Welly Boot Lodge Day Nursery

Inclusion: Strong standard

Leaders continue to strive for excellence, where inclusion is at the heart of this setting. Leaders and staff demonstrate an unwavering commitment to ensuring every child, regardless of their age or ability, receives the personalised support they need to settle quickly. They work tirelessly to ensure all children have access to the well-designed, ambitious curriculum. Staff make thoughtful adjustments in the moment, giving children the time and support they need to think, process information and respond at their own pace.

Leaders and staff identify children's needs early and implement highly effective, personalised support plans that evolve as children develop. They carefully match interventions to each child's needs, ensuring children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, and those who face other barriers to learning, reach their full potential. For example, staff use visual communication boards consistently to strengthen children's communication and language development. Children who started the setting with limited speech, now effectively express their wants and needs. Leaders oversee children's progress, closely monitor strategies and evaluate the impact of individual interventions. Their evaluations, alongside observations, show that individual and small-group activities successfully engage children and sustain their attention.

Leaders foster a genuine sense of community by working in close partnership with parents, colleagues and external professionals. They regularly review children's progress, share strategies for learning at home and coordinate support effectively. This collaborative approach ensures continuity of care and learning, enabling every child to thrive and reach their full potential.

Curriculum and teaching: Strong standard

Leaders design a highly ambitious, progressive curriculum that seamlessly incorporates children's interests, needs and abilities and is well understood and implemented by all staff. For instance, staff build on babies' enthusiasm for mark making by creating rich opportunities that promote communication, physical development and early literacy. Leaders expertly role model, coach and mentor staff to make the most of every interaction, ensuring they consistently build on each child's existing knowledge and skills to expand learning. For example, as children harvest fruit and vegetables from the setting's allotment, staff skilfully extend their vocabulary by introducing comparative language, such as, 'longer' and 'shorter', while encouraging children to describe the cucumbers they have grown. Mathematical learning is effectively interwoven in everyday play, helping children count, compare and solve problems in meaningful contexts. Staff adapt experiences thoughtfully so that children who face barriers to learning participate fully and continue to make excellent progress from their starting points.

Staff provide a wealth of first-hand experiences that sparks children's interests of the world around them. For instance, They take children beyond the setting to explore nature and learn how to care for the environment. Staff introduce less familiar fruits and vegetables, such as beetroot, discussing how they grow and taste before children try them at snack time. Staff consistently use high-quality interactions to extend children's thinking and understanding. For example, when children independently collect rainwater from a water butt to care for plants, staff encourage meaningful discussions about recycling, conserving resources and the small actions everyone can take to protect the planet.

Achievement: Strong standard

All children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, and those with other barriers to their learning or wellbeing, flourish and make significant progress from their starting points. Dedicated leaders and staff secure this rapid progress by skilfully introducing new learning that builds on each child's current level of development.

Children of all ages are highly inquisitive and enthusiastic learners who eagerly engage with staff and friends. For instance, older babies invite adults to join their play, as they draw on interactive writing pads. They remember when staff drew their family member before and says 'Dad', wanting staff to draw him again. Children readily respond by copying staff's circles and facial features and confidently name them. They naturally extend their fascination for mark making outdoors, using chalk to draw vertical lines while correctly describing their actions as, 'up' and 'down'.

Children develop a genuine love for books that continually enriches their vocabulary and language. For example, babies enthusiastically point to pictures as staff celebrate newly acquired words they use. Older children confidently recreate familiar characters and real-life events during imaginative play. They demonstrate impressive creativity alongside a secure understanding of story structure, with a beginning, middle and end. Children leave the setting securely prepared for their move on to school, with many exceeding expectations for their age and stage of development.

Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines: Strong standard

Leaders, staff and children create a calm, respectful environment where all children understand and follow clear expectations. Staff establish consistent routines and build warm, trusting relationships that help children feel safe and secure. Consequently, children behave superbly, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

Staff promptly recognise when individual children need extra support with their social interactions and respond with skill and sensitivity. They explain how behaviour affects others, use visual prompts and carefully chosen strategies. These include distraction or sequencing events with simple drawings to help children understand routines and adapt strategies to meet each child's needs. Staff carefully plan opportunities for children to develop social skills progressively. For example, beginning with one-to-one games before introducing peers to encourage sharing and turn-taking. Consequently, children of all ages cooperate well, show genuine care for one another and contribute to the deeply embedded culture of respect.

Children demonstrate high levels of curiosity, exploration and engagement. They particularly relish being outdoors in the fresh air. Babies persevere as they master climbing and balancing, while older children play more competitively as they push themselves safely to go higher on the swings. Staff position themselves effectively across the setting. They are vigilant, allowing all children, including those who face barriers to their learning, the freedom to explore, make independent choices in their play and take appropriate risks.

Leaders work collaboratively with parents to promote regular attendance as they recognise the positive impact this has on each child's development and wellbeing.

Children's welfare and wellbeing: Strong standard

Leaders and staff place children's welfare and wellbeing at the heart of everything they do. They provide a safe and nurturing environment, indoors and outdoors, where children eagerly explore, investigate and persevere. For instance, during yoga sessions, older children develop excellent body awareness and self-control as they practise breathing techniques and poses that improve their balance, coordination and concentration.

Staff promote healthy lifestyles throughout the day. They provide nutritious snacks and thoughtfully support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities to broaden their food preferences, celebrating their willingness to try new tastes. Children chat with staff about their favourite foods and the impact of too much sugar on their teeth. In addition, people from the local community visit children to enhance their understanding of where, for example, milk comes from. Children enthusiastically milk life-sized model cows by squeezing the pretend udders and learn how milk helps keep their bones and teeth healthy. These memorable experiences deepen children's knowledge of how to stay fit and well.

Children develop an impressive sense of belonging, feeling valued and understood by staff. Those who initially struggled with their emotions, confidently recognise their feelings and choose effective strategies to regulate them. For example, these children independently use visual timetables to follow daily routines, removing pictures as activities finish and deciding whether to join group experiences or use familiar calming techniques. As a result, children who face barriers to development make secure progress in their emotional wellbeing, independence and decision-making skills.

Leadership and governance: Strong standard

Passionate and committed leaders work tirelessly to provide children and their families with a nurturing, consistently high-quality setting where children are firmly at the heart. They continually reflect on the provision and work closely with staff, families and external professionals to drive well-considered improvements. Leaders ensure the setting plays a central role within the local community. They actively seek opportunities to enrich children's experiences through meaningful partnerships with specialists, such as forest-school leaders. In addition, leaders work closely with local authority advisers to develop a dedicated classroom for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, and those who face barriers to their learning. These carefully considered improvements and enriching experiences provide highly effective support, enabling these children to flourish and continue making excellent progress.

A well-established and highly motivated staff team feels extremely supported and valued by leaders. Regular supervision, alongside carefully targeted training, coaching and mentoring continually strengthen staff's knowledge and practice. For example, staff have developed an extensive understanding of strategies that successfully support children with emotional needs to regulate their feelings. Leaders prioritise staff wellbeing by maintaining manageable workloads and fostering a positive, supportive culture. Consequently, staff morale is exceedingly high and good practice is consistently maintained.

Parents are overwhelming impressed with the education and care their children receive. They describe leaders and staff as going, 'Above and beyond' to understand their individual circumstances and provide thoughtful advice and guidance. These secure partnerships promote continuity in children's development, contributing greatly to the excellent progress they make.