Smartys

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Babies arrive happy at nursery and receive a warm welcome. They develop strong bonds with staff, who are kind and nurturing. Staff focus on babies' emotional needs and give plenty of cuddles to provide extra reassurance.

This helps to enhance key attachments and ensure babies feel safe and secure. Staff respond quickly to meet babies' routines and care needs. Babies hear a range of vocabulary and engage well with stories and songs.

They point to pictures in books and repeat familiar sounds. Staff create anticipation and excitement as they spontaneously sing songs and action rhymes. Throughout activities staff praise ba...bies.

This helps support their developing emotional skills. The environment is calm and well resourced with an emphasis on natural resources. Babies enjoy a range of activities which enables them to explore their senses.

Staff provide activities inside, such as sand and water play. Babies splash around squealing happily and learning new words. Younger babies enjoy sensory play.

They explore a range of textures, such as foam, sensory bottles, and shredded paper. Older babies enjoy smelling and picking herbs outside, before returning inside to add them to scent play dough.

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

The management team have a strong ethos and strive to ensure the best outcomes for the babies.

They want to 'ignite babies' curiosity' and are developing the curriculum in this area.Staff plan activities inside around babies' interests. They provide interesting play activities and experiences that help develop babies' curiosity.

For example, young babies explore treasure baskets that include a variety of materials, textures, and objects. However, staff do not plan as well for opportunities outside and babies' interest in playing in the garden is sometimes overlooked.Staff provide a range of physical activities to support the development of babies' fine-motor skills, such as using their fingers to make marks in foam.

However, younger babies are occasionally held too much and have limited opportunities to move in more physical ways during play. Therefore, there is scope to further enhance their large physical skills.Babies experience the world and community around them.

For example, they visit the canal to watch the boats and view the wildlife. This helps babies develop wonder about the world they live in.Staff ensure communication and language is threaded through the curriculum.

They model good language throughout the day. Babies copy words and sounds they hear, for example in the water play they copy 'splat' and 'pop' as they explore bubbles. Stories and singing form part of everyday activities.

For example, babies find a picture of a sea turtle and staff immediately sing a song about this familiar animal.Staff manage behaviour well and remind babies of the simple rules. They distract and divert any negative behaviours in a prompt way.

Babies receive plenty of positive encouragement and praise throughout the day, which helps to enhance their emotional well-being.Many staff have been at the setting for years and are dedicated to the care of the babies. The key-person system is strong.

Staff know babies well and understand their individual needs. Babies settle well and enjoy their time at nursery. Staff consider the transition of babies to the toddler nursery next door.

Babies spend time visiting the new setting with familiar staff and toddler staff spend time with the babies in this setting. This helps babies to get to know new surroundings and staff, and prepares them for their future learning.Babies enjoy a range of healthy snacks, such as rice cakes and melon.

Healthy lunches are prepared at the toddler nursery and brought over for the babies. They cater for different stages of weaning, varied dietary requirements and allergies. This helps to support babies' health and well-being.

Staff observe each other and reflect on their practice. Managers organise regular supervisions and appraisals. These help identify training needs and set targets for staff to support them in their continuous improvement.

Parent partnership is strong. Staff communicate with parents verbally and using an online application to exchange information. This keeps parents up to date with what their children are doing through the day and helps to promote consistency of care.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.Managers and staff understand the importance of their role in safeguarding children and have sound knowledge of the procedures to follow if they have a concern about a child. They can recognise the different types of child abuse and identify key signs and symptoms that may indicate that a child is at risk of harm.

Staff regularly undertake online training and on-the-spot quizzes to ensure they have up-to-date knowledge of safeguarding. The premises are secure and risk assessments are effective. Staff record and monitor injuries from both at home and in nursery.

Staff deploy themselves well and babies are adequately supervised. This helps them to keep them safe.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: make the most of opportunities for babies to explore and play outside plan and provide highly challenging activities for babies to help promote their large physical skills.