Tower Hill Nursery

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Children arrive happily at the nursery. Staff are welcoming, kind and caring towards them, offering smiles and warm cuddles. This helps children to feel safe and secure in their care.

Staff arrange and adapt the play environments to meet the changing needs of all children. They ensure that resources are easily accessible for children to select from those that interest them. For example, children sit or lie cosily on the carpet to look at books, carefully turning the pages.

The nursery curriculum is ambitious for what all children can achieve. Staff plan activities, experiences and routines that help children build on w...hat they already know and can do. For example, babies thoroughly enjoy singing along with enthusiastic staff.

They lie down readily to follow the actions of the song and eagerly jump up to dance, giving big smiles as they move their arms and legs about in time to the song.Children show positive behaviours and understand the behaviours that are expected of them. This is because staff model respectful behaviours with each other and with children.

Staff gently remind children to use their good manners and acknowledge their good behaviour with lots of praise. All children, including those who need additional support or with special educational needs and/or disabilities, make consistent progress in their development. Children are well prepared for their next stages of learning.

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

Staff gain useful information from parents about their child's prior learning when children first start to attend. This helps staff to decide what these children are ready to learn next. Staff make plans to include opportunities for children to learn during play activities and experiences.

Staff use regular observations to help them know when children are making progress and make plans to continue to build on these achievements.Children develop increasing independence over time. For example, babies learn to feed themselves competently with cutlery.

Toddlers manage personal care tasks such as wiping noses, handwashing and using the toilet with staff support. Pre-school children show competence in their use of cutlery at mealtimes and managing their personal care tasks for themselves. This helps the oldest children to be prepared for their move on to school.

The nursery is inclusive. This is because the special educational needs coordinators liaise regularly with parents and outside professionals to provide for each child's needs. Additional funding is used to ensure children receive the specific help they each need to continue to make progress alongside their peers.

Physical development is promoted well in the nursery. Children have fun in the outdoors. They practise their balancing and climbing skills when using the equipment and while riding wheeled toys.

They laugh and run excitedly in the space as they chase the bubbles that staff blow for them to catch and pop. Toddlers enjoy manipulating dough and using tools, which helps to strengthen their fingers and small muscles in their hands. They proudly announce that they have made a 'star'.

Staff promote communication and language generally well. They model clear speech when talking with children and listen and respond to what they say. Staff routinely use a range of songs, stories and rhymes with all children.

Older children confidently engage in interesting discussions with staff. For example, when staff ask children what they might use their voices for, children say 'for calling someone' and 'to ask questions'. Older babies use clear speech and practise speaking when they repeat short sentences and phrases that staff say.

As a result, children become competent talkers and can express their thoughts and ideas well.Managers ensure that staff have opportunities to complete mandatory training and other professional development. However, there is scope to help staff to reflect on their teaching practice and receive support to strengthen their skills to raise the quality of teaching to enhance the learning experiences that children receive.

Parents say they are happy with the nursery and particularly comment on how friendly and caring the staff are. They say they do receive information about their child's learning when progress has been made. Parents comment that they would like to know more about their child's current learning so that they can contribute towards this learning at home.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.There is an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts children's interests first.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: provide opportunities for staff to reflect on their teaching practice and strengthen their skills to enhance the learning provision for children further provide parents with information about what their children are ready to learn next to enable them to contribute towards this learning at home.