The Nursery at New Manor

Inclusion: Strong standard

Leaders establish a fully inclusive culture throughout the nursery. They work swiftly to identify and address barriers to children's learning. This includes children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) or those known to children's social care. Staff work in partnership with parents and carers to gain an excellent understanding of each child's needs. Parents are invited into the setting to discuss their child's progress, and staff routinely share their assessment of each child's development.

Leaders and staff consistently assess children's development and any changes in their home lives. This ensures that the adaptations they make have the most impact. For example, all staff use Makaton sign language daily with all children. They tailor this to support children with speech and language delays. This supports children's communication, as they use signs to further communicate with each other, staff and visitors. Children who have SEND can access all experiences and activities with support from skilled staff. Staff play alongside children who need extra support. They are skilful at knowing when to join and when to narrate play to build language and learning. Children enjoy secure bonds and trusting relationships with staff. Staff are exemplary in their support for children with physical needs. Leaders identify emerging needs quickly and decisively. They work with parents to offer support. This ensures that no child is left behind. All children make progress from their individual starting points as staff provide individualised curriculum support.

Leaders collaborate extremely successfully with external professionals for guidance and training. They implement strategies from medical professionals and diligently share them with their staff team. This means that all staff know how to support children with SEND across the setting. Leaders ensure that each child's learning is enriched, every child is included and barriers to learning are reduced.

Curriculum and teaching: Strong standard

Leaders closely oversee teaching and ensure staff deliver a sequenced and engaging curriculum. Staff have high expectations of children's achievements and ensure activities are carefully tailored to their individual needs. For example, staff incorporate each child's next steps in learning into the activities they plan in each group room. This ensures all staff who work with the children understand what they need to learn next and can support them.

Staff complete considered observations to help monitor children's development and identify next steps in learning. Leaders review staff observations and ensure staff use these to inform planning. Leaders share a daily update with parents about what children have enjoyed and learned. For example, they share recipes for activities, such as how to make puffy paint, enabling parents to recreate experiences at home. Parents often respond by sharing photographs of their children completing the activity at home, helping strengthen continuity of learning between home and the setting.

Leaders and staff create a curriculum that is specific for each age group. Children are supported to learn new skills that help prepare them for the move into the next group room. For example, staff place exciting and inviting activities just out of reach to encourage babies to crawl and pull themselves to standing. Toddlers receive support to develop new language as they join in singing sessions and look at pictures to link words and objects. Staff teach older children about changes in the weather, the months of the year and days of the week. Forest school sessions form part of the curriculum. Children benefit from fresh air and develop physical skills as they explore safely under staff's careful supervision. Staff plan circle time and group story times to help children develop attention skills. Older children excitedly recall familiar stories and fill in missing sentences, such as 'don't wake the dog'. Leaders design a curriculum that focuses on teaching mathematics. Children use their fingers to represent numbers and confidently recognise numerals up to 30. Leaders ensure all children make continued progress from their individual starting points.

Achievement: Strong standard

Children develop excellent skills to support their future learning. All children achieve and thrive due to the high-quality teaching and interventions in this setting. Babies babble and respond to staff, who reply. Young children move from using one word to joining words through specific strategies. Staff support enables children to play together, enjoying tea party role play at forest school. From an early age, children develop high levels of independence and resilience. For example, babies persevere and walk across the room to staff, beaming with their achievement.

Young children love their walk to the farm shop to buy fruit, choosing their own piece to chop up for snack. Older children recognise numbers and know that these relate to the day of the month. Children develop extremely positive attitudes to learning. Staff encourage them to develop resilience as they overcome challenges during activities. Children learn to persevere while counting. They enthusiastically take part in 'Dough disco' sessions to build hand strength. Babies and children enjoy a range of purposefully planned experiences. Babies help to collect eggs from the chickens and older children choose books from the library van. Older children benefit from a wealth of support from staff that helps them prepare for starting school. This includes staff sharing thorough information about each child with their next setting. Children with barriers to learning receive highly tailored support from staff. This enables them to access all areas of learning and ensures they make rapid progress.

Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines: Strong standard

Leaders create a culture of wellbeing and ensure strong relationships. This is evident in the experience of families, children and the wider staff team. Staff form warm, trusting relationships with children. Children learn to play happily together. For example, older children create a large map to take out into the field. They work together, describing what they have drawn and written to help find 'Lanky Len' from today's story.

Staff ensure consistent routines are embedded across each group room and support strong transitions as children move through the setting. Staff celebrate the children's voices and choices during circle time. For example, babies are encouraged to choose the song they want to sing and join in with actions and sounds. They look at photos of themselves as staff use these to create a warm sense of belonging in the group.

Staff encourage older children to be kind and considerate towards others. For example, they encourage children to wait patiently for their turn to speak during group discussions. Children are eager to share their ideas about the weather, such as saying, 'It's a bit overcast today'. Children understand and follow familiar routines well. For example, as they join a 'Dough Disco' activity, children independently collect their individual pots, remove the lids and move carefully to the carpet to begin the activity.

Leaders understand the importance of regular attendance and act promptly when children are absent. They are highly effective at identifying barriers that may affect children's attendance. Leaders work closely with families to support all children. For example, offering increased hours and providing families with additional support.

Children's welfare and wellbeing: Strong standard

Children's safety and emotional wellbeing are highly prioritised. Leaders and staff consistently plan each child's journey in partnership with parents. Babies and young children benefit from extremely nurturing settling-in processes. Parents praise the trusting, kind relationships their children have with staff and leaders. They state their children are valued, supported, and encouraged to flourish. Parents feel reassured by the information staff share via the online app and in person.

Staff recognise children's emerging needs. All children are supported to make rapid progress and display a positive sense of wellbeing. They learn good manners and are extremely polite, thanking staff at lunchtimes. Staff teach children how to stay safe. They encourage children to line up to wash their hands and hold hands on a trip to the shop. Children learn to manage their own needs. For example, children independently refill their water bottles on a hot day. Staff encourage children to develop healthy lifestyles, as they plan an abundance of activities to build their self-help and physical skills. Children enjoy sociable lunchtimes. Staff sit with the babies as they learn to feed themselves. Older children help to lay the table and clear their plates, thanking each other as plates of food are passed around. Babies and toddlers settle to sleep quickly, with staff keeping them safe. Babies' individual weaning plans are agreed with parents, and allergies are meticulously catered for.

Siblings join each other for breakfast or tea and are offered sibling play sessions. Parents praise the relationships children have with their key workers. Leaders engage with all parents thoughtfully and take account of those who work during the week. For instance, they offer a 'meet your key person' session on a Saturday. Leaders arrange 'stay and play' sessions for parents and their children at times convenient for working families.

Leadership and governance: Strong standard

Leaders have created a setting built around firm, trusting relationships. They empower staff to deliver a positive difference to all children's learning. Leaders are aspirational and extremely reflective in leading the staff team. They recognise when to adapt and improve their curriculum to ensure their work makes a difference to the children and families they work with. For example, leaders identify and plan further training to extend expertise. This helps to ensure children experience a curriculum that is embedded, exciting and inspires their progress.

Leaders have high expectations for all children. They work closely with staff, parents and external professionals when making decisions in children's best interests. Leaders work with other settings and organisations to further develop their early years practice and create a culture of ongoing professional learning. New research and emerging evidence inform their teaching and curriculum planning. This ensures leaders and staff continually improve their expertise in caring for children. Leaders have a highly strategic approach to improvement to ensure the best possible outcomes for all children. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities are extremely well supported. This results in all necessary adaptations being made to reduce barriers to learning and wellbeing.

Leaders consistently engage with parents in thoughtful ways. They ensure staff share detailed and meaningful updates daily regarding their children's care and learning. Parents are invited to attend children's development review meetings and provided with strategies to support children's transitions.

Staff supervision is robust, and staff state they feel extremely valued. Staff have individual learning plans and targets to help improve their practice. The support leaders provide results in a staff team who have high aspirations for their work and career progression in the setting. Staff are well informed and knowledgeable and share practice and model skills with their peers. Leaders and staff are highly reflective of their own practice and strive to make a difference in every interaction with children. This creates a highly positive impact on the quality of the provision.