Treasures Of Duston

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children arrive at the nursery eager and enthusiastic, confidently separating from their parents and carers. They are warmly welcomed by staff, who show genuine affection and care, helping children feel emotionally secure from the outset. Staff know each child well and support them in forming strong and secure attachments to help them become confident and independent in their play. Babies are cuddled sensitively and gently rocked to sleep, promoting a calm and nurturing environment. Older children seek out staff for comfort and enjoy sharing moments of laughter, clearly demonstrating the strong relationships they have built.

Children make good progress in the language-rich environment. They listen carefully as staff model clear language. For example, when exploring a tray containing fossils and dinosaurs, children are introduced to complex vocabulary, such as 'stegosaurus' and 'diplodocus'. Staff encourage them to repeat and use these words independently. As children learn what dinosaurs eat, staff introduce scientific terms like 'herbivore', 'carnivore' and 'omnivore'. They encourage children to use this new vocabulary when describing different dinosaurs and their diets to help children become confident speakers and build strong foundations for later literacy.

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

• The curriculum is well-planned and carefully sequenced, with a clear intent to support children's individual next steps in learning. All staff demonstrate a good understanding of the curriculum and how it meets the needs and interests of the children they care for. This supports children to make good progress from their starting points.
• Staff are positive role models, consistently promoting respectful behaviour that supports children to behave well. When children struggle to regulate their emotions, staff respond promptly and sensitively, helping them to understand how their actions may affect others.
• Leaders conduct regular supervision and well-being checks to support staff effectively. Peer observations and targeted training are used to continually improve teaching to improve outcomes for children. Staff feel well supported and valued. They comment that they enjoy working at the nursery and enjoy a positive team culture.
• The nursery has strong and trusting relationships with parents, built on open and honest communication. Parents speak highly of the nursery, describing it as warm and homely. They feel informed and involved in their children's learning. For example, staff guide parents with project books that have ideas and activities they can do at home to support children and families and develop good parent partnerships.
• Staff read stories and have conversations as they play alongside children to support their communication and language. However, at times, staff ask too many questions in quick succession or answer their own question too quickly. This limits opportunities for children to think and develop their language skills even further.
• Staff support early mathematical skills by encouraging children to compare the size of footprints and match fossils, using language such as 'big', 'small' and 'the same' to develop their understanding of size and comparison. Staff encourage children to count the footprints made by the dinosaurs, which children are using independently in their play.
• Children develop their fine motor skills and good hand-eye coordination as they use tools to dig for pretend dinosaurs. Staff skilfully model how to use the tools safely and effectively. They introduce vocabulary such as hatch, chisel, dig and scoop, supporting both physical development and language skills.
• Children are confident and engage well in exciting, well-planned activities that reflect their interests. They follow instructions and listen attentively to staff. At times, more-confident children can lead discussions, which can make it more challenging for quieter children to share their ideas.
• The nursery enables children to go out into the local community to deepen their knowledge and appreciation of the world around them. They go on local walks, visit horses in the local field and go on trips to parks. In addition, children learn how to grow and care for vegetables and fruit in the nursery allotment. These are enriching opportunities.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen staff's use of questioning by allowing children enough time to process and respond to further support their communication and language development
• develop strategies to encourage quieter children to participate more actively so that all children have opportunities to contribute to conversations and build their confidence.