Alan Pullinger Playgroup

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The staff provide a warm welcome to all children at the beginning of the session and they happily leave their parents ready to engage in play. Children who are new to the setting are well supported to settle in with care and kindness. Children know the routines of the day and follow instructions well. Staff praise the children throughout the session. This approach means that children have positive attitudes to learning and behave very well. Staff provide a learning environment that is calm and purposeful. It offers children opportunities to practise new skills and develop their confidence. For example, children engage in large-scale painting with a range of tools. They talk about their colour choice and their physical skills are developed.

Staff have high expectations of children. Children are encouraged to have good manners, saying please and thank you and are considerate of each other. During snack time, the staff take the opportunity to talk about healthy food choices as well as developing their independence.

Children are offered a language-rich environment. Staff are good role models and they support children to learn new words. Many children speak English as an additional language and some children are supported by staff who have the same language. Staff often use singing during the session to support children's learning and routines.

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

• Staff know the children well. They know their individual needs and what they need to do next to progress in their learning. Leaders have developed a curriculum based on what they want children to learn. The staff have a good overview of the curriculum and systems are in place to monitor children's progress. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) have individualised plans and the staff work with parents to support their progress. Leaders work with other professionals to embed children's development and, in turn, children make good progress and parents feel supported.
• Children make progress in their communication and language skills. They learn new vocabulary and develop their language skills throughout the session. Interactions between staff and children are good and children listen well. Books are available for children to look at and read with staff. Although plans are in place for children to enjoy books through the curriculum, staff have not fully considered how they can help all children strengthen their love of reading and extend their vocabulary.
• Staff teach mathematical language at every opportunity. This includes counting the number of aliens in the small-world play. The children use problem-solving skills to build a balance beam out of blocks, while the staff provide language, such as 'long' and 'longer', to build on and extend children's understanding.
• Children are encouraged to be physically active. All children use the outdoor area, riding bikes and scooters while following directional arrows. They enjoy the outdoor area and confidently move around the garden. The children's fine motor skills develop by manipulating play dough and washing the dolls with sponges. They make lots of bubbles by squeezing the sponges and naming body parts as they wash the baby.
• Children behave very well. Staff teach children to take turns and share during activities. Children are very interested in which of their friends are in nursery that day. When the door bell was rung by a parent, they asked 'who is it now?' They also go to all the children telling them 'snack time now'. Children are encouraged to ask for help and confidently say, 'help please'.
• Leaders provide effective support for the staff team, they are aware of the importance of their team's well-being. Staff feel supported by leaders, who ensure training is appropriate and linked to the needs of the children. This has included having effective safeguarding training.
• Excellent team work is evident in the setting, as the staff work effectively to provide a broad and varied learning environment for the children. Team discussions take place to plan and identify next steps for children. Staff plan for the children's learning, this is often linked to events, such as families having new babies or the weather. However, there is more of a group approach to planning rather than a focus on the individual child. A focus on individual next steps will help to build on learning over time.
• Parents are very happy with the setting. They commented on the excellent support they have received from the leaders and key workers while settling children in. Parents also spoke highly of the progress their children make, particularly with their independence. Parents feel supported and staff have built excellent relationships with them. They have confidence in their child's safety at the setting.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• plan more effectively for children to share books either individually or as a group, so they develop a love of reading and extend their vocabulary
• strengthen the planning process, so that there is a consistent approach which supports children's learning and progress over time.