Joeys At Milnthorpe Family Centre

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Staff promote children's sense of belonging and their security as they display photographs of children's families and children's artwork. Children understand the routines of the day. They behave well and are polite, responding to staff's instructions and expectations. Where frustrations emerge, staff step in swiftly to help children to resolve their differences. Children happily lead their own play and staff are close by to engage them in interesting discussions. Children are offered choice and often choose to join group activities with their friends.

Staff support children to learn about their community as they visit the local library and make juice with fruit which is grown locally. Staff promote healthy lifestyles as they introduce children to new fruits and encourage them to try the savoury muffins they have made together, for instance. Children develop strength and stamina as they climb and explore in their outdoor area. Staff encourage a range of physical skills, sequencing them appropriately as children develop the movements and muscles they will need as they learn to write. Staff help children to develop the skills that they will need as they move on to pre-school and school.

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

• Staff's teaching generally promotes children's learning well. Staff plan around children's interests which means that children are engaged and enjoy their play. Although children make good progress towards the next stage of their education, some group activities are not precisely focused on the areas that staff want children to develop.
• The provider sources training to enhance staff's skills and knowledge. Staff feel well supported in their roles and are keen to contribute to the development of the provision. Staff are dedicated to their roles and their mixture of experience and enthusiasm benefits children's learning greatly. This helps children to make good progress in their learning.
• Staff consider babies' learning and development very well. Babies are gently supported by calm, skilled staff who understand their needs and interests. For instance, staff adapt plans for babies to move up to the toddler room depending on their individual abilities. Babies are settled and form strong attachments with staff, helping their confidence and personalities to blossom.
• Staff promote children's language skills well as they read and sing key stories, songs and poems with them. Staff have begun to incorporate signing into their singing and narration. Although this has been implemented recently, children's communication skills are progressing more rapidly as a result.
• Staff help children to learn about different family dynamics and about how they are each unique. They also look at video clips of how people live in other countries. Staff teach children to be thoughtful of others by donating to food banks and visiting local care homes, for example. Children begin to understand about our diverse world.
• Effective monitoring and assessment procedures help staff to identify gaps in children's learning and development. Strategies are implemented to help individual children to catch up and to support groups of children in certain areas. For instance, staff teach children breathing techniques to help them to regulate their emotions. This helps children to make good progress across the curriculum.
• Staff work closely with a variety of outside agencies to ensure that children with special educational needs and/or disabilities have appropriate support. Additional funding is spent thoughtfully. For instance, some children benefit from individual support. Staff offer parents targeted support to ensure that their children receive consistent care. Consequently, all children make good progress from their starting points.
• Partnerships with parents are well developed. Staff involve parents in their children's regular focus weeks and give them lots of ideas of how they can promote their children's learning at home. Parents feel involved in their children's learning and praise staff for boosting their children's confidence. Strong relationships support the consistency of children's care and experiences

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• consider ways to focus teaching on children's next steps with more precision to continually build on the quality of education.