Woodlands Day Nursery

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy in this nursery setting. Staff create a warm, welcoming and nurturing environment for children. They place a high priority on forming strong attachments with children when they first start. This helps children to develop a sense of belonging and good emotional well-being.

Children approach their learning and play with confidence and enthusiasm. They benefit from an interesting, ambitious and thoughtfully planned curriculum of learning. Staff provide opportunities and experiences that help children to develop skills in all areas of their learning. For example, staff use children's love of books to extend their learning. Children are delighted to act out one of their favourite stories by going on a bear hunt in the outside area. They use familiar lines from the story as they explore mud, water and grass. All children make good progress in their learning.

Children behave extremely well. Staff are excellent role models and always treat children with respect and kindness. They speak to children in a calm, respectful and caring manner. Children remember and follow rules, such as waiting patiently for their turn. Staff consistently praise children for their efforts, achievements and positive behaviour. This helps to build children's self-esteem and confidence.

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

• The management team and staff have a clear vision for what they want the children to learn. They ensure that every child has the opportunity to progress in their development. Staff use children's next steps and current interests to set out activities to entice children to engage with their learning. However, staff do not always build on comments or ideas that children have, particularly during outdoor free play, to help them to make even more progress in their learning.
• Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are very well supported. The dedicated coordinator works together with families and external agencies to ensure that children's developmental and emotional needs are met. Through early intervention and targeted support, children with SEND are included in every aspect of the nursery. This helps these children to make the best possible progress.
• Partnership with parents is a strength of the nursery. Parents speak highly about the service they receive. They comment that staff are welcoming, friendly and caring. Parents value the excellent communication that they receive about their children. Staff give daily feedback and share information through online learning journals with parents. Parents are also invited to attend stay-and-play sessions throughout the year.
• The management team prioritises the mental health and well-being of the staff.
• Effective strategies, such as regular supervision meetings, help to promote their positive well-being. Staff speak with enthusiasm about their roles and how they enjoy working at the nursery. However, the monitoring of staff practice is not yet focused enough on providing staff with the right level of support. For example, when staff move rooms, they are not always fully supported in adapting their teaching methods.
• Staff understand the importance of supporting children's communication and language skills. They model language and repeat words so that children hear the correct pronunciation. Staff use effective questioning when communicating with children, to extend conversation and build on children's language. This helps children to develop their understanding skills and become effective communicators.
• Children very much enjoy playing outdoors in the fresh air. They have regular access to the outdoor areas, which offer a wealth of resources and learning experiences. For example, children practise a range of physical skills, such as climbing ramps and balancing on obstacle courses made from tyres and planks. They use their imaginations and excitedly use sticks, mud and water to make mud pies together. Staff plant and grow herbs and vegetables with children to teach them where food comes from. This helps children to gain an understanding of the world.
• Staff support children to become increasingly independent in several ways. For example, children in the baby room begin by learning how to feed themselves and move around the room independently. Pre-school children learn how to zip up their coats and put their wellington boots on, and frequently wash their hands. These opportunities help children to develop key skills that prepare them for their future learning.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• consider ways to strengthen the interactions between staff and children during free play outside to extend children's learning opportunities even further
• strengthen how staff practice is monitored, to provide relevant support and improve staff's knowledge of working with different age groups of children.