Little Lambs Nursery Summer House

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Children arrive happily at the warm and welcoming nursery. Staff work sensitively with children that require extra support to settle.

Once reassured, these children quickly engage in their chosen activities. Children eagerly explore their environment, both inside and outside, and join in the good range of interesting activities that staff provide. For example, children quickly become absorbed in water play as they tip and pour using various containers.

Staff are enthusiastic in their engagement with children and know how to support children's individual learning well. They spend time at the children's level, as they en...courage children to have a go and explore. There is a strong emphasis to support children's sensory development.

Children explore herbs that are grown in the garden. They touch and smell them as they put them in containers. Children are proud to show off the new skills they have learned from staff.

They take great pride and beam with delight as they learn to twist glue-stick containers and move the glue stick up and down. Children behave well. They are supported from a young age to become familiar with daily routines and understand what is expected of them.

Children learn to keep safe. They carefully climb and balance on low-level blocks and move wheelbarrows around the garden without bumping into their friends.

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

The manager is passionate about what she wants children to learn and is a good role model for her staff team.

She is highly reflective and knows what she wants staff to do in order to support children's learning and development. This ensures all children, including those who are most disadvantaged, are provided with rich learning experiences to support their good progress.Staff raise children's self-esteem and confidence.

They praise children on their achievements and say, 'well done', 'super' and 'good helper'. Older children, such as four-year-olds are good role models for the younger children. Two-year-old children very quickly learn how to take turns, share and play cooperatively with one another.

For example, children happily take it in turns to fill a bucket with rice and water.The nursery places a strong emphasis on supporting children who require extra support and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities. The manager has built positive partnerships with the local children's centre staff and makes effective use of their additional resources as well as the early years professionals support and advice.

This further ensures early intervention and support for children who need it.All children demonstrate good independence skills. Two-year-old children quickly learn to wash their hands before eating, collect their own plates at snack time and are supported to use knives safely to cut up bananas.

As children finish their snack, they place any uneaten food in the bin and put their dirty pots in a bowl to wash.Staff engage and positively interact with children. They repeat words clearly to help children learn the correct pronunciation, such as 'spider'.

Older children demonstrate confidence as they ask questions and engage in conversation with staff.Staff generally engage with children as they play and during daily routines, for example during snack time. However, staff do not always make the most of children's daily routines and experiences as they occasionally forget to continuously challenge them, in order to help them build on their previous learning.

For example, staff do not extend children's learning about the benefits of healthy eating or handwashing to stop germs from spreading.Overall, the organisation and routine of the day contributes to children's good learning and development. That said, towards the end of the session, all children are grouped together to listen to soothing music and calm down ready for parents to pick them up.

This activity does not keep all children engaged as they struggle to settle, become restless and lose focus.Partnership with parents is strong. Staff work closely with parents and make it a priority to get to know each child and their family.

They use their initial assessments of children's development to plan activities and to seek any additional funding. The nursery has recently purchased wobble cushions to help children sit and concentrate during small-group sessions and to build their core-muscle strength.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Staff have a secure knowledge and understanding of their role and responsibility to protect children from harm. The manager oversees staff's safeguarding knowledge and skills effectively. She regularly tests their understanding as she asks them child protection questions.

The manager ensures all staff complete regular safeguarding training to keep their knowledge up to date. Staff know how to protect children and their families from extremist views and ideas. They have a clear understanding of the safeguarding procedures they must follow.

Risk assessments of the environment are completed by staff. This coupled with their close supervision of children, assures their safety.

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 make the best use of their engagement and interaction with children to challenge and further enhance their learning and development nimprove group-time activities to help children remain engaged and focused.

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