Tiny Gems Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children enjoy their time at this welcoming nursery. They have secure emotional attachments with staff, which is seen in the warmth and care they give to the children. As a result, children are happy, confident and develop good friendships. Children benefit from an ambitious and well-implemented curriculum and are motivated to learn. They have a positive attitude to their learning, show enthusiasm and listen and respond well to staff. For example, when staff read a story to the children about a bear, the children retell the story with excitement, and act it out using the materials and props provided. When the story finishes, the children jump up and down shouting 'again, again'.

Children demonstrate good behaviour. They are supported by staff to share and take turns during their play. As a result, children play cooperatively together. Pre-school children enjoy being chosen as the 'helper of the day'. They confidently hand out plates and cups to the other children at lunchtime. Children enjoy this sense of responsibility, which boosts their self-esteem and confidence. Staff play 'peekaboo' games with the babies, which supports their social and emotional development. Babies confidently play with pasta and rice as they develop their small-muscle skills and delight in this sensory experience.

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

• The manager has a clear intent for children's learning through the delivery of an ambitious curriculum. She and the staff understand what it is they want children to learn, and this is consistent throughout the nursery. For example, a song bag is used in every room to help children develop their language skills and repertoire of songs. Staff build further on this as they introduce different songs as children progress through the nursery.
• The manager understands the importance of communication and language development for younger children. She has good systems in place to identify and support children with delayed development in this area. Overall, staff interact well with children to promote their communication and language. However, sometimes, staff who care for younger children forget to model language to them as they play. As a result, children's developing speaking skills are not supported well enough.
• Staff support children to develop good self-care skills and independence. For example, they wash their own hands and try to put on their own aprons. Babies understand to put their tissue in the bin when the staff ask them to do this. However, staff do not always help children to understand the benefits of keeping healthy, for example when they wash their hands or clean their teeth.
• Relationships with parents are strong. Parents speak highly of the nursery and feel well informed about what their children are doing. Staff and the manager work well in partnership with parents to discuss children's next steps in their learning, and how to support these at home.
• The manager monitors the quality of teaching by observing practice and providing evaluative feedback to staff about what she has seen. Additionally, she provides regular supervision meetings to support staff's programme of professional development. For example, she works with them to identify and plan for any training they may need. The staff report that they feel supported and valued as a member of the staff team.
• Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities are supported effectively. Staff work closely with parents and other agencies to identify where support may be needed. This ensures that children's individual needs are well planned for and met in the nursery.
• At times, staff do not help children to use numbers during play activities to support their mathematical development. For example, they do not help the children to count the number of teats on the pretend udder of the cow, or when digging and finding worms in the mud garden.
• The nursery helps children build a greater understanding about where they live and their local community. Staff have taken children on visits to the gurdwara, the church and the mosque to develop an understanding and respect of other religions and cultures. They take trips to the local park and use public transport to travel, which develops children's understanding of the world around them.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• help staff to model language to support younger children's early speaking skills
• support staff to help children's understanding of the benefits of keeping healthy
• support children to gain a greater knowledge and awareness of number.