Abkats Ltd

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The manager's curriculum has clear progression which supports children to reach their development milestones. Children under the age of two have daily access to an age-appropriate learning space. Babies are keen to play and explore and show curiosity in the resources available to them. They also benefit from regular opportunities to interact with older children. For example, staff bring the children together so they can all enjoy the singing sessions. Older babies enthusiastically join in with the action songs and staff sit with the younger babies to provide support so they can also benefit. This helps babies to link words with actions.

The manager makes effective use of community projects to enthuse children and support their understanding of the world. Staff plan exciting learning experiences so that children can understand about life cycles, including growing plants and the role of insects in pollination. Children are proud to share their achievements and knowledge after winning a local competition related to their pollination project.

Staff understand the emotional needs of each child and use this to help them to feel safe, secure and form close bonds with them. They have high expectations for children's behaviour. Children understand what is expected from them.

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

• The manager reflects well on the service they provide. She works closely with the local authority to review staff practice and identify further ways to improve. She has a clear vision for continuing to make targeted improvements which include enhancements to the learning environment.
• The manager monitors staff practice and identify ways to further improve. She supports apprentices well as they work towards their level 3 qualification and provides staff with personally tailored professional development opportunities. Recent training has focused on helping staff understand about brain development in children and supporting their language skills.
• Partnership working is strong. Staff keep parents well informed of the progress their children are making and provide guidance to support their continued learning at home. Parents share how the language intervention programmes have supported their children in their communication skills. They say that the staff are amazing and their children love attending. Staff also link closely with other settings where children attend.
• Overall, staff make effective use of their observations and assessments to plan individual educational programmes for each child. However, staff do not use this information as well as possible to match the planned adult-led learning experiences to the needs of each child in the group.
• Staff provide children with a variety of valuable learning experiences. However, the organisation of the daily routines does not ensure that children's learning is maximised throughout the day.
• Staff make good use of children's two-year-old progress check to identify where children need additional support, including making referrals to outside agencies for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. They implement successful, targeted support to help children who need additional help with their communication and language. This has been effective in ensuring that all children are confident communicators in readiness for their move to school.
• Staff are skilled teachers and recognise how they can use children's spontaneous play interests to support their learning. For example, they make good use of opportunities to support children's problem solving and critical thinking skills. This encourages children to be independent learners and to persevere as they find their own solutions to problems. For example, children find ways to create blockages in cardboard tubes to stop the pasta from falling out. They decide that drawing flowers outdoors will attract insects to the garden to aid pollination.
• Staff plan the learning environment so that children are well motivated to play and learn. Children sustain their interest for extended periods of time on activities that challenge them in their learning. Older children are especially motivated to use writing for a purpose, such as to write notes while they are pretending to be doctors and patients.
• The manager's curriculum clearly identifies how they will help children to regulate their feelings and behaviour. Staff skilfully support babies to learn to understand about simple boundaries. They help older children to develop strategies to manage conflict, such as sharing and taking turns.
• Staff promote children's independence well throughout the daily routines. Babies learn to feed themselves. Older children learn how to open packets from their lunch box. Two-year-old children take themselves to the toilet and require minimal support. Staff identify progressive guidance for children so they can feel proud of their achievements when managing their personal care routines.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• plan learning experiences that are matched precisely to their specific stage of development to maximise their progress
• review and enhance daily routines to maximise learning for children across the curriculum.