The New Little Village Nursery

Inclusion: Expected standard

Leaders promote an inclusive setting where all children are supported to take part in daily experiences and feel a strong sense of belonging. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities are supported effectively through close working between staff, parents and external professionals. Staff identify children's needs and provide support so that children can take part in activities alongside their peers and make progress from their starting points.

Children receiving additional funding benefit from targeted support that promotes their emotional wellbeing and access to a range of experiences. This includes sensitive pastoral support when children experience significant life events. Staff use books, role play and calm reassurance to help children understand and manage their feelings and regulate their emotions. Children also benefit from opportunities to take part in enrichment experiences, such as local visits that help them build confidence, recall experiences and develop their understanding of the world.

Leaders and key staff know the children well. Typically, they use this knowledge appropriately to support children's participation in some activities and routines. Children are encouraged to join in with play, learning and social experiences throughout the day. This helps them to develop friendships, confidence and a sense of belonging within their peer groups.

Curriculum and teaching: Needs attention

Leaders have not ensured that the curriculum is clearly sequenced or that staff have a secure understanding of how learning should build over time. Their oversight does not focus precisely enough on what children need to learn next. As a result, children's knowledge and skills do not deepen as effectively as they could, and opportunities to practise and secure learning are not routinely identified, including for those at earlier stages of development.

In mathematics, children regularly count and recite numbers. However, teaching does not extend this into a secure understanding of number. For example, staff do not consistently develop concepts such as subitising or recognising number relationships. This limits the depth of children's mathematical understanding over time. The quality of interaction varies. At times, staff use narration and storytelling to engage children and support recall. During these times, children become engaged and happily share their thoughts and ideas. However, this is not embedded. On occasion, questioning does not build on what children already know or match their stage of development, and engagement is not sustained.

Planning focuses on themes rather than clearly defined learning intentions. Consequently, staff do not consistently respond to children's curiosity or extend their learning in the moment. Leaders have introduced training and supervision, but this has not yet secured improvement in practice. Nevertheless, when staff interact purposefully, children show enjoyment and positive involvement in their learning.

Achievement: Needs attention

Children's achievement is not consistent because weaknesses in teaching and curriculum implementation mean that learning does not build securely over time. Some children are not well prepared for the next stage in learning, including their move on to school. Children are not always supported by staff to extend their thinking as they play. At times, children lose interest in activities that are not matched to their stage of development. In mathematics, children do not develop a secure understanding of numbers. Younger children have fewer opportunities to hear new words and use their voices. Where teaching is more appropriate, such as during stories, children, including those with those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, engage well. They talk about their play, interact with others and follow routines.

Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines: Needs attention

Inconsistencies in adult interactions mean that not all children are supported to develop positive attitudes to learning. Where activities lack clear purpose or staff do not extend children's thinking effectively, children can lose interest and move away from the activity. As a result, learning is lost.

Children's behaviour is generally positive. They develop warm relationships with staff and each other and are familiar with daily routines, which helps them to feel secure. Children are polite, share resources and take turns during play. They respond to staff expectations and use good manners throughout the day. For example, they help to tidy away resources and follow simple routines. Leaders monitor attendance closely and follow up any unexplained absence promptly to support children's welfare.

Children show positive engagement when teaching is more effective, particularly during small-group time or shared activities where staff interact well with them. In these moments, children are attentive and willing to participate.

Children do not consistently develop the independence and self-help skills needed for the next stage of learning, including school. Opportunities to build these skills are not used as well as they could be, particularly during everyday routines. For example, children are not always encouraged to complete simple tasks for themselves, such as washing their faces or wiping their noses. Nevertheless, children's personal development is supported appropriately overall. They show some independence, for instance by managing their toileting needs and beginning to take part in self-care routines.

Children's welfare and wellbeing: Needs attention

Weaknesses in risk assessment mean that children's safety is not consistently promoted. Although staff manage some known risks, such as providing shade outdoors and monitoring UV levels, they do not routinely identify or respond to new or changing hazards. For instance, the positioning of recently introduced equipment, such as a gazebo, and indoor risks, including trailing wires from fans, are not reviewed or addressed promptly. As a result, children are not fully protected from potential harm. Leaders take appropriate action when risks are highlighted and make necessary adjustments to the environment. This helps to reduce immediate hazards and demonstrates a commitment to improving children's safety, although this practice is not yet embedded.

Children are cared for by warm, attentive staff who respond quickly to their needs. They offer reassurance, comfort and emotional support, helping children to feel safe and settled. Babies and younger children build secure attachments with familiar adults. Children's health is supported through well-organised care routines. Staff provide healthy, balanced meals and snacks, and ensure that individual dietary needs are carefully met. Children have easy access to drinking water, know where to find their bottles and independently use water stations. This shows that they are beginning to manage their own physical needs.

Leadership and governance: Needs attention

Weaknesses in leadership and oversight mean that monitoring does not focus sharply enough on the impact of practice on children's learning and welfare. Although leaders have identified key priorities, including curriculum delivery, interactions and risk assessment, their actions have not secured consistent improvement across the setting. As a result, intended policies and approaches are not applied consistently in daily practice, and variations remain in the quality of education and care children receive.

Leaders provide some training and support for staff, reflecting a clear commitment to their wellbeing and professional development. However, leaders do not always monitor staff practice effectively to ensure precise actions to strengthen practice across all rooms. Consequently, identified weaknesses in areas such as curriculum implementation and the management of risks are not addressed promptly or embedded securely across the provision. Since the last inspection, leaders have taken appropriate steps to strengthen safeguarding knowledge and practice. Staff understand their responsibilities and how to report concerns, contributing to children's safety.

Leaders maintain positive relationships with parents and share information about children's experiences. However, engagement is not fully used to support a shared understanding of children's learning and development. Overall, while leaders are aware of areas for improvement and have taken some action, these have not yet led to sustained, consistent improvement in practice.