The Old Railway House Nursery Limited

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Children arrive eager to start their day and rush off to seek out their friends.

They are kind and considerate to each other. They make good friendships. Children encourage others to join in their games.

As they build structures from construction tiles, they ask their friends for help when they need it. They congratulate each other warmly on their achievements. They develop strong relationships with the staff team which helps them to feel safe and secure in the nursery.

Children learn the rules in place to keep themselves and others safe. For example, older children stay in the designated area when they use wh...eeled toys. They enjoy being physically active indoors and outside in the fresh air.

Children are developing a keen awareness of healthy lifestyles. During role play, they choose vegetables for their trolley 'because we have to eat healthy'.Children are very active in terms of directing their own play and choosing resources.

Babies are curious and keen to investigate. Children demonstrate high levels of confidence in their self-care and communication. They enjoy their learning and approach activities with enthusiasm and develop a can-do attitude.

Support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities is a strength of the nursery. Overall, children are prepared well for the next phase in their learning, including their move on to school.

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

The dedicated manager and her enthusiastic team have made significant improvements since the last inspection.

The newly created curriculum covers all areas of learning and is understood and implemented well. Staff know the children well and what they need to learn next. The manager has revised the arrangements for pre-school children to ensure all children have equal access to all opportunities.

The manager is committed to improving the service they provide. She knows the strengths of the nursery and areas for development. Staff work closely with parents and involve them in assessments of their children's learning.

They have introduced a reading scheme where they share books with parents to encourage children's love of reading at home.Staff undertake a variety of training courses to support them to fulfil their roles. The manager monitors their practice through supervision and peer observation.

However, she does not always fully utilise these methods to make sure the delivery of teaching is consistently of the highest quality. For example, development opportunities for less-experienced staff to enhance their interactions with children are not always as robust. Consequently, they do not always sustain children's interest and so children become less engaged.

Managers place a high priority on the health and well-being of the staff team. Staff report that their workload is managed well. They appreciate the flexible working arrangements that enable them to have a good work-life balance.

Staff provide a variety of interesting activities that engage and excite children and link to children's learning needs. Teaching is good. However, staff do not always adapt activities to extend children's mathematical knowledge beyond their current capabilities.

Staff promote children's speech and language effectively. Children are encouraged to use their developing language skills to talk about things important to them and express their views. They confidently sound out letters and proudly write their names independently on their work.

Staff have high expectations of children's behaviour. They use effective strategies to help children to learn right from wrong. They are good role models.

They demonstrate expected behaviour, such as using good manners and sharing. They praise children's positive behaviour, efforts and achievements which helps them to feel good about themselves. Consequently, children behave well.

Staff support children to develop high levels of self-esteem. They help children to undertake tasks independently. Babies learn to feed themselves and older children manage their own self-care needs.

Throughout the nursery, children are confident. During a music session, older children express their views about what songs they want to sing. Babies select a book they would like read to them and pass it to their key person.

Children enjoy the healthy, nutritious meals and snacks provided by the nursery. Staff use these times to help children to understand the importance of eating healthily and maintaining good oral health.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Managers take care to ensure children's safety during their time in the nursery. Staff recruitment, vetting and induction procedures are robust. Staff have a secure understanding of how to safeguard children.

They are fully aware of the possible signs of abuse and neglect and where to report any concerns they may have about a child's well-being. They know what action to take in the event of an allegation against a member of staff. Children are supervised well at all times.

Adult-to-child ratios are maintained as required. All accidents are recorded and reported appropriately.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: build on the support and guidance provided to less-experienced staff and help them to raise their quality of interactions with children during their play consistently adapt activities, in order to extend children's mathematical development even further.