instance, staff find out key words in the languages that children speak at home to help to celebrate their uniqueness and promote children's sense of identity.
• Staff work very well together. This is demonstrated when they clearly communicate with each other to ensure that children are supervised at all times to keep them safe. Staff consistently follow procedures for the care of all children, such as when children sleep and rest.
• Parents speak highly of the nursery and the care that their children receive. Parents feel that their children's individual needs are met at the nursery. They welcome support when needed. For example, staff offer advice on how to help promote children's positive behaviour. Parents say that the nursery is a 'home from home'.
• Staff receive ongoing training to help to improve their good teaching skills. Following training and ongoing support, staff provide many opportunities for children to become natural thinkers. For example, children concentrate as they create pictures with a range of natural objects, such as leaves and sticks. Staff welcome the support from the manager to promote their well-being and ongoing training provided. However, the manager has not yet considered ways to lessen paperwork in order to avoid unnecessary burdens.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen routines so that children have less instances of their play and learning being interrupted
• continue to reduce burdensome paperwork.