Corner House Nursery Audley Road

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is outstanding

Children make exceptional progress at this warm and welcoming nursery. They are excited and eager to learn.

Staff follow children's individual interests and seamlessly thread children's learning and next steps through everything children do. For example, children in the pre-school room are exploring a topic on pollution in the ocean. It is children's own questions in this area, such as 'what happens to all the rubbish?', that forms the starting point to exploring this topic.

As such, children are highly motivated learners.Children develop excellent communication and language skills while at the nursery, includin...g those who speak English as an additional language. For example, children who have limited English when starting at the setting are supported to settle into the nursery through strategies, such as parents' voices being recorded reading core books in their home language.

The curriculum vision is linked to the metaphor of 'filling a child's bucket' with the experiences in learning they need for each stage in their journey. As an example, leaders identified that children needed support for their personal, social and emotional development following the COVID-19 pandemic. To support children's emotional literacy in a way that is meaningful to them, they implement the use of a familiar story, 'The Colour Monster'.

This is weaved into all areas of practice within the nursery, and therefore children can confidently articulate and express their feelings.

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

Children's communication skills are a top priority and are excellently supported. As an example, babies are encouraged to create their own unique 'chatter box' with their families.

This home-to-nursery communication tool is extended as children progress. Strategies such as these ensure each child has something they feel confident to talk about with their key person or peers. Staff expertly extend and model a range of vocabulary linked to children's interests.

Leaders place high value on a collaborative approach to supporting children's learning. Staff use children's home experiences to inform planning and include families throughout the curriculum implementation. This approach helps children to make excellent progress from their starting points.

Children and parents alike are highly motivated by the shared home-learning experiences on the topic of the 'ocean'. This has ignited a passion in children for caring for the ocean and recycling. Children and their parents are encouraged to create sea creatures from objects found at home, which continues children's learning about the sea.

The importance of supporting learning at home helps to ensure children's learning is extremely well embedded. Furthermore, these activities greatly support children's understanding of the world.Mealtimes are a social occasion where children learn to serve themselves.

The nursery chef provides children with freshly cooked, home-made meals. Talking points linked to food and health are added to the beautifully presented dinner table in the pre-school room. The nursery chef prompts discussions with children about the red food examples she has presented on the table.

Children talk about the benefits of these foods for their hearts and other organs, therefore developing an excellent understanding of foods that keep them healthy.Children with special educational need and/or disabilities (SEND) make excellent progress. The nursery implements highly effective early intervention strategies.

For example, 'first concern' reports are recorded and shared with parents when staff notice emerging needs and strategies, to ensure these emerging needs are implemented rapidly. The nursery has excellent links with their local health visitor and two-year progress checks are coherently planned to be coordinated between parents, health visitors and the nursery.Additional funding, such as early years pupil premium, is used in a bespoke way.

This ensures that all children make the best possible progress. For example, cookery classes with a local chef that involved children and families supported reluctant eaters to regain a love of food and provided parents with healthy recipe ideas to try at home.Partnerships with parents are tremendous.

All parents talk about how invested and in tune leaders and staff are with them and their child. Information sharing is highly effective with regular updates being shared through an online learning journey for each child. Parents feel fully involved in their children's learning and welcome the fun and exciting home-learning opportunities the nursery provides.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.Children's safety is of the highest standards. Staff are clear about the procedures to follow if they have concerns about the welfare of a child.

Managers provide unique opportunities for staff to reflect on key aspects of safeguarding through innovative training approaches. Staff are encouraged to research their own topic relating to Safeguarding, such as 'honour-based violence.' As such, staff have a broad knowledge of safeguarding issues, such as radicalisation, online safety and female genital mutilation.

Staff teach children the importance of keeping themselves safe. Children conduct their own health and safety inspections of the nursery garden to ensure there are no hazards. The manager and the staff team understand their role in safeguarding children, including how to refer allegations about members of staff or other adults working with children.