Little Wonders Day Nursery

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Children are happy, settled and safe in this homely nursery.

They are confident and use their independent skills well. Children move around the nursery and choose what they want to play with. This is evident as older children choose to play with the 'jumping frog game'.

They learn how to press the frog to make it jump, and scream with delight as it pops up. They excitedly make frog sounds and jump around like a frog, thoroughly enjoying their learning.Staff have high expectations of children and build on what they already know.

They provide children with interesting opportunities to develop their curiosity to ...enhance their learning. Toddlers explore paint. They giggle as they swirl and dab the paint around the paper with a paintbrush.

They use their small-muscle skills well and strengthen their hands for early writing, as they make circular marks.Children behave well and show positive attitudes towards their learning. They thoroughly enjoy spending time looking at books and sit together in the cosy book area.

Older children talk and retell the stories they have heard. They know all about a going through a river to find a bear and a monster with long tusks.

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

The manager and staff work closely together to ensure they provide high levels of care for children.

Staff are supported by the manager. They attend online training opportunities. For example, they have recently taken part in essential training such as first aid and safeguarding training, to contribute to keeping children safe.

Staff have regular meetings and supervision meetings with their manager. However, these meetings do not consider how to raise the quality of speaking skills in the toddler room.The manager has established a curriculum that builds on children's interests, curiosity and what they already know and can do.

Staff have a secure understanding of child development. They plan a wide range of activities which follow children's ideas and engage them in play. However, some staff working with the older children do not always extend children's learning.

This means children are not given extra challenge in their learning in order for them to make exceptional progress.Parents no longer enter into the nursery due to the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic. Staff have adapted how they communicate with parents, so parents know how their children are progressing in their learning.

Staff have introduced a software programme and send home observations and photographs of what children have done. This provides parents with information about their child and gives them the opportunity to comment on what the children have done at home. This results in an effective two-way partnership to help children's care and learning.

The manager and staff gather information from parents when children first start at the nursery. This helps them to build on children's experiences from home. For example, they found that few children were learning about planting and growing.

Staff therefore taught the children about how plants grow by introducing a herb garden. Children take part in activities such as planting the herbs and looking after the plants by watering them. This in turn means children are learning about living things and what they need to grow.

Staff provide opportunities to help develop problem-solving. This is evident as older children take part in building towers. Children decide how to make the tower balance and place the bricks one by one accurately.

They recall what they have done and transfer these skills to their outside play. Together, children build a train and solve where they are going to have the engine and the seats for the passengers.The key-person system is effective and ensures children build secure and confident bonds with staff and their peers.

Staff promote children's behaviour effectively. They are good role models and teach children well about taking turns and sharing. For example, children wait patiently for their turn to fetch their lunch and pour their drinks.

Children learn the importance of healthy lifestyles and good oral hygiene. They learn about the dentist as they role play and pretend to put toothpaste on their brushes and clean their teeth. Staff provide freshly cooked, healthy meals that are tailored to children's dietary requirements and preferences.

Children enjoy healthy snacks and learn how to cut fruit safety.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.The manager and staff understand their responsibilities to protect children from harm and keep them safe.

They have a secure knowledge of the signs of child abuse and a broad understanding of wider safeguarding issues. They know what to do and who to contact if they have a concern about a child's welfare. The manager has robust recruitment and induction procedures.

She completes rigorous checks to ensure that only those suitable to work with children do so. Staff check their rooms to ensure all hazards are removed, to enable children to play in a safe environment.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: strengthen the supervision of staff, so that staff working with the younger children receive coaching which has a consistent focus on improving the way they teach speaking skills nincrease the level of extra challenge in older children's learning to fully support their progress to the highest level.

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