The Old Station Nursery, Bampton

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Children arrive enthusiastically at this welcoming nursery. Staff greet them warmly, and immediately engage them in interesting activities. It is clear that staff have friendly and caring relationships with children and know them well.

This means that children are happy, secure and eager to learn and explore. For instance, children took interest in moulding play dough, which they made, adding pasta twists to represent candles in birthday cakes. Children demonstrate a curiosity in mathematics.

They count the 'candles' together and decide to cut the 'cake' into four pieces. One piece for everyone at the table. Staff have... high expectations for all children.

Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) get the additional help they need. As a result, they thrive. All children enjoy regular access to the nursery's newly refurbished outside areas.

They have fun exploring a range of interesting and exciting activities and practise their physical skills. Resources are thoughtfully prepared to ignite the interests of the children attending. Children shout with excitement as they notice the dinosaurs and natural resources carefully arranged on an old tree stump.

They learn the complex names of the dinosaurs, such as Brontosaurus and Tyrannosaurus.

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

A well-established key-person system helps children form secure attachments. Relationships between children, toddlers, babies and their key person are sensitively managed.

Staff find out about children's likes and dislikes and adopt a flexible approach to induction visits. This helps all children to feel safe and secure.Staff benefit from an effective programme of supervision.

The manager observes her staff and gives feedback on their performance. This helps them to continue to develop their knowledge and skills. The manager coaches less experienced staff to help improve the quality of their practice.

Staff's well-being is given high priority by the manager. Staff report feeling well supported.Children's behaviour is good.

They demonstrate high levels of curiosity, enjoyment and concentration. Children take it in turns to walk along the big boulders and wait patiently for their turn to use the climbing frame. There is a positive and respectful culture and children are praised for using their manners.

For example, they say thank you to each other as they pass around the water jug at lunch time.The management team and staff have adapted well to the challenges faced due to the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic. Although parents no longer enter the building, they say that their children's confidence has really grown now that they see themselves in.

Parents receive good information on their children's development and confirm that they receive daily feedback on their care and learning. However, staff are not always consistent in providing parents with information and advice as to how they can support children's learning and development at home.Support for children with SEND is a particular strength at this setting.

Staff work closely with parents and other professionals to ensure that children get the required levels of help they need. Staff use individualised plans effectively to focus on the skills children need to acquire to help them make the best possible progress.Children are prepared well for their move to school.

For instance, staff have group discussions with children to help them become familiar with the new school routines, while also supporting children's emotional well-being during the new changes.Robust health and hygiene procedures are in place. For example, children wash their hands on arrival, at key points of their day and before leaving the nursery.

This helps to reduce the spread of infection. Children are aware that they need to 'sanitise' their hands, when asked what they need to do next.Children's imaginations flourish during their play.

Staff use their good teaching skills to offer a wide variety of activities, sometimes spontaneously, in response to children's emerging interests. For example, as children look for bugs the staff develop this interest by arranging a 'bug hunt', using magnifying glasses and toy bugs.Children take part in many different activities throughout their day at nursery.

Staff plan and adapt group activities to meet children's needs and interests. However, at times, staff do not deploy themselves as effectively as possible, as a result, children, sometimes, become fidgety and lose focus.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

The manager and staff are knowledgeable about child protection issues and have a secure understanding of the correct procedure to follow if they have concerns about a child. They have a good understanding of wider safeguarding issues. Robust recruitment and vetting procedures are in place to ensure staff are suitable to work with children.

Staff recruitment, induction and ongoing supervision ensure all staff are suitable to work with children. Staff are vigilant about safety and put in place a range of procedures to help keep children safe.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: nenhance the the established systems for sharing information with parents to help them become more actively involved in supporting their children's learning at home support staff to deploy themselves appropriately to ensure that care routines do not take their time away from supporting children's learning.

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