The Orange Tree Day Nursery@ Stoke

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Children thoroughly enjoy their time in this inviting nursery. They are happy, settled, and share close bonds with staff. Staff know children very well.

Children cheerfully welcome each other and quickly settle into the routines of the day. They are content and approach staff for reassurance. Young babies seek out their key person when they are unsure of new adults.

This means they feel safe and secure in their care.Children enjoy daily outdoor play, and provision for outdoor learning is extensive. Children delight in mixing 'Gruffalo crumble' in the mud kitchen or digging in the large sandpit.

They have vario...us opportunities to practise their physical skills as they balance on beams or climb on the large frame. This also supports children to work together, take turns, and learn to negotiate space.Staff have high expectations for all children.

Children are kind and polite. Staff gently encourage them to use 'golden rules', such as kind hands and walking feet. Children listen and follow instructions.

Mealtimes are calm and structured. Consequently, children are gaining a good understanding of how to behave and use appropriate table manners.

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

Leaders have designed an interesting curriculum, which builds on what children already know and can do.

Managers have a clear vision of what they want children to learn. Staff plan a broad range of activities based on children's interests and their next steps. Children make good progress across the areas of learning and are well prepared for their eventual move to school.

However, provision and teaching of numeracy skills throughout the nursery are less developed than other areas of the curriculum.Leaders are approachable and supportive. Staff speak very highly of the ongoing help and guidance they receive through regular supervisions.

Staff's well-being is a priority, and leaders provide access to a range of support services should staff need them. The quality of teaching is regularly monitored through peer observations and constructive feedback. As a result, the quality of education is good.

However, sometimes, the quality of teaching is inconsistent. Some staff answer the questions they ask before children have time to think and respond. This does not always push children to achieve at the highest level.

Consequently, not all children make rapid progress in learning.There is a strong focus on communication and language. Children show a love for books, and staff animatedly tell stories.

They skilfully use different voices or whisper to add interest to stories. As a result, children are highly engaged and keen to listen. Children excitedly search for story props in the garden as they act out scenes from 'The Gruffalo'.

This helps to build a lifelong love for reading and introduces new words and expressive language. As a result, children grow into confident communicators.Staff encourage children to be independent.

They promote a can-do attitude. This supports children to be keen and inquisitive. Children demonstrate a good attitude to learning, and this builds good habits for their future education.

Young babies demonstrate an excellent ability to feed themselves using a spoon. This knowledge builds as they move through the nursery, and children can competently use a knife and fork at mealtimes when they leave to move on to school.Support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) is strong.

The well-qualified special educational needs coordinator (SENCo) uses her experience and training to support staff. She cascades her knowledge to help other staff to implement teaching strategies. Additional funding is well utilised for resources and training.

Parents of children with SEND speak very highly of the fantastic support they receive. They comment that staff are amazing and that their children love attending the nursery.Parent partnership working is very strong.

There is regular sharing of valuable information through parents' evenings, workshops and via an online application. Staff support parents by providing ideas for how to continue children's learning at home. This helps to consolidate children's knowledge and understanding.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.The managers and staff fully understand their role and responsibility to safeguard children. All staff, including those designated to lead on safeguarding, have completed relevant training.

Staff know the signs to look for if they are concerned about a child's welfare. They know who to contact if an allegation is made against a member of staff. Staff complete regular risk assessments of the learning environment.

They count children in and out of rooms and deploy themselves effectively to keep children safe. Leaders follow robust recruitment procedures and assess the ongoing suitability of staff.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: build on the already good quality of teaching so that it is at a consistently high level throughout the nursery nenhance provisions for teaching of numeracy, ensuring that children develop a good understanding in all aspects of the curriculum.