Grindleford and Eyam Playgroup

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The managers and staff team have high expectations for all children. They implement a clear ethos of supporting children to become happy, independent, confident and caring. Staff plan activities in the community to support children's development. For example, they walk to the forest school, build fires, climb walls and enjoy hot chocolate with fruit and sandwiches.

Children behave well, tidy up their toys and share with their friends. Staff provide a warm and caring environment where children feel content and secure. Children spontaneously approach staff for hugs and cuddle up contentedly. Parents give glowing feedback on how happy they are with the playgroup and it is clear that their children are very happy.

Children enjoy being creative and developing their imagination. They explore a variety of resources to make snowy pictures and enjoy dressing up as they pretend to be princesses, talking to each other about how princesses would behave. Children sit behind one another on a branch and go on an imaginary train ride. They talk about where they might go and what they would see. Children use their small-muscle skills to mould and squash play dough into shapes. They use tweezers to pick up ice cubes and small plastic sea-life creatures, developing their pincer grip. This prepares children well for future learning and mark making.

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

• The dedicated managers plan and organise the curriculum well. They put children's emotional well-being and communication skills at the heart of everything they do. The managers and staff team support children to become curious, confident and independent with a love of the outdoors. The intent, implementation and impact of the curriculum are evident throughout the playgroup. Staff use children's interests to develop activities that promote each child's learning. For example, as children throw sticks into the stream to investigate whether they float or sink, staff add stones and leaves for them to test.
• Staff have a very good knowledge of children's abilities and the next steps in their learning. This helps to ensure that children receive the relevant help and support they need and that no child is left behind in their progress. However, on occasions, staff do not use their detailed knowledge about each child to ensure their interactions challenge children's learning to help them build on previously acquired knowledge. For instance, staff interactions tend to focus on pointing out features of the environment as they walk to the forest. They talk to children about the icy puddles and how these crack as they walk on them, rather than questioning what children can see for themselves.
• Staff utilise a range of strategies to support children to develop their speaking and listening skills. For example, staff model language as they describe the paw prints they see in the snow. They introduce new vocabulary to the children, such as 'hooves' rather than 'paws' for the deer tracks. However, on occasion, staff do not enable children to experience using the language they have heard to further support their emerging communication skills.
• Children's good health is successfully promoted. They know to wash their hands before lunch with little reminders from staff. Predictable daily routines underpin children's good levels of independence. For example, they are encouraged to take off their coats and boots when returning from the forest school and put their indoor shoes on. Children's love of outdoor play is embraced by staff, who successfully plan a range of challenging experiences outside and in the community. Children make strong gains in their physical skills.
• Parents speak warmly about the care and education of their children in the playgroup. They receive regular feedback on their individual child's progress and share daily communication about their child's care needs. Parents receive a weekly newsletter to keep them up to date about the activities their children have been involved in, so they can support this learning at home.
• Staff benefit from good training opportunities and mentoring to help them extend and develop their skills. The nominated individual, the manager and staff work closely together to evaluate and identify where they can make improvements to help ensure better outcomes for children.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• raise the quality of interactions to ensure children are consistently challenged and each child's learning is maximised
• support staff to consistently build on children's communication and language skills.