Busy Bees Playgroup

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children happily enter the playgroup and choose from a broad range of experiences, which help them prepare for their next stages in learning. Children develop good language skills and an understanding of behavioural expectations and boundaries, and they gain independence.

Children recognise their name as they find their coat and boots on the chair. They make good attempts to dress themselves for outdoor play. Older children show pride in their achievements and receive praise and a 'high five' from staff. Children who are less confident ask for help. Staff support them well, giving clear instructions to practise skills.

There are clear routines to help children settle and learn the pattern of the day. Staff switch the light off, and children know to stop what they are doing and listen. Staff are consistent in providing children with a five-minute warning so that they can finish their play.

Children love cuddling under a blanket in the outside area to read a favourite book. Young children turn pages carefully, retelling the spider story and exclaiming, 'lots of legs'. They then confidently sing 'Incy Wincy Spider' and demonstrate the actions. Children thoroughly enjoy their song time and engage well, showing good behaviour as they take turns with the sizzling sausages and currant buns. Children learn to recite the numbers in order and older children begin to understand early calculations.

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

• The curriculum is well designed and provides all children with a broad range of experiences. There is effective support for meeting children's individual needs, such as reviewing routines and developing the environment to enable all children to access the curriculum. Staff know children well, working closely with parents, early years professionals and other early years settings that children attend to ensure there is continuity in children's care, learning and play.
• Children confidently explore the environment, which supports their interests and next steps in learning. Children show curiosity about the world around them as they use magnifying glasses to find spiders' webs. Children enjoy loading up the 'truck', demonstrating perseverance as they manoeuvre it out of the gate successfully. On occasion, staff do not extend children's thinking as well as they could. For example, they do not always ask open questions or give children enough time to respond as they explore the farm animals to help children make the best progress in their communication and language skills.
• Staff provide a safe and secure environment for children to play and learn.
• Children learn how to keep themselves safe. They thoroughly enjoy the task of checking the outdoor area before use. They explain what they are doing and are keen to share the pictures on the clipboard as they tick them off. They talk about potential dangers, for example the wet slide. Children gain high levels of self-esteem.
• Children benefit from forming strong bonds with familiar adults, who know them well. Consistent daily routines help children to feel safe and able to make their own decisions. Staff are respectful, asking children before they check nappies and supporting their choices should they wish to continue their play.
• There are good partnerships with parents. Parents are regularly invited to contribute to children's learning, such as providing resources from their farm for children to explore and providing dumplings to celebrate Chinese New Year. Staff gather essential information as children start their learning at the playgroup, and they meet their care needs successfully.
• Leaders and managers have a clear vision. They constantly reflect on their practice and ways to improve outcomes for children, such as developing free-flow to the outdoor area to support those children who learn better outside even further. There has been a strong focus on adapting the curriculum to ensure all children engage in learning opportunities.
• There are robust systems to ensure staff are suitable for their role and understand their responsibilities to keep children safe from harm. Overall, there is good training, support and guidance to develop staff's professional skills, focusing in particular on child development and how children learn. However, staff do not always use their chosen communication methods to support children's understanding and engagement in learning consistently, such as 'now and then' boards and visual cues, to ensure smooth transitions between the indoor and outdoor environments.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• guide staff to consistently use the communication methods that they have identified to better support children's engagement and understanding
• develop further opportunities for children to respond to questions, to help them think and solve problems.