Woodlands Day Nursery Barnet

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Children are warmly greeted on arrival by the caring staff who help them to settle and feel at ease. There is a well-established key-person system which enables children to form strong relationships and feel secure right from the start. Babies and toddlers enjoy reassuring cuddles and older children flock around the activities led by staff.

Children respond positively to staff's high expectations. Their behaviour is good and they are independent and self-assured. Children develop positive social skills, which helps them to play harmoniously and form firm friendships.

For example, older children enjoy cooperative role p...lay and remember to use 'kind hands'.Children are keen learners and thoroughly enjoy the exciting range of activities. They have lots of opportunities to explore and experiment with the resources, which promotes their creativity and critical thinking skills.

For instance, children create their own play dough, skilfully scooping, pouring and mixing the ingredients. They confidently explore their ideas as they add herbs, spices, water and paint to create their own unique mixture. They exclaim with excitement as the colours, smells and textures change.

Children make links between their experiences; they say, 'These are pancakes,' and describe how they cook with parents at home. They have great fun and develop coordination as they try to flip their pancakes and catch them in a pan.

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

Leaders are clear on what they want children to learn at nursery.

They ensure that staff are well supported to help them implement the curriculum. Training is sharply focused to develop relevant skills and knowledge. For instance, team leaders enhance their management strategies and staff working with babies learn about early brain development.

This helps to maintain the high quality of practice within the nursery.Staff know children well and closely monitor their progress. They identify where children may need additional help and provide targeted support to close the gaps in their learning.

All children, including children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, children who speak English as an additional language and those receiving funding, make good progress.Overall, staff support children's communication skills well, such as by introducing new vocabulary and encouraging conversations. However, at times, some staff use incorrect grammar and words when speaking to children.

For example, they describe a dog as a 'woof-woof' or repeat the word 'horsey' back to a child. Therefore, some children continue to use incorrect forms of speech to express themselves.Leaders and staff provide attractive and adaptable resources to encourage high levels of engagement and motivation from children.

However, they do not ensure that the routines and organisation in all rooms promote this consistently. For example, staff do not always quickly identify when toddlers and older children need help to choose what they want to do next. Therefore, learning opportunities are sometimes missed.

Children display positive attitudes and clearly enjoy their learning. For instance, older children concentrate intently during a woodwork activity. They show determination as they learn to use the tools.

Children listen carefully as staff demonstrate how to use a ruler. They are excited to try this and carefully count how many centimetres long their pieces of wood are.Staff promote children's physical health and well-being extremely effectively.

For example, children have lots of outdoor play, eat nutritious meals and learn about good oral hygiene. Staff have introduced 'rolling mealtimes', whereby children choose when they wish to eat. Children of all ages learn to serve themselves and to clear away afterwards.

Staff describe how this teaches children to recognise when they are hungry and learn how much food they need to fuel their bodies.Children receive excellent support to be independent and to care for their own needs. For example, staff ensure that tissues and wipes are easily accessible.

Therefore, children go independently to clean their faces and wipe their noses. They learn to check in the mirror afterwards to ensure that they have done a thorough job.Parents are very complimentary about the nursery.

They say that children are happy to attend and have strong bonds with staff. Parents describe effective partnerships to support children's progress and development. For example, staff share strategies to deal with issues such as biting and provide books to encourage reading together at home.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.Leaders have a thorough understanding of their safeguarding roles and responsibilities. They and staff undertake regular training to keep their safeguarding knowledge up to date.

Staff are clear about possible risks to children and can identify signs of abuse. They know how to report any concerns about children's welfare or the conduct of adults. Staff supervise children well and teach them to use toys and resources safely.

They monitor the environment to identify hazards and help maintain a safe learning environment. There are robust systems in place to check the suitability of staff.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: help staff to further improve their support for children's language development, particularly by using correct words and grammar when speaking to them strengthen staff deployment and the organisation of the daily routines to further promote children's learning throughout the day.