The Pink Cottage

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are very happy and secure at the inclusive and nurturing nursery. They love playing with staff and friends and form strong relationships. Children enjoy challenges set by staff, who have high expectations for what children can achieve. Children develop strong problem-solving skills. For example, they eagerly found things that would float and sink in water and managed to find 'heavier' and 'lighter' objects.

Overall, children of all ages explore the stimulating nursery with confidence. Younger children are very adventurous outdoors and particularly enjoy going up and down a mound in the garden. They carefully and safely navigate steps and are motivated to explore at their own pace. Babies and toddlers feel completely at home and are keen to share their experiences with the caring staff.

Older children are also very physically active and, during the inspection, they thoroughly enjoyed a sports day session. Children showed strong balance, coordination and movement as they competed in fun races around the garden. When not taking part, children were keen to help by holding up the finishing line and excitedly cheering on their friends. They are very kind and thoughtful and were quick to praise others, saying 'good race' and 'well done everyone'.

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

• The dedicated managers are supported well by their strong staff team. Together, they know the children very well and precisely assess their development. The curriculum is ambitious and designed well to prepare children for the next stages in their learning. Staff follow children's interests closely to provide an interesting, challenging and motivating environment.
• Staff give children's language development a high focus and support this consistently well. Staff working with younger children speak clearly and use age-appropriate language to name what children see and do. Staff sing with children regularly and ensure children hear and use language all day long. Older children speak well, using good vocabulary and full sentences. They confidently share their ideas and knowledge. For example, as they observed butterflies, children talked about the 'cocoon phase' and how butterflies 'carry nectar'.
• Staff are skilled teachers and use their interactions effectively to support, guide and extend children's learning. For example, as pre-school children explored a bee robot toy, they were encouraged to follow instructions, such as going left, right, backwards and forwards. Younger children know their colours well and enjoy twisting, pulling and exploring locks, chains and handles. Children are inquisitive and quickly develop the skills needed for their next stage in learning, including school. Parents are very happy with the support their children receive and the progress they make.
• Staff support children who receive additional funding well and use the early years pupil premium money thoughtfully. For example, they buy resources to support children's interests and use these to encourage social play and friendship building. Overall, staff are attentive to children's individual needs. However, they are not always quick to identify when some quieter and less confident children need further support to help them engage fully in their play and learning.
• Staff are positive role models for children and create an atmosphere of trust, respect and understanding. Overall, children learn to behave well. They listen carefully to staff, follow instructions well and include others in their play. However, staff do not fully support children's understanding of how some of their behaviour can have a negative impact. For example, they do not consistently teach children how running and being too noisy inside can cause problems for themselves and others.
• The management team reflects closely on the nursery and make continuous improvements to children's learning and experiences. For instance, they have recently introduced beach school sessions, where children explore, investigate and discover local wildlife and nature. Managers support staff professional development successfully and encourage regular discussion, research and training to target improvements. The team are currently focused on encouraging more open ended play, to further support children's choices and creativity.
• Children show high levels of self-esteem and take pride in their achievements. During the inspection, older children proudly practised songs for an upcoming graduation performance. Younger children persevere with tasks, such as climbing into a ride-on car, and excitedly share their successes with interested staff.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• give quieter and less confident children the support they need to engage fully in their learning at all times
• develop further children's understanding of why certain nursery rules are important and how their actions can impact on others.