Educare For Early Years (Radcliffe)

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Leaders have worked with staff and other agencies to make the required improvements in the setting. Leaders now have effective systems in place to ensure staff's workload is manageable. Staff now have more time to spend with the children delivering the intended curriculum. Staff have attended targeted training to help them provide a better quality of education for all children who attend. Most staff have also attended specialist training to help them support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. As a result, all children make consistent progress from their starting points.

Leaders have high expectations for what children can achieve. The intended curriculum, in the main, is delivered well. Staff take time to get to know children from the outset. In addition, they ensure children are well prepared for any room changes they undertake throughout the setting. All children, including those who are very new to the setting, are happy, settled, and have strong attachments to their key person. Children arrive full of smiles and confidently wave goodbye to their parents. Babies seek out staff, by holding out their arms. Staff quickly react by encouraging and enticing babies to move and take their first steps. Toddlers take staff by the hand and lead them to the exploratory trays. Here they experiment by using all of their senses. Staff model how to hold a brush and encourage children to have a go. Staff introduce positional language, such as 'on, in' and 'under' as children search for items in an exploratory basket. Pre-school children demonstrate patience and understanding as they play cooperatively in the 'construction area'. Additionally, they demonstrate their good critical thinking skills as they work out how to make a tower of blocks balance.

Staff are good role models. They help children to understand how to regulate their feelings and emotions. In addition, they help children develop a sense of responsibility and maturity. Children relish opportunities for example being the 'helper of the day'. Children help with tasks such as handing out snacks and sweeping up. Children proudly show off their 'helper badges' to visitors and explain what jobs they will undertake today. Due to staff's positive interactions, all children behave well, given their ages and stages of development.

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

• Staff benefit from targeted training and receive regular supervision and coaching from the manager and deputy manager. This is used particularly well to support their continued well-being. Staff now have fewer key children to monitor. This means they have more time to plan for and check individual children's progress. All staff report they feel supported and enjoy their work. More can now be done to help staff raise the quality of their interactions with children to consistently high levels.
• There is a sharp curriculum focus on developing children's physical skills. As a result, all children develop very well in this area of their learning. Older children have space to run freely and scale large play equipment. Younger children enjoy targeted physical education sessions. For example, they practise their balance and coordination as they attempt an assault course.
• Staff know children well and plan a broad range of activities and experiences that are linked to children's interests. These take account of what children need to learn next. Staff provide a range of media for children to suit their ages and stages of development. For example, toddlers make marks using chunky crayons and paint. Foundation age and pre-school children use pens for a purpose. For example, to draw self-portraits and members of their family. These help children to develop the skills needed for formal writing.
• In the main, children are keen and active learners that are willing to have a go. Babies and toddlers sit on staff's knees and enjoy a familiar story and take part in action songs. Older children engage in planned sessions that are designed to embed learning. However, staff do not always adapt these activities quickly enough to ensure all children's learning needs are met, including when children are ready for further stretch and challenge. As a result, some children are not as highly focused as others.
• Children develop good language and communication skills. Staff introduce new words to babies, such as 'soft' and 'shiny', as they explore items in a treasure basket. Staff working with toddlers introduce words, such as 'disappear', as they bury their hands in shredded paper. Pre-school children talk with increased confidence. For example, they delight in telling visitors what they enjoy doing while in the setting and in their home lives.
• Meals provided for children are healthy, nutritionally balanced, and meet their unique dietary needs. All staff, including the cook, are trained in and effectively implement the setting's food hygiene and food allergen policies and procedures. Where diet plans are needed, these are discussed, agreed upon, and updated with parents accordingly. As a result, children's health is protected.
• Children have high levels of self-confidence and self-esteem. This has a positive impact on their independence skills. For example, toddlers eagerly use a fork for the first time. Pre-school children manage their own need for a drink, serve themselves food and confidently manage their own personal hygiene needs.
• Parents comment that staff are 'kind, caring' and 'go above and beyond to meet their children's individual needs'. Parents say they feel involved in the setting. They particularly like the use of daily diaries, termly assessment sheets, and parents' evening sessions. These keep parents informed about their child's time and progress at the setting.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• shape and adapt planned activities, so that all children's learning needs are met and where needed, provide extra challenge
• continue to embed the current arrangements for staff supervision and coaching to ensure staff receive incisive feedback that helps then to raise their quality of practice to the highest levels.