YMCA @ Pelsall Lane

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children thoroughly enjoy their time in this vibrant, welcoming and inclusive nursery. The caring and nurturing staff build strong bonds with children, which helps children to feel safe and secure. Children arrive eager to start their day and quickly immerse themselves in their chosen play. Staff help children to develop a 'can-do' attitude and enjoy learning new skills. For example, children show high levels of perseverance as they peel their own fruit. Staff are good role models. They model good manners and kindness towards the children and each other. Staff support children to learn to manage their emotions and to understand how their behaviour impacts on others.

Staff encourage children to talk about what they like to do at nursery, such as listening to stories and digging for worms. Staff implement an ambitious curriculum, which has a strong focus on social skills, communication and language, and physical development. They plan exciting and interesting activities and experiences. Staff have high expectations for all children, including children who have special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Children develop positive attitudes towards learning and start to acquire the skills and knowledge they need for their future education, including their move on to school.

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

• The enthusiastic manager has a strong knowledge of child development. She has created an ambitious curriculum that covers all areas of learning and aims to provide children with a secure foundation for future learning. She ensures that any additional government funding is used effectively, such as for one-to-one support sessions.
• The special educational needs coordinator (SENCo) knows the children well. She liaises closely with parents and outside agencies to ensure that targeted plans are in place. This helps to ensure that children with SEND receive the support they need to make the progress they are capable of.
• Staff know the children well. When children first start, staff gather information from parents about what children already know and can do. They use this information to plan activities from the outset. Babies are happy and content. They play and explore in a calm and nurturing environment.
• Staff display children's creations around the nursery. They give lots of praise for children's efforts and achievements. This helps to promote children's self-esteem and confidence. Staff support children to become independent. They encourage children to take responsibility for their belongings and to help with small tasks throughout the day. Babies learn to feed themselves and make choices about their play. Children learn about healthy lifestyles. They enjoy plenty of time outdoors during the day. They learn about good oral hygiene.
• Overall, staff support children's communication skills well. Babies enjoy singing sessions and listening to stories. Staff help toddlers to increase their vocabulary and build short sentences. Older children enjoy lots of conversations throughout the day. However, on occasion, some staff ask children questions in quick succession or answer the question themselves. They do not give children enough time to think and formulate a response.
• Throughout the nursery, staff support children's mathematical development effectively. Younger children learn to count and recognise simple shapes. Older children learn to recognise numbers, match number to quantity and solve simple addition and subtraction problems.
• Children enjoy a wide variety of activities, indoors and outdoors, which helps to promote their physical development. Staff support children to engage freely in adventurous play. Children dig for long periods of time in search of worms. They develop their fine motor control as they manipulate dough and draw with chalks, pencils and crayons. Children demonstrate they remember what they have been taught. For example, they talk about the plant they are caring for and that they have to feed the 'fly catcher' with rainwater.
• The manager prioritises children's safety. She ensures that all staff who handle and serve food are fully aware of children's allergies and preferences. Staff ratios are maintained, and staff are deployed effectively to ensure that children are supervised closely at all times.
• The well-being of the staff is very important to the management team, and staff report that they feel well supported by managers to carry out their roles. Staff receive regular peer reviews, supervision meetings and training.
• Parents speak highly of the nursery. They comment on how their children enjoy attending and the good progress they make. However, staff do not always provide parents with precise information about their children's learning so that they can continue their children's learning at home.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• help staff to consistently provide children with time to think and respond to the questions staff ask them
• provide more precise information to parents about where their children are in their learning, so that they can continue their children's learning at home.