Yellow Brick Rd Nursery Highwoods

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Staff implement their curriculum and development aims for the children effectively. They provide children with a most welcoming and interesting play space both indoors and outdoors. The nursery implements principles of the curiosity approach to learning, but also effectively include children's interests when planning invitations to learn. They help children become confident and independent learners, in readiness for their move on to school. Children are greeted on arrival by happy staff who show a genuine interest, and children are excited to start their day. Staff work hard to ensure effective partnerships with parents are established. They offer home visits before children attend, to meet them and their family in a familiar environment. They gain useful and appropriate information about the children and how best to support their learning. This also supports children to develop close and trusting bonds with the staff.

Attentive staff are skilful in their interactions. They interact well with the children and are calm and positive role models. Children are recognised for their efforts and enjoy the positive praise they receive. Children understand the high expectations as these are reinforced throughout the session. Overall, children's behaviour is good. The curriculum is also designed to support children's emotional and personal development, so that they have a strong sense of self, and support children to become effective communicators. They learn the skills needed to be independent. For example, they are encouraged and supported to use the bathroom independently, and take care of their personal belongings as they store their bags and lunchboxes.

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

• Children relish their time outdoors. They make choices as to where they play and move freely between indoors to outdoors. Young children show sustained concentration as they make marks on a large chalk board. They are fascinated as they use water and brushes and watch the pictures disappear. Children sit comfortably in the shade as they enjoy stories, while others giggle with delight as they run through mists of water to cool down.
• The management team demonstrates a commitment to provide children with the quality learning opportunities. Managers understands the importance of monitoring staff's practice and supporting staff with their own professional development. Training is encouraged, including supporting staff working towards a childcare qualification.
• All children, including those who require additional support, make good progress from their starting points. Staff provide learning opportunities that capture children's interests and build on what children already know. However, there are some variations in the quality of teaching and while the management team are aware and support staff to raise the quality of teaching to the highest standard, it is not yet fully embedded.
• Children learn about simple mathematics through activities provided. They fill buckets with water and carry them to scales as they measure which one is heavier. They show patience and an eagerness to complete the task independently, even when they spill the water. They negotiate together as they work out the best way to carry the heavy buckets.
• Younger children learn about size and shape as they participate in adult-led activities. They follow instructions as they make small or large balls using dough. They count proficiently and talk about the shapes they make.
• Professional, but friendly, relationships have been established with the parents who speak highly of the nursery. Daily conversations take place as children arrive, and when parents collect their children. They benefit from, and welcome, the home visits offered before children attend to discuss their children individual needs in a relaxed and familiar environment. However, staff have not consistently embedded ways to share up-to-date information to help parents continue to support their child's learning at home.
• Parents speak highly of the welcoming and supportive team of staff. They comment that their children make good progress in the 'homely' nursery as a result of attending and feel reassured their children have fun and are safe.
• Overall, children are supported to initiate their own play. They access quality resources from easily accessible units. Children are busy and engaged in their play. They transport toys around the room to enhance their play, and become engrossed in their imaginary games. However, they are not consistently encouraged to develop a deep understanding of how to take care of the things that they use, such as resources, when they have finished with these.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• continue to support staff to ensure the quality of education provided is consistent, and children learn to an even higher level
• build on the good communication with parents to develop ways to consistently share up-to-date information about how they can support their child's learning at home
• help children to understand how to take more care of their environment and resources, particularly when they are leading their own play.