The Tots' Clubhouse Nursery School Limited

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The manager has a strong overarching curriculum that accurately reflects the needs of the children. She has used her knowledge of the local community to provide children with a wide range of enrichment experiences. Children benefit from opportunities to develop new knowledge and skills, such as swimming, learning about animals in their natural habitat and making healthy food choices.

Children develop a love of books. The manager and staff carefully select the books they share with children to focus on helping their language development. For example, to develop their understanding of rhyme. Two-year-old children enjoy listening to stories and older children learn that print has meaning. Children's love of books is further supported through the parent partnerships, which have a focus on encouraging families to read together.

Staff are positive role models with each other and to the children. Children form close bonds with them and show they feel safe and secure. They behave well and understand what staff expect from them. For example, they help at tidy-up times. Staff use a range of effective strategies to help children to manage their feelings and behaviour, such as to help them separate from parents on arrival.

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

• The manager, who is also the provider, reflects well on the service they provide and works closely with the local authority to ensure that children's safety is prioritised. She has plans to further extend children's outdoor learning experiences even further. The manager has recently supported staff in the two-year-old children's room to re-organise resources to provide children with additional opportunities to build their strength as they lift and carry.
• The manager provides staff with effective ongoing training and supervision to continue their professional development. She supports experienced staff to gain further qualifications. Apprentices state that the manager generously supports them with their training, including being sensitive to their well-being.
• The manager understands the impact that the COVID-19 pandemic has had on children's development. She has developed the curriculum to precisely focus on children's learning needs, such as placing a strong emphasis on their language development. Staff monitor children's communication and language skills closely. They provide children with additional learning opportunities that support them to quickly overcome language delay. The special educational needs coordinator monitors children's progress carefully and is swift to make referrals, when they identify that children need support from outside agencies.
• Children are well motivated during the times when they make decisions and lead their own play. Two-year-old children concentrate for extensive periods of time while they shape play dough into creations, such as spiders. Older children are particularly interested in practising their writing skills and independently access the resources they need. However, staff do not organise the daily routines as well as possible, particularly during transitions, such as moving from play to snack and then outdoors. There are occasions when staff keep children waiting which interrupts their play and learning.
• Staff make good use of their observations of children's achievements to plan for their individual learning. Frequent communication between staff and the other settings where children also attend, helps to provide continuity for children's learning. Staff enhance children's play skilfully to help them to build on what they already know and can do. However, staff's planning for the adult-led activities is not fully effective. At times, children are less engaged during these large-group activities.
• Staff focus on helping children to feel proud of their achievements and building their confidence. Children benefit from opportunities to practise skills they have learned, such as to extend their hand dexterity in readiness for writing. Staff help them to reflect on how they have progressed and children recognise that, after practise, they are better at picking up objects with tweezers. Children practise their hand-eye coordination as they learn how to use a tennis racquet and ball.
• Parent partnerships are strong. Parents value the daily opportunities to talk to staff about their child's achievements at home and at the nursery. Staff give them lots of ideas, so they can continue children's learning at home, such as to support language development.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• review and enhance daily routines to maximise opportunities for children to play and learn
• refine the planning and teaching of the large-group activities to further support children's level of engagement and learning.