Turtles Nursery Limited

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children feel happy and confident while spending time at the nursery. Before starting, staff gather detailed information from parents and carers about their children's routines, interests and abilities. This information allows staff to provide high-quality care and a stimulating and ambitious curriculum. Staff offer a variety of planned activities and give children time for self-directed play. For example, children eagerly explore the texture of dough mixed with herbs and spices during sensory experiences.

Staff support children's communication and language skills effectively. For instance, during group time, children come together to listen to stories and sing songs. They eagerly participate with familiar phrases and actions. In the room for younger children, staff engage in conversations, repeating and modelling language to support their learning. Children of all ages enjoy cuddling with staff and sitting close while they read age-appropriate stories. Children form strong attachments with their key person and other staff members. This helps them to settle in quickly. Children demonstrate that they feel safe and secure.

Staff weave mathematics into children's play activities. They help them to develop counting, addition and problem-solving skills through effective instruction. Staff serve as positive role models, consistently praising children during their play. This boosts children's self-esteem effectively. Children display good behaviour, with older children showing care and consideration for younger children. All children make good progress and are well prepared for school.

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

• Staff promote children's imaginative play and literacy, such as by encouraging drawing and writing in the play kitchen. For example, they provide notepads and pencils, encouraging children to create shopping lists while preparing strawberry flavoured tea during their role play. However, during some activities, staff do not consistently involve some of the quieter children, as they forget to remind the more vocal children to wait their turn.
• Overall, children begin to develop their independence skills at a young age. For example, toddlers confidently explore their surroundings and learn to feed themselves during meals. Older children take responsibility for setting up lunch. They work out the number of plates and cutlery needed for the group. However, during routine activities, such as nap time, older children often have limited choices. As a result, some children passively wait instead of being actively engaged in their learning.
• Staff use a calm and gentle approach. They offer emotional support and comfort through hugs and verbal guidance when children feel uncertain. During circle time, children share the nursery's golden rules with the group. They demonstrate their understanding and explain the consequences of not following them. Children begin to accept the needs of others as they share resources and take turns.
• Children have many opportunities to engage in physical activity. They enjoy playtime in the garden, where they can explore a variety of sensory experiences, such as mixing water, soil, leaves and wood bark. Toddlers learn to balance as staff support them while they walk across wooden planks. This strengthens and aids them with their walking. Additionally, children participate in yoga, learning how to move and stretch their bodies in various ways.
• Staff provide comprehensive information to the schools that children transition to, ensuring a smooth continuation of their care and learning. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities make significant progress in their learning and development. Staff collaborate with parents and external agencies to meet each child's individual needs effectively.
• Leaders make it a priority to integrate self-evaluation into their daily practice, which includes gathering feedback from parents and staff. For example, the team is developing activities for children based on a curiosity-driven approach. Additionally, staff have reinforced the parents' buggy storage area to keep children's buggies dry during rainy weather. This approach ensures that children have positive experiences in their care.
• Leaders regularly review staff's practice to ensure high-quality teaching. They assess children's progress by collecting and analysing specific data. This helps them to identify any gaps in children's learning and implement appropriate interventions. For example, leaders have enhanced certain areas to better engage children's interest in mathematics and role play. Additionally, they have provided staff with training in sign language to improve the communication and language skills of younger children and those children who speak English as an additional language.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• explore ways to include quieter children more fully in planned activities, to support their learning even further
• review the organisation of daily routines, such as nap time, to minimise the time that children wait without being purposefully occupied.