The Meadows Nursery School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy to arrive at the setting. They are welcomed into their room by their key person and quickly settle in. Children form close relationships with the staff. Babies enjoy sitting on adults knees for a cuddle, helping them to feel secure and safe. Children immerse themselves in the variety of sensory play experiences. For instance, they watch with fascination as the gloop mixture changes texture in their hands. Younger children explore cooked spaghetti. They squeeze it through their fingers, helping to develop their fine motor skills. Children play alongside their friends, splashing in the water tray. They use different-sized containers and watering cans to fill, empty and pour.

Children learn to play cooperatively with their peers. When children struggle, staff support their behaviour well. They help children to understand the impact their behaviour has on others. For example, staff talk to children about what might make their friends happy or sad. Staff give children ample opportunities to express themselves creatively through open-ended art activities. For instance, children enjoy using paint to make marks, labelling what they have made. Staff praise them for their efforts, commenting on how much they like their work. This helps to build children's confidence and self-esteem.

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

• The new manager has a secure knowledge and understanding of child development. This is reflected in the curriculum that she has developed and is implementing across the nursery. The manager is effective at evaluating the strengths and areas for further development within the setting.
• All children, including those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities, have meaningful learning opportunities. Staff support children's individual needs well. For example, they use visual cues to help children understand what is going to be happening next. This has led to children making good progress.
• Staff develop positive partnerships with other professionals. Parents are happy with the care that the staff provide. They report that staff have given good support to their children and helped them to settle in. However, staff do not consistently share information about children's individual learning and development with parents, to enable them to further extend their learning at home.
• Staff provide good support for children's communication and language. For example, they read stories to children and interact with them throughout activities. The manager has implemented a reading library so that children can take home books to share with their families. This helps children to foster a love of reading.
• Staff focus on supporting children to be ready for the next stage of their education. Throughout the year, they adapt routines to develop children's independence further, such as encouraging children to self-register when they arrive. Throughout the year, staff adapt what they are doing to stretch children further. For example, they progressively change how children find their own name and self-register.
• Overall, staff plan for children's learning, considering their individual needs and interests. Staff observe what children already know and can do, and use this to inform their assessments. However, some staff are still developing their understanding of identifying clear intentions for planned activities. At times, this means that staff's interactions do not provide the best possible teaching.
• Staff support children to develop their independence. For instance, during mealtimes, they encourage children to have a go at opening their own food packets. Older children learn to manage their own self-care. They are competent at washing their hands and going to the toilet on their own.
• Children develop good hand strength and coordination. For example, they use small screwdrivers and tools to twist screws into wooden cars. This helps children to prepare for early writing. In addition, children manipulate play dough into different shapes, which develops their fine-motor skills.
• Staff report that they feel valued and supported in both their work and personal life. Managers ensure staff complete the mandatory training to keep their knowledge up to date. They monitor and support staff practice through regular supervision and observations.
• The manager uses additional funding for individual children effectively. For example, she has used it to give children experiences they would otherwise not have and to purchase resources that are being used effectively to support their emotional development.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• build on partnerships with parents to ensure even more information is shared, so that they are fully involved in their child's learning and development and know how to support them at home
• ensure that staff embed their understanding of curriculum intentions, to improve the quality of interactions and help children make even more progress.