Harmby Under 5s

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children thoroughly enjoy their time in this stimulating setting. They separate from their parents and carers with ease and quickly engage in the array of exciting activities that are on offer. Children are eager and motivated to learn. They join in planned activities or happily engage in their own play. For example, children make ice-cream cones from foam. They invite staff into their play. Staff support children to count how many scoops they use. This helps to develop children's counting skills.

Children benefit from small-group interactions. Staff know children well and plan activities to support their individual needs. For example, staff notice that the COVID-19 pandemic has affected children's confidence. They provide children with equipment to make their own obstacle course. Children work together to build a course. Staff provide praise and encouragement as they place the planks and crates together. This helps to develop children's self-esteem.

Children have good relationships with their key person and the staff team. This helps children to be happy and feel safe and secure. Staff have high expectations for children's behaviour. Children understand the rules of the setting. For example, they remind each other to use 'kind hands'. Children learn to be kind and courteous to each other.

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

• Staff plan a broad and ambitious curriculum based on what children already know and can do. They carefully follow children's individual interests. For example, they know children have an interest in farm vehicles and make sure that these are readily available. Staff use information from observations and assessment to identify any gaps in children's learning. They plan activities to help narrow the gaps. This helps children to make good progress.
• Staff talk to children constantly throughout the day. They encourage two-way conversations and show a genuine interest in what children have to say. Staff introduce new words, such as 'enormous' and 'tiny'. They speak clearly and give children time to respond to questions. This helps to develop children's communication skills.
• Staff support children to become increasingly independent. They encourage children to take off their shoes and put on their wellingtons. Children pour their own drinks and know where to put toys at tidy-up time. Staff encourage children to challenge themselves to balance, climb and slide in the outdoor area. Children negotiate space in the outdoor area as they propel themselves around on wheeled vehicles. This promotes their physical health and well-being and helps them to learn to take appropriate risks. Staff speak to children about oral health as they play. For example, children discuss whether ice cream is healthy or unhealthy and the impact it might have on their teeth. This helps children to develop an understanding of healthy lifestyles.
• Overall, partnerships with parents are good. Staff communicate effectively with parents, sharing information at handovers and through an online app. Parents are happy with the care and education that their children receive. They feel well informed about their children's learning. However, staff do not yet provide parents with ideas to further support children's learning and development at home.
• Children are encouraged to use good manners. Staff act as positive role models. They encourage children to share and take turns. Children patiently wait for their turn on the outdoor equipment. Children's behaviour is good.
• Staff work in close partnerships with a range of professionals. For example, they work with the local school and speech and language staff. However, staff have not yet developed relationships with other early years settings that children attend. This means that continuity of children's care and learning is not fully supported.
• The manager is reflective and thinks carefully about how to support staff well-being. Staff work well together and speak respectfully to each other. They have staff meetings, where they discuss children's learning and development. Although the staff team is small, the manager has not yet fully developed effective supervision sessions with staff. This means that staff are not always provided with regular coaching and mentoring, to help raise the quality of teaching to an even higher level.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen communication with parents to provide ideas and suggestions about how they can further support their child's learning at home
• develop relationships with other settings that children attend to promote continuity in children's care and learning
• develop supervision sessions for staff further to ensure ongoing support is in place and further training needs are identified.