The Park Day Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy when they arrive at the nursery and separate easily from parents. Staff greet them with a friendly smile. They introduce children to the activities for the day and provide lots of opportunities for them to learn and explore. Babies enjoy sharing their favourite songs and rhymes. They excitedly anticipate what is coming next and join in with the actions. Toddlers explore pouring and filling containers in the water area. Staff add flavours and scents to enhance the sensory experience for them. Children develop their physical skills through physical education sessions and through free play. For example, they use tweezers to pick up small items. Staff focus on outdoor learning to enhance children's experiences. Children explore lots of natural materials that help them to learn about the world around them.

Staff have high expectations for children's behaviour. They introduce golden rules and reinforce boundaries to encourage children to be respectful of others. Staff also support children to develop independence from an early age. For example, they encourage babies to navigate climbing equipment with minimal support. Then, as they get older, children climb and move with increased confidence. They have a real sense of achievement. Parents are happy with the home-from-home care provided by this setting. Staff know the children well and share their achievements and next steps with parents.

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

• Leaders design and put in place a unique and well-sequenced curriculum. This enables staff to promote progression in children's learning as they grow. Leaders use 'Parent Planning' as a great addition to the curriculum. Parents share children's interests and staff weave this into their activities. This helps staff to provide children with a more holistic education.
• Staff are enthusiastic and have high expectations for children's learning. They plan a broad range of activities, which support children to make progress. Staff challenge children to build on what they already know and question children to think about their learning. However, sometimes these questions are in quick succession, which means children do not always get the time they need to think more deeply. This means children may miss opportunities for more ambitious learning that challenges their knowledge and skills.
• Parents share information about their child's development on entry. Leaders continue to track children's progress through regular team meetings. All staff contribute to ensure a deep understanding of children's needs. They identify any gaps in children's learning and put interventions in place. As such, all children make progress, regardless of their starting points.
• Leaders and staff plan a variety of experiences for children to promote all areas of learning. They make effective use of the local community, such as the woods, park, and church. Local firefighters and paramedics visit to teach children about their role in keeping people safe. This helps to raise children's awareness of the local community and the wider world around them.
• Leaders and staff place a high emphasis on improving communication and language across the setting. Staff offer lots of opportunities for children to sing, join in with rhymes, and enjoy stories. For pre-school children, staff promote a 'word of the week', which links to their planning. This supports children to learn new vocabulary and explore its meaning in depth.
• Leaders and staff encourage children to talk about their feelings and emotions. They talk to children about how other people might feel when things happen to them and how they can help them to feel better. They celebrate similarities and differences in a respectful way. This helps children to learn about empathy and compassion and that they are all unique individuals.
• Staff encourage children to learn to do things for themselves. They learn how to take risks and understand how to do so safely. For example, older children use knives to cut their food. They know that knives can be dangerous because they are sharp and they could get hurt. Younger children water the bulbs they have planted to help them to grow. This helps children to learn to be responsible and develop confidence and self-esteem.
• Since the previous inspection, there have been some significant changes. The newly appointed leadership team are passionate in developing a clear vision for the setting, and building upon each other's strengths. Leaders are well aware of their areas for improvement, while celebrating their successes and things they do well. Effective supervision and appraisal systems identify development opportunities for staff and ensure a positive work-life balance. As such, the quality of teaching and learning is always developing to meet the needs of every child.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen the use of effective questioning skills to give children enough time to think deeply to offer children more ambitious learning opportunities.