Greendown Playgroup

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy and confident in the playgroup and form strong relationships with staff. They really benefit from the well-thought-out and targeted curriculum that staff form based on children's learning needs and interests. Managers and staff have high expectations for children's capabilities. Staff provide them with a rich set of experiences and offer attentive and timely interactions and good teaching. Children are inspired and challenged effectively.

Children are well prepared for their move on to school. They build their strength and coordination. They spend considerable lengths of time following their interests. They combine materials and use a wide range of tools and techniques. They develop their dexterity well in readiness for early writing. Older children enjoy their physical education (PE) session and experiment moving in different ways. They change into their PE clothes, showing their growing confidence and independence. Children solve problems and show positive attitudes. Staff offer them tips to aid their exploration and ensure that they play safely. They help children to work together to achieve their self-chosen goals, such as to create a pond in the sandpit for their toy characters. In this way, children build friendships and develop their social skills well. Staff also make sure that mealtimes are an enjoyable social occasion. Children sit in their key groups and enjoy chatting with staff and the other children.

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

• Key persons assess children's development and build on what children know, outlining gaps in their learning. They focus on these and make plans of what skills children need to acquire next. Children make good progress, including children with special educational needs and/or disabilities.
• Staff use distraction, discussion and negotiation effectively to help children to manage their emotions, channel their energy and share toys and resources. They offer prompt additional assistance when children are struggling to follow safety boundaries and expectations, and they sensitively help children to learn to respect each other's needs.
• Staff hold meetings with parents to discuss children's learning and development. Parents value the little extra touches that keep them well informed, such as the daily activity board and regular newsletters. Managers ensure that they are always on hand at the beginning of the day to speak with parents. Parents are also grateful for the opportunity to come in and visit during a session. They find this valuable to see what their children are doing at the playgroup.
• Staff lead beneficial group activities to promote children's skills across multiple areas of their development. Some of these sessions work well, and children's confidence and communication progress effectively. However, during some group activities, staff are not as successful in their approach. For example, they are not prompt enough in their support for the younger and newer children, who distract the other children during a group story time. Consequently, at these times, children's involvement and learning are not as high as they could be.
• Staff get down to children's level and use clear speech and model words to ensure that children understand and progress their skills as they play. They listen to children and value what they have to say. Staff ask children questions to encourage their thinking and conversation. They give children time to respond. Children's understanding and speech progress well, including children who speak English as an additional language.
• Each child's key person liaises with parents when children start, and on an ongoing basis, to gain knowledge of children's needs and interests. They have some links with other settings that children attend. However, they have not developed links with all the settings children attend, to help inform future planning and a consistent approach for children.
• The long-standing manager is highly experienced and inspires those who work with her. She oversees the running of the playgroup and works closely with the new manager who works in the playgroup on a day-to-day basis. They support staff well. They hold regular team meetings and individual supervision meetings. Staff are supported to undertake relevant training, and two members of staff have recently completed early years qualifications.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• review and enhance the support staff offer to children during group activities, to extend children's skills further
• strengthen the links with other settings children attend, to share information to inform future planning and to provide a consistent approach for children.