The West Finchley Day Nursery

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Children are happy and secure in this nurturing environment. They enjoy lots of attention from the kind and welcoming staff. This means that strong bonds between them are quickly formed.

From these secure attachments, children feel safe and cared for. They settle in well and develop the confidence to explore the many interesting resources and activities. Children are enthusiastic and active learners.

They make the most of exploring the outdoor areas. For example, they experiment by mixing sand and water, use the climbing frame, balance along crates and learn to pedal on bikes. This helps children make good progress in ...all areas of their development.

Children behave well and copy staff's positive interactions. They learn to speak respectfully to each other, take turns and be kind to their friends. Staff interact warmly during care routines such as nappy changes and washing hands.

They talk about what they are doing with the children, make eye contact and sing songs. This helps children feel secure. Children look forward to eating the healthy snacks and nutritious home-cooked meals.

They describe this as 'yummy' and 'tasty'. Staff talk to children about the importance of eating fresh fruit and vegetables. Children discuss how eating apples and bananas helps them to run fast and be strong.

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

Children gain good independence skills. For instance, they serve themselves food and water at mealtimes. Older children dress themselves and support younger children to gain these skills.

Children have good safety awareness. They understand they need to walk indoors to avoid accidents and they use the outdoor area with care and caution.Staff observe and monitor children's progress.

They provide exciting activities based on children's interest, what they know and what they need to learn next. Overall, the curriculum is well sequenced and challenging. However, on occasion, staff do not take the opportunity to build on and challenge the most-able children further, to raise their achievements even more.

Children who need extra help are well supported. For instance, staff develop and implement targeted plans for them. They involve parents in their plans for children and work with outside professionals where needed.

All children make good progress from their starting points. This includes children who receive funding, children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who speak English as an additional language.Staff are generally skilled in helping children to progress in their communication and language through singing songs, listening to stories, repetition and building on words they know.

Children confidently express their likes and dislikes; they enjoy sharing stories with one another and use their imagination to predict what may happen next. However, on occasions during activities, the most able children are not always engaged in meaningful conversations which widens their vocabulary.Children are motivated and curious to learn.

Younger children enjoy looking at books. They point to familiar objects and make relevant sounds. Toddlers help each other to climb, encouraging one another to carry on when they fall.

Older children work together to build a tower out of blocks. They discuss how high and wide it should be. When it falls over, they work together to rebuild this and recall how many bricks they have used.

Leaders have worked hard to address the weaknesses identified at the last inspection. They work closely with staff to support their learning through training and development. For example, staff complete professional qualifications in childcare.

This is beginning to have a positive impact on children's achievements.The manager and staff have positive relationships with parents. Parents speak highly of the staff and describe them as warm and caring.

Parents value the daily feedback they receive and the regular updates about their children's development through the nursery app. The manager has held a parents evening where parents share information about their child and the manager shares the next steps for the children's learning. This ensures parents are fully involved in their learning.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.Safeguarding knowledge within the setting is robust. Since the previous inspection, leaders and managers have ensured that safeguarding training has been a priority.

Staff are confident about recognising the different types of abuse and reporting procedures. They have a clear understanding of what they need to do if an allegation is made against them or a member of staff. Daily risk assessments are carried out before the children arrive and the provision is clean and safe.

Staff supervise children well throughout the day. There are robust recruitment procedures in place to ensure adults working with children are suitable.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: support staff to build on and provide further challenge to extend children's learning strengthen opportunities to build on children's existing communication and language during group activities.

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