The Spinney Day Nursery

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Spinney Day Nursery is a small, family run nursery that is very well led and managed.

Most staff have been in post for several years, so providing consistency of care for children. A real strength of this nursery is the adjacent woodland area. Staff take children on regular forest school sessions to this area.

Here, children can explore the natural environment, measure the wind speed and the amount of rainfall in the weather station. They develop their skills as they balance, climb and jump on and off the wooden structures and take a real interest in nature and their surroundings.Staff work with local schools to help t...o ensure that older children are ready for school.

They encourage children to be independent. Older children serve their own lunch, and they start to zip their coats up before going outdoors. They take part in daily phonic sessions, and some children write their own name.

Generally, children behave well. Staff give children clear explanations about their expectations. They explain why children should not run indoors.

Children know the safety rules when going on a forest school session. For example, they know that they have to be careful of the fire, and of the bees in the summer.

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

Babies enjoy dressing up and riding in the play cars outdoors as they pretend to steer the vehicle.

They go in and out of the playhouse and enjoy singing rhymes as they rock on the see-saw. They are supported to climb the steps to the slide, and they slide down with obvious enjoyment.Toddlers are inquisitive as they explore silver paper, metal objects, lights and spaghetti.

They use different utensils to scoop and pour as they develop their sensory exploration and fine manipulative skills. However, sometimes, staff do not fully support younger children to manage their strong feelings, particularly at times of transition.Partnerships with parents are very good.

Staff work hard to meet children's individual needs. They set up systems such as a communication diary to benefit children and help them to settle well. To encourage children's enjoyment of books, parents can take nursery books home to read with their children.

Parents are very happy with the nursery and their comments include, 'My child has grown so much in confidence and is very settled…', 'My child's speech has come on in leaps and bounds', and 'I can see how enthusiastic and happy the children are.' Staff read stories in a lively and engaging way. They involve children in the story and ask them to think about what they see on the page.

However, sometimes, staff interrupt the flow of the story as they take children away from the group to wash their hands.The management team takes account of staff's well-being. Managers have introduced different systems to show how they value staff and their views and ideas.

Staff are given time to complete paperwork and can access treats within a 'well-being locker'. They can add suggestions about how to improve the nursery, and are able to recommend another staff member to show they appreciate their help or support.Freshly prepared home-made food is cooked on the premises.

The cook considers any dietary requirements and allergies carefully. She works hard to ensure that children with any particular needs have meals that look similar to other children, so attention is not drawn to children with allergies. Plate colour is used to help staff subtly distinguish children with specific requirements.

Visitors, such as a doctor, an artist and a musician, are invited into the nursery to share their skills with children. Children learn about the wider community, and their vocabulary is extended as they learn new words such as 'skeleton', 'plaster cast' and 'x-ray'.Staff access regular training and share their new-found knowledge with the staff team.

Some staff have recently attended training on autism awareness. They feel that this has given them an insight into looking at each child as a unique individual, and has provided them with the confidence to recognise signs earlier.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Staff have a good knowledge of the signs to be concerned about in relation to child protection. They know the referral procedures if they are concerned about the behaviour of another member of staff, or if they have worries about a child's well-being. Staff's knowledge is kept current as they attend regular safeguarding training.

The manager checks their awareness on a regular basis by setting quizzes at staff meetings. Forest school sessions are rigorously risk assessed prior to children going out into the woodland area.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: support younger children more effectively to manage their strong emotions and feelings, particularly at times of transition provide more guidance to staff about enabling children to concentrate fully when taking part in activities.