The Village Nursery Ltd

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy and make good progress in this welcoming nursery. Babies have the confidence to explore the room freely, secure in the knowledge that their trusted key worker is next to them. Children enjoy stories and songs throughout the day, which provide excellent opportunities for improving their speech and language. Staff are caring and ensure children are safe through safe sleeping practice and ensuring dietary requirements are met.

Staff nurture close relationships with families. Children enjoy sharing what they have been doing at home and staff plan further learning based on children's experiences. For example, when children help family members lay bricks for a home extension, children learn to build their own walls in a construction area. Staff are enthusiastic and plan a wide range of engaging activities to deliver the broad curriculum. As a result, all children make good progress.

Staff follow children's interests and extend their learning and children become engrossed in activities, showing high levels of concentration. Staff promote high expectations of behaviour that leads to a harmonious environment, where children work together to achieve their goals. For example, children build tracks for water to run down, taking turns with jugs and carrying heavy buckets together.

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

• Staff plan meaningful activities that build children's knowledge in all of the areas of learning. For instance, staff support children to use fine motor skills to pick fresh herbs and identify each plant. Children work together to make 'tea', using large muscles to pour water from bowls into teapots, learning about capacity. As a result, children remember what they learn and build upon what they already know and can do.
• The setting's broad curriculum is implemented effectively in practice. For example, leaders say they want children to be independent in their learning and have strategies for when they find things difficult. When children need more water for outdoor play, staff say 'Where could you get that?' They encourage children to ask their friends for help to carry the bucket. As a result, children make good progress in all areas of learning.
• Staff use assessment effectively to understand children's needs. For example, when children join a room, all staff contribute to a spidergram that helps build a picture of the child's development in all areas. This whole-setting approach to managing transitions means that children quickly feel secure and are well supported from the beginning.
• Staff deliver a rich set of experiences for children to learn from. Staff identify the experiences children might otherwise not have, such as riding a bus, visiting a library or planting herbs in the community allotment. These well-planned experiences give context to children's learning and help them to understand the wider world.
• Staff support children to understand and regulate their emotions using a range of strategies. For example, children seek out sand timers to agree with each other when it will be their turn with a toy. Staff help children name the big emotions they feel and talk about why they feel that way. Consequently, children manage their emotions well and are ready for learning.
• The setting fosters strong relationships with families. There is a constant flow of information about how to support children's learning at home. In turn, families share children's experiences, achievements and challenges. Consequently, staff are able to support children in the areas they need it the most.
• The setting works effectively with other agencies. For example, information from specialist support workers quickly feeds into personalised plans to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). As a result, all children receive full access to high-quality care and education.
• Leaders support staff effectively to manage the demands of their work. There are strong shared values across the nursery, which help each child achieve their full potential. However, support and coaching for staff does not sufficiently focus on improving the practitioner's teaching of the curriculum. This reduces opportunities to reflect on quality throughout the nursery and enhance individual practice.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• ensure the leader's support for staff is sharply focused on improving practice and subject knowledge.