Rockinghorse Daycare

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Summary of key findings for parents

The provision is good • The qualified and experienced nursery team is committed to providing children with high-quality care and education. Managers encourage staff to reflect regularly on the quality of the provision and share new ideas from training they have attended.

This helps them to develop and improve the activities and experiences they offer to children and families. • Staff skilfully extend activities with additional resources relevant to children's interests. For example, during play in the mud kitchen, staff provide children with a laminated mud recipe book.

This encourages children to count and measure ingredients and helps to support their early literacy sk...ills. • Children develop independence and an understanding of how to manage risks and keep themselves safe. For example, older children learn how to hold a knife to butter bread and crumpets safely at snack time.

• Children enjoy socialising during mealtimes and often play cooperatively with their friends to achieve a shared goal. For example, younger children ask the older ones to read instructions to them during a game. • Parents praise the caring, approachable staff team and the variety of activities available.

They appreciate the regular opportunities to review their children's learning and achievements with staff, such as 'Parent Breakfasts'. It is not yet outstanding because: • Although staff obtain information about children's routine and care needs during enrolment, they do not gain information from parents about children's prior learning to identify children's starting points. • Systems for monitoring staff performance do not focus sharply on developing the quality of teaching practice even further.