Tiddlers Daycare Ltd

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Staff implement effective policies and procedures to provide a safe and happy space for children. They get to know children well and organise the routines to meet their individual needs. For example, staff offer flexible mealtimes, which allow children to eat when they are hungry and not just at fixed points throughout the day. Staff are consistently kind and attentive to children, which helps them to settle and feel secure. They support children to explore their own ideas, such as mixing paints to create new colours. Children are excited and motivated by these hands-on learning opportunities. For instance, they are delighted when they create green paint and carefully apply this to their hands and arms, pretending to be 'sea monsters'.

Leaders and staff have high expectations for all children. They provide a broad curriculum, to prepare children for their next stages in learning, including starting school. For example, staff provide lots of opportunities for children to exercise their hands and fingers, such as playing with dough and joining construction pieces. This helps children to develop the strength and coordination they need when learning to write. Staff are clear about the rules and boundaries in the nursery. They ensure that these are shared with children, such as by singing a song about 'good listening' and providing regular reminders about safety. Children play nicely together and show that they understand expectations, such as helping to tidy up.

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

• The manager has a good oversight of the nursery. She regularly reviews the provision and works with staff to further develop the curriculum. For example, they have introduced more age-appropriate ways to explore and celebrate children's similarities and differences. This includes children playing with multicultural cooking utensils and cooking recipes from around the world.
• Overall, teaching is of a high quality. Staff respond 'in the moment' to support children's emerging interests and extend their learning. For instance, staff initially hold children's hands as they learn to walk along a narrow beam. Once children have mastered this skill independently, staff introduce the more challenging stepping stones, to further promote their balance and coordination. This encouraging and supportive approach ignites children's love of learning.
• The learning environment includes lots of interesting and adaptable resources, such as sand play and a mud kitchen. This motivates children of different ages and abilities, who play and learn alongside each other. However, group activities are not always precisely planned to incorporate all children's needs. For example, during circle time, staff sometimes read stories which are too long and complex to engage the younger children. Therefore, they become bored and miss out on opportunities to learn new words and information.
• Staff understand how important children's communication and language skills are for their future learning. They have lots of meaningful conversations with children and introduce them to a wide range of words. Staff ensure that key words in children's home languages are used in the nursery, to aid communication. Children become confident talkers and express themselves well.
• Children discover that there are lots of fun ways to be physically active. Staff ensure that children play outside each day and introduce them to a variety of sports and activities, such as football and yoga. This motivates children well and they are keen to develop their physical abilities. For example, children confidently tackle a climbing wall and explore different ways to come down the slide.
• The manager is an effective leader and has high aspirations for the staff team. Staff describe how she motivates them to develop their professional skills and improve their childcare qualifications. They say the manager is mindful of their well-being and ensures that their workload is manageable.
• Staff foster effective partnerships with parents. There is a good exchange of information, to support children at each stage in their development, including where they need help from other professionals. Parents value staff's advice on matters such as children's behaviour and toilet training. This cooperative approach helps all children to make the best possible progress.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support staff to refine the planning and delivery of group activities, to help all children benefit as much as possible from the learning experiences.