Woodland Day Nursery

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is outstanding

The manager leads a team of highly motivated and dedicated staff.

They are excellent role models and treat others with respect and kindness. As a result, children behave exceptionally well. They learn to manage minor disagreements for themselves.

For example, they independently negotiate turn-taking with resources. Staff praise children's efforts and encourage them to keep going when things are difficult to develop their resilience. Children are confident in their abilities and show persistence.

For example, when they spill a container of water many times, they keep trying until they succeed. Children d...evelop a sense of belonging and an understanding of what makes them unique. For example, staff invite parents to share stories in their home languages and children learn more about the cultures and traditions of their friends.

Staff's interactions are of a consistently high quality. For example, staff use props and add vocabulary as they support children to make up their own stories that include a character, setting, problem and solution. Children show their understanding of story structure and confidently use new words as they retell the stories again.

Physical development is extremely well nurtured. Staff teach children to jump, balance and negotiate space, which they do very effectively. The curriculum and environment are well organised to ensure that children learn to take risks to develop their self-confidence.

For example, children demonstrate strong core muscles as they stand on a stool and pour sand into a tube. The curriculum is sharply focused on ensuring children make progress from the outset and have the skills they need to succeed in their education and future lives.

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

The manager is passionate about giving all children the best start possible.

She plans a sharply focused curriculum with a clear emphasis on developing children's communication, physical, social and emotional skills. Staff use assessment meticulously to quickly identify any gaps in children's development, and take swift action to close them. For example, they use targeted interventions to support children's attention and listening skills.

Children make rapid progress from their starting points.All staff have consistently high aspirations for children and know their individual needs incredibly well. Children who are at risk of falling behind are exceptionally closely monitored, and appropriate referrals are made, when needed.

The special educational needs and disabilities coordinator, who is also the manager, provides exemplary support for children with additional needs. For example, she observes practice at local primary schools to learn new techniques to support children with sensory sensitivities.Staff validate children's emotions and offer them ways to understand them and to feel reassured.

They explain new vocabulary that children can use to explain how they might feel at times, such as 'irritated', and help children to build open and secure friendships. Children have exceptional social skills and show compassion for others. For example, they rush to help their friends to carry a watering can.

Staff support children to embrace diversity and to feel valued as individuals. Children learn that they have rights and that their voices are heard. For example, they take votes to choose a story.

Children who speak English as an additional language benefit from recordings of speech in their home language, which they share with others. The manager ensures inclusivity from the start, providing information for parents in a variety of languages.Staff immerse children in stories and role-play to develop children's literacy and language skills and inspire their imagination.

For example, they play a 'radio announcement' to children about a cow going missing from a farm. Children make posters and consider what to do to find it. Children make up their own stories to display in the book area, which staff write and children illustrate.

This nurtures children's self-esteem and communication skills.Staff skilfully weave the teaching of early mathematical concepts throughout the curriculum. For example, they encourage children to stand in a square or triangle shape as they pass a ball to each other outside.

At snack time, staff use a frame which holds five counters to help children learn to visually identify the numbers 0 to 5. A space on the frame corresponds to a place at the table, and children confidently tell their friends how many spaces there are.The manager is passionate about supporting staff's well-being and developing the highly experienced team even further.

She considers the impact on children's progress to determine relevant, tailored training and coaching for staff, such as providing training to learn more about the benefits of risky play.The manager and staff are committed to building close working relationships with parents. Parents report that staff are proactive in sharing information with them and regularly lend them resources to support their children's learning at home.

Staff work tirelessly to ensure that every child has the skills, knowledge, confidence and experiences that they need to make the best possible progress.

Safeguarding

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