Farm Work Play

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Staff make children very welcome in this homely setting. The well-established key-person system helps children to feel safe and secure. Relationships are very strong. Children and their key person form secure and trusting bonds. Children are happy and confidently engage with all staff and visitors. Staff encourage children of all ages to share and take turns. For instance, children voluntarily pass the gold glitter to a friend. Staff support children to make friends, such as by creating a recipe for friendship as they mix the coloured glitter. At mealtimes, staff help children to be independent. They encourage children to serve themselves, use age-appropriate cutlery and dispose of leftovers. Children practise using good manners. They are reminded to say 'please' and 'thank you'. Staff provide a wide range of sturdy, good-quality resources for children to use. These are accessible to all children, providing further support for children to make independent choices.

The staff in each room work together to plan an ambitious and sequenced curriculum. They ensure that the curriculum is based on the interests of the children and that it meets all needs, including for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Activities are interesting, building on what children know and can do. This helps children to have positive attitudes to learning.

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

• Parents, including those who have children with SEND, are delighted with the support both they and their children receive from staff. Partnerships are strong. Staff follow the routines children have at home, and this helps children to settle into the setting quickly. Staff provide parents with suggestions as to how they can support their child's learning at home.
• Staff discuss with parents the preferences of their children in terms of toys and activities. This information, alongside the observations of staff, help in planning suitable activities to support the good progress of children. At times, however, staff are not clear about what they want children to learn from a particular activity. Therefore, they are unsure about how to use activities to build on what children already know and can do. This means that, at times, children quickly lose interest and do not fully engage.
• Staff provide a wide range of sensory experiences for children of all ages. For instance, children smile with pleasure as they feel the sensation of rice or sequins running through their fingers. Outside, children concentrate on making 'cupcakes' out of mud, which they proudly offer to staff to enjoy.
• Staff support the physical development of all children. Young babies use their crawling skills to safely explore their environment and practise walking with push-along toys. Older children use the ride-on toys to propel themselves around the patio and grassy areas. Others enjoy the rope swing, scrambling in the low branches of a large tree and using simple tools, such as toy hammers. Staff help children to understand how to use tools safely, talking to them about not using a hammer to hurt an insect.
• Communication and language skills are supported effectively. Staff speak to young children clearly, and this helps to support correct pronunciation. For younger children, staff help them to build a vocabulary, such as by linking an object with its name. Staff engage older children in conversation, asking and responding to questions. For instance, they have a discussion with the children about their observations of the woodlice they found in a dead log.
• Staff have high expectations of how children should behave, and children respond positively. Occasionally, staff are inconsistent in their approach to helping children understand the impact of their actions, such as throwing small toys. This does not fully support children to learn to manage their own behaviour and understand how to behave well.
• Staff provide very effective support for children with SEND and their families. Staff use their observations to help to identify additional needs. They communicate effectively with parents and, where necessary, work collaboratively with external professionals to meet the needs of these children. Additional funding is used appropriately to support learning.
• Staff plan activities to develop children's understanding of different cultures and beliefs. For example, each day, they find out about a different country and its landmarks, foods and customs. Parents are invited to come and read stories from their home country, and children use the role play areas to wear different clothes.
• Leaders are reflective and ambitious. They meet regularly with staff to discuss their well-being, professional practice and training needs. Staff are keen to attend additional training to further improve their skills and knowledge to help them meet the needs of all children.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• provide support for staff in planning activities that have a clear learning purpose to challenge children even further in their thinking
• support staff in using consistent behaviour management strategies to help children self-regulate their behaviour.