Coton Day Nursery and Out of School Club

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Children freely move around the playroom, choosing activities and equipment that they are interested in. Small groups gather in the home corner, pretending to make cakes and other food.

They share tins and spoons before setting a table for their imaginary food. This helps children make sense of familiar routines and tasks they experience at home. Older children sit with their younger friends at meal and snack times.

Children are encouraged to help pour water or milk into the cups. Younger children pick up on the good examples set by others and master how to feed themselves from an early age. Children talk to staff abou...t the food they are eating.

This helps all children develop an understanding about nutrition and hydration and contributes to their developing attitude towards good health. Children behave well. Minor disputes are quickly resolved.

Children understand that they can use sand timers to help them work out when it is their time to have a turn with equipment or toys that others are using. This helps them begin to regulate their emotions and contributes to a mainly calm and harmonious environment.

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

Since their last inspection, the manager, who was newly appointed at the time, and her strong team of staff have made significant improvements in the nursery.

For example, staff confidently plan activities that support children's learning. They join children's self-chosen play and exploration too, gently encouraging children to build on what they already know and understand. For example, children find their names written on lolly sticks.

Staff encourage them to have a go at copying the first letter before children point out other letters they recognise. This helps children develop early literacy skills.Parents report that they can see remarkable improvements in the nursery.

They value the regular updates they receive through a secure electronic application. Information and ideas about how parents can support their children's learning at home are given. For example, questions and things for parents to observe are included inside story books that children enjoy taking home from a lending library.

This helps to strengthen the continuity of learning between nursery and home.The manager ensures that all staff receive regular and effective supervision, support and training to help enhance their professional development. Representatives from the provider's company regularly visit to help ensure continual improvements to the quality of education and care children are maintained.

Staff work well as a team and share ideas about how they can effectively support children's learning. This contributes to the friendly and positive environment of the nursery.Staff respect children's actions and views.

They do not unnecessarily interrupt children engrossed in self-chosen activity. For example, young children spend a long time turning wooden spoons the other way up in a pot. They carefully look at the pictures on each spoon before they replace it.

Staff wait until they have moved all the spoons before inviting them to have their nappies changed. This contributes to children's ability to reach a natural conclusion in their explorations.Staff ensure that children who need to sleep are safe and settled.

Children bring comforters from home to add familiar reassurance to their rest times. Staff find out from parents what children like and about their daily routines at home, helping to establish similar care practices in the nursery. The key-person system is well established, helping children form strong and trusting bonds with staff.

Children enthusiastically welcome staff to join their games and experiments. Staff respond positively, showing an interest in children's activities. However, at times staff do not give children enough time to solve problems for themselves or to think about what might happen next.

This restricts children's opportunities to develop their own thinking skills.Staff encourage children to move books and other equipment around the playroom, helping to promote creativity. However, some equipment is displayed or stored in places slightly out of reach of children, interrupting the flow of their independent learning.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.The provider and manager ensure that everyone in the nursery receives regular training to update and refresh their safeguarding knowledge. This helps to enable staff to confidently identify, record and report any concerns they might have about children's well-being.

The manager asks staff questions and poses scenarios about child protection and safeguarding to help ensure staff know what their role is in such situations. This contributes to healthy dialogue about safeguarding within the team.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: give children time to solve problems and predict what might happen next for themselves narrange resources, so that children are able to easily reach the equipment they choose to use.

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