The Square Nursery School

Inclusion: Expected standard

Leaders promptly identify children who need extra support by making timely referrals to relevant services. This ensures that they provide children with help without delay. All children are supported well, particularly those who are disadvantaged, those with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who face other barriers to their learning and/or wellbeing. Leaders and staff act decisively to reduce any difficulties in children's learning. They plan effectively for such gaps, helping children to make secure progress. Leaders work in partnership with other professionals and parents and carers to give support and interventions for children as required. For example, they have arranged specific language activities for children who may benefit from further communication support.

Staff ensure that all children can access the provision by making suitable adaptations and offering well-chosen resources. When needed, they use visual aids and sensory resources to encourage children to join in with activities. Staff ensure that their teaching meets the specific learning needs of children, such as providing a calm area. Staff use their curriculum guidance to monitor children's progress and milestones effectively. They have high expectations for children's learning. However, younger children are quieter in structured activities, and staff miss deepening their learning at times. Nevertheless, senior leaders' evaluation accurately highlights that staff's interventions are embedded well when teaching through younger children's interests. This strengthens children's confidence, attention and learning further.

Curriculum and teaching: Strong standard

Leaders develop an exciting and stimulating curriculum that focuses on individual children and the life skills that they will need. Children build effective communication and social skills. They learn how to play together and become independent in caring for themselves. This prepares them very effectively for the next stage in their education, such as going to school.

Children learn to persevere as staff converse with them during play. Staff model new vocabulary and ask useful questions, which extends children's learning effectively. Staff are extremely skilful at knowing when to provide more dialogue or to listen attentively. They encourage children to test their ideas and consolidate their existing knowledge.

Leaders plan a very effective mathematics curriculum, which staff weave into everyday activities and routines. For example, children join in with counting songs using their fingers. Older children learn to count out counters against their chosen snacks. Staff differentiate teaching for every child. This ensures that every child, including children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, makes significant progress. Staff are very skilled at supporting children's emotional and social development. Children use the outdoors to develop their coordination, agility, balance, core strength and fine motor skills very well. They gain knowledge from books, such as how to grow plants that provide vegetables for children to use in cooking.

Achievement: Strong standard

Children make consistent progress across all areas of learning and development from their different starting points. This includes children with special educational needs and/or disabilities or those who need adjustments in their learning. Children take part in purposeful activities that encourage them to develop a motivated and enthusiastic approach to their learning. They embed new skills securely and build on what they already know. As a result, children demonstrate high levels of confidence and resilience.

Children develop secure problem-solving skills and concentration as they focus deeply on different activities. For example, younger children learn to make varied buildings from blocks outdoors as they look at storybooks. Children develop independence and thrive on the praise and support staff provide as they manage daily routines, such as preparing porridge for snack time. Children learn to be kind and helpful, developing positive social skills.

Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines: Strong standard

Children understand and confidently follow well-established routines. They need little support from staff to independently wash their hands before eating and then to lie down to rest after lunchtime. Children demonstrate consistently positive behaviour as well as engaging attitudes to their learning because staff are supportive role models. Staff foster positive and nurturing relationships with children, which promotes children's kindness to each other. Children learn to share resources with others. Those children with special educational needs and/or disabilities are included in all daily routines. Children thrive on the frequent praise they receive from staff and demonstrate high self-esteem in their learning. They are eager to explore and try new things. For example, young children feel different textures in their farm tray.

Children attend regularly and engage well in all learning opportunities. Leaders consistently take decisive, evidence-led action to promote attendance, demonstrating a commitment to removing barriers to children's learning. Children have established warm and trusting relationships with their key persons, which start with home visits by their key persons. Staff help to build on this to help children settle calmly into the daily routines. They further inspire and extend children's interests and learning through visitors to the setting, such as dentists, or by travelling to community places, such as local shops, libraries and farms.

Children's welfare and wellbeing: Strong standard

Leaders and staff know children very well. They develop close bonds with them. Positive key-person relationships help children to feel safe and thrive. Staff have a secure understanding of the needs of children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who are disadvantaged. They provide a well-organised environment so that children can access materials and tools easily. A mix of nurturing areas for sensory play outdoors and calming down, along with lively play areas, promotes active healthy lifestyles. Children particularly enjoy lots of role play with others. Children learn and use words to describe movements as they navigate space safely and practise mathematical vocabulary.

Children learn to recognise and express their feelings because staff communicate about their emotions. Staff ensure that children are strictly supervised for safety when they sleep. Children also recognise healthy foods when they talk and eat lunch with staff. Staff enable children who need extra support so they feel fully included in sociable mealtimes. Staff engage successfully through newsletters with parents and carers to help children to understand and benefit from healthy eating habits. Children learn the importance of dental hygiene routines. Leaders invite dentists regularly to talk to children about dental care and appointments.

Leadership and governance: Strong standard

Leaders ensure that children are at the heart of all decisions made for a positive impact on their outcomes. For example, when implementing the curriculum, staff consider children's preferred way of learning to ensure that they thrive in the nursery and local environment. Children also enjoy regular outings in the local area with staff, such as visits to a nearby care home, which helps them develop a sense of community.

Leaders have a well-developed understanding of the setting's strengths and keenly reflect on their practice. They are supporting staff to match activities to younger children's stage of interest to enable them to fully participate and extend their learning. This is being embedded through staff learning to recognise younger children's explorations in the outdoor area. For instance, staff help younger children to water plants and see how vegetables grow. Consequently, all children who attend, including children who face disadvantage, make remarkable progress from their starting points. Staff morale is high because leaders are supportive and mindful of their wellbeing. They are supported through observations and supervision meetings to identify strengths and areas for development. Individual training programmes, such as Maths Champions, ensure that staff are fully skilled in their work and responsible for new initiatives. Staff speak highly of the teamwork approach in the nursery.

Leaders work very closely with parents and carers to establish very firm partnerships. Parents praise the quality of education and care that their children receive. Communication, including regular children's progress reports, helps parents to support their children's learning and development at home.