Shotley Bridge Nursery School Limited

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Staff provide a wide range of inviting play spaces, that invoke children's curiosity and ignite their imaginations. Children are remarkably focused during their independent play.

They work together with their friends, test out their own ideas and find new ways to do things. For example, pre-school children use pasta to represent candles for a birthday cake they make with dough.Children are confident and play happily, showing that they feel safe and at ease in nursery.

Staff know children well and understand what they want them to learn. They provide appropriately challenging activities, that help children to learn more... and remember more. Staff add a tyre to the climbing frame to encourage babies to further develop their physical skills.

Toddlers learn new words quickly, joining in with familiar parts of songs and stories. Older children demonstrate excellent listening and attention skills, and follow instructions well. They enjoy pretending to be rabbits, moving in different ways to escape the 'farmer' during a group game.

Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities benefit from focused time with key adults. This helps to ensure that they benefit as fully as possible from the well-organised curriculum.

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

Managers clearly articulate a curriculum that is centred around children's natural instincts to play, explore and investigate.

Staff implement this well, providing appealing and exciting activities, that children are extremely keen to take part in.Overall, staff ensure that the curriculum is broad and covers all areas of learning. Children's highly positive attitudes and eagerness to learn mean they benefit extremely well from staff's good quality teaching.

However, staff do not always use opportunities that arise naturally during play and routines to develop children's mathematical understanding to the highest levels.Teaching is consistently good and, at times, highly effective. However, at times, staff are not able to maintain their skilful interactions with children.

Housekeeping duties sometimes distract their attention away from children and interrupt their good teaching. Despite this, children remain engaged in purposeful play.Staff are particularly skilled at supporting children's communication skills.

They engage children in conversations and discussions, modelling new and rich language. Staff ask pertinent questions that encourage children to think, describe and share what they know. Children are highly articulate and confident speakers.

Children's health is well supported. They grow their own fruit and vegetables in the nursery garden. Staff and parents report that this has encouraged children to make healthier food choices and to try new foods.

Staff help children to take part in regular exercise. For example, they enjoy regular running sessions, which they refer to as 'bouncing bridges'.Staff teach children to have 'kind hearts, kind words and kind thoughts' during relaxation sessions.

This contributes to the remarkable respect and consideration that children show to one another.Daily routines, such as lunchtimes and transitions between rooms or activities, are very well organised. Staff's expectations and boundaries for children are extremely clear and consistent.

Children's behaviour is exemplary.Managers continue to build on their effective arrangements for coaching and mentoring staff. They involve staff in decision making and value their contributions.

Staff morale is high. They discuss how much they enjoy their role and appreciate the high level of support which they receive from leaders.Staff carry out independent research related to their role.

For example, staff with a lead responsibility for behaviour management read articles about how to support children to resolve conflicts. They share their findings with colleagues, which helps to ensure that professional development has a positive impact across the nursery.Key-person arrangements support children well.

Key staff are allocated to care for children according to who naturally develops a relationship with them. This helps children to feel safe and secure. Parents report that communication from staff is excellent and that children 'idolise' their key person.

Staff encourage children to identify risks and teach them to keep themselves safe. For example, with support and reassurance, children climb on high structures outdoors. They carefully work out where to put their feet when balancing along the rungs of a ladder.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.Managers' knowledge of safeguarding is secure and up to date. They ensure that staff understand their responsibilities to protect children, for example, through regular training and sharing information during meetings.

Staff know how to identify children who may be at risk of harm or neglect. They know what to do if they are worried about a child's welfare. Managers have robust arrangements for recruitment to help ensure that staff are suitable to work with children.

Staff hold paediatric first-aid qualifications and deal with accidents effectively. Staff carry out regular checks on the premises and equipment to keep children safe in nursery.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: nextend opportunities for children to deepen their already very good understanding of mathematics during play and routines to the highest levels review staff's duties, particularly in the baby room, to minimise the disruptions to their quality interactions with children and raise teaching to outstanding levels.