Wiggles and Giggles

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children arrive happily and are warmly welcomed by friendly, cheerful staff in this lively, open-plan setting. Staff quickly establish trusting, positive relationships with children and families, supporting children's physical and emotional well-being through attentive, nurturing care. They offer cuddles and gentle reassurance to children, who are tired or unsettled. As a result, children feel safe, secure and content in the setting.

The setting offers a well-resourced environment, where children can make independent choices and explore a variety of stimulating activities. Staff provide carefully planned experiences to support children's development in all areas of learning. For instance, they organise a shape identification game and challenge children to target the shapes by taking turns to throw a ball. This successfully supports children's social and physical development, as well as developing early mathematical understanding.

Staff help children to recognise and begin to manage their feelings by using words to describe emotions. For example, when babies show excitement by smiling and kicking their legs, staff say, 'You are excited.' Expectations for behaviour are based on simple golden rules, such as using 'kind hands'. Children are consistently kind to others and play happily alongside and with their peers.

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

• Staff understand the importance of developing communication skills from an early age. They model language well, engage children in meaningful conversations and use questions to extend learning. For example, they talk to babies about what they are doing. Songs and stories also support language development, helping all children become confident, effective communicators.
• All children enjoy a daily walk that promotes well-being and understanding of the world. They safely explore natural features and delight in spotting 'log pile houses', collecting natural objects, such as horse chestnuts and pine cones, and observing wildlife along the way. Staff also use this as an opportunity to teach road safety and respect for the environment.
• Children enjoy a variety of freshly prepared, nutritious meals, which support their good health. Staff support children effectively to develop independence in hygiene routines. From a young age, children take part in regular activities, such as handwashing before meals and after using the toilet. For example, babies have their hands and faces wiped, while older children are encouraged to wash their hands and wipe their own noses. This promotes children's physical development and helps them understand the importance of good hygiene, supporting their growing independence in self-care.
• Staff encourage children to use good manners, although this is not always implemented consistently. Similarly, staff do not always reinforce expectations for behaviour during daily routines. For instance, children are sometimes seen running indoors. Key routines, including tidying up and moving between activities, are not yet fully embedded, which can lead to some confusion. As a result, children are not always clear about what is expected of them. This means they do not consistently learn to make good choices about their behaviour.
• Staff provide effective support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), understanding their individual needs and working closely with parents and professionals to plan targeted support. As a result, children with SEND make steady progress in their learning alongside their peers
• Leaders demonstrate a commitment to delivering high-quality care and education for all children. Additional funding is used purposefully, such as purchasing resources for physical development and interest-based play, helping to close learning gaps and boost engagement. Staff are supported through an ongoing programme of training. Parents speak positively about the care and education their children receive. They value the regular communication and feel well supported by staff.
• Parents say they are happy with the nursery and use phrases like 'over the moon', when talking about their experience. They praise the staff for being warm, caring and genuinely invested in the children. They say it is clear that every child is treated as an individual and supported to grow and thrive.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support staff to consistently reinforce clear expectations for children's behaviour during routine parts of the day, so that children develop a secure understanding of what is expected and are better able to manage their own behaviour effectively.