Allsorts

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy and settled at the setting and respond well to the friendly, caring staff. Children benefit from a broad and well-planned curriculum, which successfully supports them to make good progress in their learning. Children are excited to explore, whether they are playing with jelly and dinosaur figures or pretending to be doctors and nurses. Children make independent choices in their play, including if they want to play inside or outside. They have good opportunities to develop their physical skills and benefit from fresh air.

Children are very well behaved. They share and take turns well with no disagreements. Staff have high expectations of the children and are committed to helping them develop many skills for their future learning. Children practise developing their fine motor skills to help prepare them for school and learning how to hold a pencil in preparation for writing. They hear a wide range of words, which helps to build their vocabulary.

Communication has remained good between the parents and staff throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. This has helped children to feel safe and secure. Although parents do not currently come into the setting, staff greet each family individually at the door and share information with parents verbally and through an app. This helps parents to feel involved in their child's learning.

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

• Staff get to know the children well. They find out what children already know and can do and plan a varied curriculum, based on children's interests and learning needs.
• Children thoroughly enjoy dressing up and acting out familiar scenarios. Staff use language well to extend children's vocabulary. For example, they introduce new words, such as 'radiologist', as children bandage staff's limbs in their role play and learn about X-rays.
• Staff recognise the importance of effective partnership working with parents and the positive impact this has on children's learning and well-being. Staff ensure that communication with parents is good. Parents feel well supported and are pleased with the progress their children make. However, staff do not always liaise effectively with other providers of settings children attend to ensure consistency.
• Leaders and managers provide strong leadership for the staff team. There are good systems in place to monitor and support staff's professional development and staff feel well supported.
• Most children follow instructions well as they select a mat to sit on, to take part in large group activities. More confident children call out the answers when staff ask questions and demonstrate their good knowledge. However, staff do not equally encourage the quieter, less confident children to participate. Consequently, they lose concentration, and talk among themselves.
• Children follow good hygiene routines and know the reasons why it is important to wash their hands to help them stay well and healthy. Children engage in conversation about different foods and flavours as they eat their lunch. They have good opportunities to learn about the importance of oral health.
• Children's behaviour is good. They follow the good example set by staff and are kind and respectful to one another. Children take it in turns to fit puzzle pieces to complete the picture. They listen well to one another as they guess how many legs a mouse has and share resources as they create a mouse of their own from play dough.
• Staff support children's communication and language skills well. They actively listen to children, while engaged in activities. They use words, such as 'small' and 'slimy' as they encourage children to describe what they can see. Children confidently talk about and compare the size of different containers, demonstrating a wide vocabulary and good understanding.
• Children enjoy outside play. They use their senses to explore the sand and water. They take their turn on the swing, enjoy mark making or begin to master the skill of peddling a tricycle, skilfully negotiating pathways.
• Leaders and managers are extremely proactive in seeking early help for children when needed. They liaise very effectively with other professionals and external agencies to ensure that all children receive the help they require, to make the best possible progress in relation to their individual starting points.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• extend staff practices to encourage the quieter, less confident children more in large group activities to motivate their learning more effectively
• strengthen the systems for sharing information with other providers that children attend, to ensure a consistent approach for their learning and development.