Banana Moon Day Nursery

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Children arrive happy and excited. Familiar staff greet children at the door, welcoming them into the setting.

An effective key-person system ensures that children develop strong relationships with staff and feel safe in their environment. Staff provide an interesting and varied range of activities. This inspires children's natural curiosity to explore and discover.

Children have positive relationships with their friends. Younger children play alongside each other, with adults close by to support sharing and turn-taking. Older children actively seek out their friends to play with and enjoy sharing experiences with them....

Children develop a love of books. Children of all ages happily share books of independent choosing with adults. Staff talk about the pictures in books with the younger babies, while older children listen intently as staff read stories.

Staff know children well and are aware of the skills they already have and what they need to learn next. Staff create activities to support children's interests and develop their next steps. Children enjoy staff interactions and actively seek them out to share their play and learning experiences.

Staff help children learn the importance of good health and hygiene. Children know to wash their hands after wiping their noses and do this independently.

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

Staff are well attuned to the needs of the youngest babies.

They skilfully use their child development knowledge to interact with them, carefully taking time to support their individual needs. Staff are quick to recognise and respond to babies' basic needs. They offer warmth and comfort when they become upset.

Staff allow babies time to explore toys and activities. For example, staff role model how to use rolling pins at the play dough. They hold them out for children to look at before calmly encouraging them to explore.

Staff praise them as they bang and pat the play dough.Children learn independence and skills for their future. This starts in the baby room where children learn to find their own shoes and slippers.

Pre-school children find their own paddle suits and wellies. They understand the setting routine and know to get themselves ready for the garden. Staff offer praise to those who are developing this skill, supporting them to be proud of their achievements.

Staff create a real sense of awe and wonder across the setting. Activities are created to support children's inquisitive nature and develop curiosity. In the garden, the fairy den provides children with a space to develop their imagination.

Older children explore the world around them as they collect 'treasure' in the garden. Staff, however, do not always allow children time to think independently and create their own ways of completing tasks. For example, when making play dough, the mixture becomes too runny.

Staff immediately add more flour, not allowing children to create their own ideas about how they could fix this.The setting has worked hard to create effective parent partnerships following the COVID-19 pandemic. Staff regularly share information with parents throughout their children's day at the setting.

Recent parent evenings have allowed staff to share development information even further. They offer parents ways in which they may be able to support their children at home. Social evenings with parents create opportunities for them to socialise together and create relationships outside of the setting.

Transitions across the setting are well managed. Staff ensure they meet with children's new key person prior to moving up to discuss development information. Parents are aware of upcoming transitions, and information is shared with them to support these even further.

Children have opportunities to spend time in their new room before moving up. This supports the settling-in process.Staff feel well supported by the owner and manager of the setting.

Staff well-being is important, and they appreciate the open-door policy they have. The manager uses supervisions to support staff development. However, supervisions do not place enough emphasis on how to develop staff skills to ensure consistent teaching across the setting

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Staff have access to regular safeguarding training, updates about safeguarding and wider child protection issues. Staff confidently demonstrate an understanding of the indicators of child abuse and neglect. Staff working with younger children understand the differences in the signs and symptoms of abuse they may see and know how to report and any concerns they have.

The owner and manager follow robust recruitment processes that help to ensure the suitability of adults working with children. Children are well supervised through the day.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: nassist staff to encourage children to solve their own problems and develop their critical thinking skills develop staff skills and knowledge further, to provide more consistent teaching during staff interactions and children's play.