The Lyme Nursery Ltd

Inclusion: Needs attention

Children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), do not receive consistent support to engage in purposeful learning. As a result, some children display disruptive behaviours, such as knocking resources from tables and surrounding surfaces. The setting has introduced intervention sessions to support children's behaviour, listening and language development as part of the intended curriculum. However, leaders recognise that these are not delivered consistently due to weaknesses in room organisation. Consequently, this limits the progress these children are able to make.

Where practice is more effective, staff provide support to promote children's progress. For example, they offer activities that develop children's fine motor skills. They encourage children who struggle to open their hands to grasp and release objects. Staff identify gaps in children's learning and monitor children's developmental needs. They work with parents and carers and other professionals to support children's outcomes. Training has been obtained to support leaders and staff to recognise early signs of children with SEND. Leaders have completed specialised training, including emotional resilience and trauma training, to strengthen the support they offer children who face barriers in their learning. Leaders share funding information with parents, helping them to understand what support is available to them. This promotes children's inclusion.

Curriculum and teaching: Needs attention

Leaders have designed an appropriate curriculum. However, weaknesses in practice mean that children, including those who face barriers to their learning, do not consistently benefit from high-quality interactions from staff. For example, staff hold young children for prolonged periods of time. This limits their opportunities for movement and exploration as staff do not adapt their practice to ensure that these children can engage in the curriculum on offer. Additionally, routine tasks often take priority over children's learning, meaning staff at times leave the room. Occasionally, staff position themselves with their backs to children, which further limits opportunities to support children's learning.

Staff demonstrate a secure understanding of children's individual needs and where practice is more effective, they adapt their approach to support children's development. For instance, they use language, including early mathematical language, to support babies and children's communication growth. Staff encourage language repetition and praise children who attempt using vocabulary. When children refer to a tomato as an 'apple,' staff model the correct word and provide a simple explanation to why it is not an apple. This helps to strengthen children's understanding. Children engage in mark-making activities where staff use open-ended questions to encourage thinking and to recall their prior learning. This supports children to develop confidence in their knowledge and understanding of the world.

Achievement: Needs attention

Children's progress is variable. While some children receive the support they need to develop the appropriate skills, others do not benefit from the same experiences. For instance, children who require additional support do not consistently benefit from planned intervention sessions. However, some older children make sufficient progress through these interventions and no longer require them. Some children have reduced opportunities to practise and embed their learning with adult guidance and support. This leads to lower levels of engagement and progress across all areas of learning.

Older children confidently discuss life cycles, using vocabulary such as 'chrysalis' and 'egg.' They share their ideas through drawings, demonstrating their developing fine motor control and an awareness of shape. Children recall their prior learning with confidence. They notice sounds in familiar words and link these to objects they see. Outdoors, younger children see a helicopter, they learn to say 'helicopter' not 'copter.' They learn animal names and the sounds animals make, developing their communication skills.

Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines: Needs attention

Due to weaknesses in curriculum delivery and staff deployment, children at times demonstrate negative behaviours. Staff do not fully recognise how their practice affects children's experiences. Therefore, they do not adapt their responses. For example, during transition times, some environments become chaotic and disorganised, such as coming in from the garden, waking children from sleep and at mealtimes. This limits opportunities for children to develop positive relationships with others and attitudes to learning.

Where practice is more effective, staff use children's interests to promote both their learning and positive behaviour. They provide praise to encourage children's efforts. For example, staff praise children who attempt to identify colours and those who practise using language, such as when younger children say 'oink' while holding a toy pig. This helps to build children's confidence.

Staff use observation and assessment to monitor how well children are settling. They work closely with parents and carers to support smooth transitions. For example, staff discuss the daily routine with parents to ensure children arrive at suitable times, avoiding points in the day when they may become unsettled. This helps children to settle more quickly and supports their regular attendance.

Children's welfare and wellbeing: Needs attention

Leaders do not fully recognise the level of responsibility placed on less-experienced staff, including supply staff and apprentices, who are responsible for checking, recording and receiving medication from parents and carers. They have not done enough to support these staff to deliver expected practice in line with their policies to fully meet children's welfare and wellbeing needs.

Children do not consistently benefit from well-organised routines. Although staff support children to wash their hands, they often position themselves facing away from the group, limiting opportunities for interaction and engagement at mealtimes. Staff deployment does not consistently promote high-quality interactions as routine tasks, such as collecting and preparing food, take staff away from children.

Staff support children to wash their hands using soap and water prior to eating, promoting positive health and hygiene routines. Through discussion, older children learn why handwashing is important. Staff remind children about previous activities they took part in to 'wash the germs away'. At mealtimes, staff support children to make their own choices around food. They listen carefully and respond to children's cues, recognising when they have finished eating. This shows respect for children's decisions and promotes their independence. Children benefit from a gradual settling-in process, starting with shorter sessions and building up to full days. This helps children to feel safe and supports the development of positive relationships with their key person. As a result, key persons know their children well.

Leadership and governance: Needs attention

Recent improvements have strengthened staff knowledge of medication procedures, including the need to communicate children's daily medication needs to leaders on arrival, supporting a clearer oversight. However, leaders do not fully recognise the level of responsibility placed on less-experienced staff, or the support they require to implement policies, procedures and expected practice. As a result, children's care and wellbeing are impacted.

Leaders' expectations of the curriculum are not carried out consistently across all rooms. Although staff attend training and have supervision sessions, leaders do not monitor practice closely enough to address weaknesses effectively. This has resulted in variable experiences for children, including children who face barriers to their learning. Leaders hold regular staff wellbeing meetings to discuss workloads. They offer staff support and advice, which results in improved staff wellbeing and confidence. There are currently no children in receipt of additional funding. However, leaders understand how to use funding to support children's needs and the importance of monitoring its impact.

The setting promotes community engagement. For example, leaders arrange for dance teachers to regularly visit to support children's experiences of music, movement and physical development. They warmly welcome and encourage visitors, including parents and carers, to share their work experiences. This helps children to develop an understanding of people who help in the community. Parents report that they value the communication they receive from staff. They know who their child's key person is and understand how to support learning at home. Parents describe staff as friendly and approachable and report that they trust them to care for their children.