The Orchard Garden Private Day Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children enjoy attending this warm and welcoming nursery. They happily engage in a wide range of interesting activities that focus their attention and help them to develop new skills. Outdoor play experiences are part of the daily routine for all children, and they show delight as they run, jump and practise their large-muscle skills. They confidently select wheeled toys and learn to carefully navigate their way around the painted road on the playground. Attentive staff are close by to show children how to push down on pedals or for when younger children need a guiding hand to jump off climbing blocks. Children develop strong relationships with staff which help them to feel safe and secure and to develop their emotional resilience.

Children make good progress with their language and communication skills through the skilful interactions of staff. Older children confidently engage in conversations with adults and their friends and use their developing vocabulary to describe what they are doing. When playing a game with a friend, a child shouts out, 'Look, I'm the winner,' while another runs through a puddle and says with excitement, 'Big splash!'

Children learn to use mathematical language and vocabulary accurately during their play, for example when counting blocks to make a tower and when describing positions and comparing sizes. Babies watch with fascination as staff respond enthusiastically to their babbling sounds and gurgles. Staff hold their attention by making different facial expressions for them to copy.

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

• Staff encourage children to develop their independence skills through daily routines and activities. They use the toilet, wash their hands and learn to put on coats and shoes when going outside. Staff give children time to practise tricky skills, such as fastening buttons and pulling up zips. Children learn from a young age how to serve themselves at mealtimes, pour their own drinks and use cutlery to cut up their food. Staff consistently praise children's efforts and gently support them to have a go by themselves. As a result, children develop positive self-esteem.
• Children behave well. They learn to share, take turns and play cooperatively with their friends. Children show kindness and respect towards one another. Staff encourage appropriate manners at mealtimes, and children take pride in helping to set the tables and pass around jugs of water.
• Staff help children to learn about the importance of healthy habits through a carefully planned curriculum and daily routines. All children participate in daily exercise and benefit from being out in the fresh air. Babies have safe areas, indoors and outside, to roll, crawl and fully explore their developing physical movements. Children learn about good oral health as they brush their teeth after meals.
• The experienced management team has a clear understanding of the nursery's strengths and identifies appropriate areas for further development. Following the COVID-19 pandemic, targeted support has been particularly focused on social skills and language development for many children. Overall, staff plan well in these prime areas of learning for children. However, they do not always plan next steps in line with these key priorities for all children or ensure that new targets are set as swiftly as possible.
• Managers and staff are proud of the supportive and inclusive environment they have worked hard to create. Families receive extra support when it is needed, and staff work very closely with a range of agencies and professionals to ensure children who have special educational needs and/or disabilities receive the support they need as early as possible. As a result, all children make good progress in their learning and development.
• Staff provide healthy and nutritious meals for the children. Children's individual dietary needs are met through careful record-keeping and the appropriate sharing of information. The nursery cook carefully labels serving bowls and separates meals, for example for vegetarian children. As a result, children's health and safety are given high priority.
• Staff foster very positive relationships with parents and carers. Parents comment that they are happy with the progress their children are making and value the warm care that staff provide. Although an online information and assessment system has only recently been introduced by the nursery, parents feel that they are kept well informed about what their children are learning and would be happy to talk to staff if they had any concerns.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• monitor how staff identify and plan for next steps to ensure they are more clearly linked to the prime areas of learning and children's individual needs.