Toto Day Nursery Ltd T/a Kids Place

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children settle quickly as they enter this inviting nursery. They share close bonds with staff and approach them for comfort and reassurance. This means they feel safe and happy in their care. Leaders have made improvements to the structural set up of the provision during school holidays. Young children now have dedicated learning and sleeping spaces. This supports their emotional and educational development.

Children delight in moving to music in dance sessions. They follow actions and sing along to familiar songs. Even the youngest children clap and stamp their feet to the beat. This helps children to enjoy rhythm and express their creativity while building on their physical skills.

Children are kind and polite. Staff have high expectations for all children. They skilfully support children to share and take turns, and they explain the impact their behaviour has on others. This gives children a good understanding of boundaries, following rules and how to behave well. Mealtimes are social occasions, as children sit and chat to staff. Children learn to be independent as they scrape their plates clean and feed themselves.

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

• The manager has significantly improved their skills and knowledge to support the effective running of the nursery. The manager has reflected on the environment and added further resources to give children exciting learning opportunities. For example, young children have access to an art room. This allows them to be creative, explore different media when making marks, and helps to strengthen the muscles they need for their future writing.
• The manager supports her staff team well. She holds regular supervisions and staff meetings, and she models good practice when working in the rooms. Staff comment that they feel well supported and that their well-being is a priority. They regularly join together for team building activities. This strengthens relationships between the team and builds staff morale.
• Staff know all the children very well, and they plan precisely to meet their individual needs. Children have targeted next steps. This helps to close the gaps in their development. Effective systems mean all staff know what children are working on next. Next-steps boards are clearly visible in each room for staff to see. During group activities, staff know how to differentiate the activity for all the children taking part. This helps all children to make good progress in their learning.
• Support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) is good. The manager, who is also the special educational needs coordinator
• (SENCo), works closely with staff and other professionals. This means children get the early and ongoing help they might need. The SENCo has a calm approach, and children with SEND respond well to her. However, some staff repeat questions and are loud in their manner. This can sometimes make the learning environment feel hectic and does not always support children to have the time they need to think deeply and respond.
• Children follow instructions and respect what staff say. Staff are attentive when children need their noses wiped. They support children to use tissues and wash their hands. This is teaching them important personal hygiene skills. Children are keen to learn, and they engage in activities for a long time. However, sometimes, the older, more confident children dominate staff's attention. This means the quieter children do not always have the same learning opportunities to develop and expand their knowledge.
• Children enjoy daily outdoor play. They have interesting opportunities to practise their physical skills. They balance on obstacle courses and try walking on stilts to challenge their coordination. Staff closely supervise, making sure children are safe.
• Staff regularly share progress information with parents through parents' consultations and an online application. They share daily verbal feedback and give parents ideas to continue learning at home. Parents comment that their children love attending the nursery and say the staff are very helpful. This effective two-way communication means gaps in development can be quickly identified and support started early.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• provide all children with a calm environment to help them think deeply and respond to questions
• consider the support and interactions children receive, to enable them to make the best possible progress in their learning.