Whitfield Valley Community Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children arrive happy and eager to engage in self-chosen activities. They are familiar with the daily routine and show increasing independence. For instance, children know to find their picture and place their belongings on their peg. They sit on individual mats at group times, and once finished, they put them away without any prompting. Staff teach children how to put on their coats using a 'coat flip' technique and how to zip them up. This helps to promote their readiness for school.

A key-person system is in place, allowing children to develop secure bonds with staff, which helps them to feel safe. Key persons lead activities within their individual key groups, which take place simultaneously, giving more focus to a smaller group of children. They share information about children effectively with other staff to ensure continuity in meeting children's individual needs.

Staff initiate turn-taking games to help to develop children's social skills. They praise children for sharing, both verbally and with a 'high five', which brings smiles to children's faces. Staff speak clearly to children, modelling the correct vocabulary and pronunciation. For example, when children say 'tar', staff say 'thank you'. They focus on repeating familiar songs and stories so that children continuously hear key words. This promotes children's communication skills.

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

• Since the last inspection, leaders have made changes to both the number of children on roll and the curriculum. Staff receive training and supervision, and as a team, they reflect on what is working well and identify areas for improvement. Parents and carers highlight that staff appear 'happier' and 'less stressed'.
• Leaders recognise the need to review the delivery of some group activities, as staff do not always encourage children's listening and attention skills. As a result, children who struggle to sit and engage in group times can become distracted and do not always fully participate in their learning.
• Staff identify and support children who need additional help to develop their speech. They have attended relevant training, which enables them to use communication screening tools and plan early interventions effectively. Staff use signs, prompts and picture cards to aid children's understanding. When necessary, they assess children's speaking skills in their home language.
• Additional funding is used effectively to ensure disadvantaged children and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities have access to the same opportunities and resources as their peers. For example, leaders have purchased potties and reward charts to enable parents to continue toilet training at home. This supports children to make good progress in their personal development.
• Staff monitor children's progress and provide parents with plenty of ideas and guidance to extend learning at home. However, leaders do not always monitor staff when completing the two-year progress checks. As a result, the information shared with parents is not always of a high quality, with some reports lacking detail about children's learning and development.
• Leaders and staff are passionate about supporting all children and their families. Parents appreciate this and explain how leaders have signposted them to vital professional support when needed. They are aware of who their child's key person is and the progress their children are making.
• Children have many opportunities to develop their fine motor skills. For example, they carefully pinch the play dough using chopsticks and insert twigs to create a snowman. They express their creativity by drawing a snowman with eyes, a nose and a mouth. Additionally, staff bring real snow indoors for children to explore and build a real snowman. This helps children to connect with the world around them.
• Staff introduce simple mathematical language as children play. For instance, when children blow bubbles, staff use terms like 'higher' and 'lower.' They encourage children to use mathematical thinking as they compare the sizes of fish. Staff help children to thread large beads onto string and give them time to complete jigsaws. This helps children to develop early problem-solving skills.
• Overall, staff promote children's healthy lifestyles. For instance, they encourage parents to use children's interest in shapes to motivate them to try new foods. Healthy snacks are provided, and a choice of water or milk is available at snack time and mealtimes. However, children are unable to access water independently throughout the day. They need to ask for their water bottles as they are not easily accessible.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• review the delivery of group times to ensure staff consistently provide children with support to enhance their listening and attention skills
• strengthen monitoring systems to ensure staff consistently provide parents with detailed information when completing children's progress checks
• ensure that fresh drinking water is easily accessible to children throughout the day.