The Learning Tree Derby Ltd

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children enter the nursery with enthusiasm and are greeted by friendly staff. They are happy and thoroughly enjoy their time at the nursery. Staff quickly get to know children and relationships between staff and children are strong. Staff ensure the settling-in processes are flexible and tailored to meet the individual needs of children. Staff demonstrate respectful interactions with children, which helps children to feel safe and valued.

The development of children's communication and language skills is given high priority. Staff make good use of songs and stories to encourage children to practise speaking. They use pictorial props to further support children who speak English as an additional language. Consequently, children quickly make progress with their understanding and speaking skills. Older children are proud to tell the inspector about their experiences. For example, they share how they found a frog and a ladybird in the garden.

Children learn to behave well. Staff teach them valuable skills to enable them to play cooperatively. For example, children learn how to share and take turns as they play, such as when using the play dough tools. They are motivated in their learning as staff praise them for being kind to one another. This helps build children's self-esteem and confidence.

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

• Staff know the children well and have a good understanding of the ways children learn. They provide a range of experiences for the children to explore, such as the sensory path. However, at times during adult-led activities, the staff do not consider the children's age or stage of development. This means some children do not always gain the most from the experiences offered, for example, during group times and planned activities.
• Children gain a good understanding of mathematics through their play. Staff help children to learn more about number recognition, repetitive patterns and shapes. For example, children use play dough cutters and make shapes and patterns in the sand. Staff notice these and introduce numbers along with words, such as full, empty, big and small.
• Staff communicate with parents daily. They tell parents about their children's day, what they have done and how they have behaved. Parents comment that they are happy with the service the nursery provides, and the staff are very friendly. However, staff do not always share information about children's current learning and how parents could support this learning at home.
• Staff plan trips and outings to broaden children's experiences. This helps children to develop an awareness of the world beyond the nursery and their homes. For example, children visit the local supermarket to buy fruit for snacks. They enjoy outings to the local park and use larger equipment to extend their physical skills. Staff take children to the library to extend their love of books.
• Children are developing good self-care skills. This is because staff teach them to develop independence. For example, children are confident to choose what snack they would like. They help themselves to drinking water as staff teach them how to pour from jugs. Children are developing good hygiene practices as staff teach them about the importance of handwashing. These opportunities help children's future learning and readiness for school.
• Children demonstrate good behaviours and have a positive attitude to their learning. They use good manners in their own interactions. For example, they say please and thank you at snack time. Staff model respectful behaviour and boundaries. When minor disputes occur, staff give gentle reminders and explain how others might feel. Staff use lots of praise to reinforce good behaviour, commenting, 'Well done for tidying up'.
• Leaders are competent and compassionate about their role. They provide robust support and direction for staff and ensure they are well-prepared for their roles. Leaders value staff's views and are aware of the pressures they face. Staff form a strong team and show commitment to the development of the nursery. Leaders provide staff with regular opportunities to engage in training to support their professional development. They provide ongoing supervision for staff and have systems in place to monitor the quality of teaching.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support staff to provide for children's individual learning needs particularly during adult-led activities
• develop ways to share children's current learning with parents and how they can support this at home.