The Rocking Horse Nursery

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Staff place a focus on supporting children's language and communication skills. Children have easy access to a wide range of storybooks.

Their love of books and stories is evident. Children sit together to look at books, turning the pages with care. Staff are good storytellers who make books exciting.

Toddlers and pre-school children sit and listen as staff read books with animation. Children know what happens next in the stories that are familiar to them. Staff sensitively correct words that children mispronounce, using an 'owling' technique to help children hear the word pronounced correctly.

Singing can be ...heard throughout the nursery. Toddlers join in with the actions to familiar rhymes and pre-school children request their favourite songs and rhymes by name.Staff play alongside children as they teach them how to play traditional games, such as hide and seek.

Staff support children to play fairly and not to cheat, reminding them that they need to cover their eyes as their friends hide. Pre-school age children confidently count up to 10 to give their friends a chance to find a good hiding spot, before shouting 'coming, ready or not.' There is much laughter and excitement as children are discovered in their hiding places within the nursery garden.

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

The manager and staff have created a curriculum that encourages children to develop the skills that they will need to gain in order to be ready for their eventual move to school. Staff explain how they observe and assess children's development. They use the information that they gain to plan appropriate activities based on children's interests, and the skills that they know children need to learn next.

The manager has made significant changes since the last inspection. She has used the feedback from the last inspection, along with feedback from the local authority early years improvement officer, staff, parents and children, to evaluate the provision. She has an action plan in place that focuses on developing staff morale and supporting the staff to develop their teaching skills and childcare knowledge further.

Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities are well supported. The manager, who is also the special educational needs coordinator, works with a child's key person, parents and external agencies to access the right support. They work together to plan and implement strategies that enable children to make good progress in their development.

Parents speak fondly about the staff who care for their children. They comment that their children are happy and enjoy attending the nursery. Staff work closely with parents to keep them updated about their child's development and help them understand how to support their child's learning at home.

Children tell the inspector that they enjoy playing with their friends at nursery.Staff encourage children to follow the nursery's golden rules for behaviour. They remind children to use their walking feet indoors, their indoor voices and to be kind to their friends.

However, when children become over excited or overwhelmed staff do not consistently give children the time, support, or space they need to understand and regulate their own emotions.Staff complete daily risk assessments to help to keep children safe and ensure that the nursery environment, both inside and outside, is a safe place to play. However, staff do not always make the most of opportunities to help children to learn how to keep themselves safe and assess risk for themselves.

For example, when children rock on their chairs while eating, staff explain that they need to keep all four feet of the chair on the floor. However, they do not help the children to understand that this will prevent them from falling off the chair.Staff recognise the importance of encouraging children to develop a sense of responsibility and independence.

Toddlers and pre-school children confidently use jugs to pour their own drinks and use serving utensils to transfer food from serving dishes onto their own plates. Children are developing an understanding about good hygiene practices. They know that they need to wash their hands before they eat to help keep themselves healthy.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.The manager, who is the setting's designated safeguarding lead, ensures that staff understand how to safeguard children. She uses supervision meetings and staff meetings to check that all staff are aware of how to identify safeguarding concerns.

The manager also ensures that the staff understand how to follow the setting's policy to report any potential concerns both to her, as well as to relevant outside agencies if required. The manager and staff share information with parents on safer sleeping methods and they promote parents' understanding about how to keep their child safe when accessing social media sites and the internet.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: support children to understand, express and manage their emotions provide children with explanations to help their understanding of potential hazards, so that they learn to assess risk and keep themselves safe.