Woodlands Day Nursery Barnet

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy and confident at nursery. They have formed secure relationships with their key person. Staff are sensitive and responsive to children's needs. Babies new to the setting receive prompt cuddles and gentle care when they need reassurance. This helps them to feel safe and emotionally secure.

Children's development of communication and language is prioritised. They enjoy listening to stories and participating in songs. Lunchtime routines are used as an opportunity to enhance children's confidence in speaking in a group situation. Staff are skilled in initiating topics of conversation. They introduce helpful facts to extend children's knowledge. For example, children are excited to learn that pasta comes from Italy, which is part of Europe. Children eagerly share their experiences of visiting different countries and the foods they enjoyed.

Staff have a good understanding of child development. They implement a broad curriculum that supports all children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, to make good progress. Staff support children's understanding of polite behaviours through their positive role modelling. They provide children with meaningful praise, which helps to foster kindness and helpful behaviours. Staff read stories to encourage children to talk about their emotions. They help children to understand that some emotions can create strong feelings and that this is okay. These positive opportunities help children to understand and develop strategies for self-regulating their own behaviour. This in turn supports children to develop positive attitudes towards their learning.

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

• Leaders and managers have a good oversight of the early years curriculum. They work closely with their staff team. This helps to ensure that planning for children is thoughtfully sequenced and that appropriate next steps are in place to support their progression. There is due focus on supporting children's school readiness. This includes establishing links with local schools to support smooth transitions.
• Leaders and managers have high expectations for their staff team. They are committed to staff's professional development and ongoing supervision. Staff express they are happy in their roles. They share that they feel well supported both personally and professionally. The impact is evident in the staff's warm and caring interactions with children.
• Staff have established effective partnerships with parents and outside professionals. This helps to support a consistent approach towards children's care and learning needs. Staff ensure that all children are supported to have a voice. For example, visual learning prompts help children to make choices about their play and learning.
• Staff know their key children well and understand what next steps are needed to help them progress. This helps to ensure that planning is tailored to children's individual needs. However, when key staff are absent, the curriculum planning is not always implemented consistently.
• Staff plan many learning experiences to teach children about the world around them. Children plant seeds and learn how to care for them. They enjoy responsibilities to care for animals, including the nursery fish and giant African snails. Children are confident to share that snails like to eat cucumber and apples. They carefully chop the food into small chunks. These responsibilities help children to foster a sense of care for others.
• Children confidently initiate their own ideas and express their imagination through role play, such as pretending to be builders. They share their plans, and staff engage in discussions with them. However, staff do not always extend these child-led experiences, particularly for older children who would benefit from further challenge.
• Staff plan effectively around babies' home routines, ensuring that their individual needs are met. Mealtimes are flexible and unhurried, allowing both babies and older children to eat when they are ready. Older children are developing their independence as they self-register for lunch and help themselves to plates and cutlery. This helps to support their self-esteem and gives them autonomy.
• Children enjoy physical play as they excitedly participate in parachute games. They learn to balance on wooden blocks as they are supported to create long beams to test their skills. Babies are developing their physical strength as they are encouraged to crawl and to stand. They enjoy learning how to roll balls and how to crawl over small apparatus.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• refine the delivery of the curriculum so that learning experiences take account of children's individual learning needs when their key person is absent
• strengthen teaching skills so that staff consistently consider implementing challenge for older children.