Darwen Children's Centre

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The setting provides a welcoming environment for children. Children and families are greeted at the classroom door by staff, who then invite them into a well-resourced provision. Children engage confidently and happily with the staff and their peers as they access planned activities. Children are asked challenging and thought-provoking questions in their play. For instance, as children build Darwen Tower in the construction area, staff ask children, 'What could we use for a light at the top?' This helps children to develop their knowledge further and strengthens their communication skills.

Children's needs are met swiftly by caring and attentive staff. Staff are quick to respond when children require adult support, such as resolving minor conflicts with their peers. This helps to develop children's confidence with making relationships and ensures they feel settled, secure and ready to learn.

Children are confident, resilient individuals with a positive approach to learning and exploring. They are receptive to and considerate of their peers' needs and show empathy and patience. Children are taught how to keep themselves healthy as staff model how to brush their teeth, wash their hands and eat healthy foods. Children are encouraged to complete routine tasks independently. For example, they take off their own coats and find their pegs. Children are encouraged to get their own cup and plate for snack time and make their own decisions in their play.

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

• Leaders and staff provide a curriculum specific to children's needs and interests. For example, staff recognise and are responsive to the need for developing children's personal, social and emotional skills. They have therefore tailored their curriculum to support this. However, some routines and transitions are not wholly effective in ensuring that children remain focused and ready to learn. Occasionally, some children become disengaged at group time, and this reflects in their behaviour.
• Leaders and staff liaise with local primary schools to gain an understanding of the expected stage of development for starting school. This helps to ensure that teaching is precisely focused. For example, staff provide activities to strengthen children's fine and gross motor abilities. Furthermore, this close partnership work fosters good and effective links between nursery and school.
• Staff introduce children to mathematical language as they use a tape measure to measure the height of their tower. They are taught new mathematical terms such as 'centimetres' and 'inches'. This widens children's language and introduces them to more developed and precise terminology.
• Leaders are dedicated and enthusiastic in providing a secure support system for children and staff in their own development and well-being. Leaders speak with passion about the families they support and show a committed approach to delivering the best possible outcomes. This means children are kept at the centre of everything the setting does.
• Staff and leaders support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities through high-quality interactions and structured interventions with a nurturing ethos. For example, staff deliver precise interventions where children are clearly engaged and excited. Children show anticipation through their facial expressions and are responsive to the staff's teaching. As such, children are making good progress from their starting points.
• Staff are extremely knowledgeable about children and families in their care. They work closely with parents and carers to ensure that children's needs are met and that families receive the correct level of support. However, some parents are not aware of their child's key person or their child's next steps in learning. This does not fully support their continued learning at home. Overall, parents are happy with the setting and communicate their gratitude for the dedicated staff team.
• Leaders and staff liaise with other professionals such as speech and language therapists, carers and local school teachers. This provides a refined and effective multi-agency partnership in support of children's needs. For example, staff work with multiple different professionals throughout the session to provide various interventions of support. This ensures clarity and consistency for children's individual learning.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen routines and transitions to help children remain focused and engaged
• develop parent partnerships further in regards to information-sharing of key person and next steps to continue children's learning at home.