The Willows Day Nursery (March)

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children flourish in this warm and welcoming, home-from-home setting. They are greeted by friendly staff and eagerly join in with activities. Children thoroughly enjoy role playing hairdressers with staff and with their peers as they enthusiastically complete different hairstyles on one another. Staff promote positive behaviour and are good role models. Children effortlessly use their manners and are kind and considerate to one another. Staff support children to share resources with their friends and to tidy away their toys when they have finished playing.

Children show curiosity in their environment and explore the resources on offer. For example, babies use fidget boards to investigate how to operate the switches to make the lights turn on. Older children look for bugs in the garden and discuss how they can find food and a home for them. Staff plan interesting activities for children using what they know is of interest to them. This helps to motivate children's learning. Staff plan a range of outings that build on children's experiences. For example, they recently went to visit the pumpkin patch and the sea life centre. This helps children to develop an understanding of their community and the wider world around them.

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

• The provider has an ambitious curriculum in place for all children. Staff know the children well and have a secure knowledge of their development. They regularly complete assessments of the children to monitor their progress and put support systems into place if needed. However, next steps in children's learning are not shared effectively with parents to enable them to continue to support their child's learning at home.
• Children are encouraged to lead a healthy lifestyle. They enjoy nutritious, home-cooked meals that are prepared by the in-house chef. Children excitedly join in with dance and yoga sessions, which help to develop their physical skills. Staff understand the importance of teaching children about good oral health and set up activities and stories that help to develop children's understanding of this.
• Staff skilfully support children's personal, social and emotional development. They teach children to understand and express their feelings and emotions. Staff praise children's efforts and achievements, and children learn how to effectively manage their behaviour. As a result, children show high levels of confidence and willingness to have a go.
• Staff know how to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). They work closely with parents and other professionals to identify, plan and coordinate support for them. This helps children with SEND to make the best possible progress.
• Staff provide children with a broad range of activities that reflect their interests.
• They are aware that children have different developmental needs and adapt activities for this. However, there are occasions when staff do not engage effectively with children to challenge their thinking and extend their learning even further.
• Staff have built strong parent partnerships. Parents comment that staff are approachable and caring and provide 'exceptional care and education' for their children. Parents say that their children are provided with great support that enables them to be ready for when they move on to school.
• Staff understand the importance of supporting children's communication and language development. They model good language and use visual aids and sign language to help children communicate. For instance, babies sign 'thank you' as they are given their lunch. Older children engage in meaningful conversations with staff and have opportunities to join in with stories and singing.
• The management team places a strong emphasis on supporting staff's well-being and developing their skills and knowledge. Staff have ample opportunities to complete a wide variety of training, including supporting children's social and emotional development and helping children to be ready for school. Staff report that they feel well supported by management and enjoy working at the nursery.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen information-sharing with parents to help them to guide and support their child's learning at home
• support staff to engage in more effective interactions that help develop children's thinking skills and extend their learning.