Kids World Kimberworth

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children form secure attachments to staff. This is because staff recognise the importance of children, especially babies, forming a secure bond with their key person. Babies and older children feel safe and secure as they approach staff for cuddles and reassurance when needed. Staff encourage families to share photographs from home and these are transferred into a photograph album. Babies enjoy looking through this with staff who talk to them about who each person is. When babies recognise familiar family members, they excitedly point them out.

Staff are skilled at responding to children's interests. They use their knowledge of what they want children to learn next when they engage in children's chosen play experiences. This helps children to make progress in their learning. Children are supported to develop their communication and language skills. When babies babble, staff show an interest in what they are saying. Staff maintain eye contact as they positively respond to the babies' attempts at communication. Older children confidently express what they are doing as they play. As staff engage with children, they talk to them and ask lots of questions. This encourages children to develop simple conversations with staff.

Since the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic, staff have recognised that children have missed out on celebrating special occasions. A party is now held every month to help all children whose birthdays fall within that month to celebrate. Staff understand that this promotes children's emotional well-being and their social skills.

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

• Staff work closely with parents and carers from the outset. They obtain clear information to ensure children's individual needs are met and to build on their prior knowledge and skills. Parents confirm that they feel well informed about their children's daily experiences and ongoing learning and development.
• Managers and staff monitor children's progress well. They quickly identify any areas where children are not making quite as much progress. Staff work with other professionals to ensure children who have special educational needs and/or disabilities receive the support they need to achieve. Funding for children in receipt of early years pupil premium is carefully spent on where it is needed most. Staff provide additional resources and targeted support to help children to catch up in their learning.
• Staff take account of children's interests when planning and setting activities up for the next day. They consider what they want children to learn from these experiences. However, some staff are not as familiar with the learning intention for these activities. While children, therefore, enjoy these experiences, the activities do not always sufficiently challenge all children.
• Staff place a keen emphasis on encouraging children's independence, confidence, and social skills as the foundations to support children's future learning. Babies are supported to learn how to feed themselves. Older children learn how to serve their own lunch and clear their plates when they have finished eating. A small group of children are chosen by staff to join the children's council. Children are encouraged to share their views and opinions. Staff take account of these when looking to increase resources or when planning future events.
• Staff provide opportunities for babies to develop confidence as they learn how to move. For babies who have recently progressed to walking, staff help them to safely negotiate the stairs and ramp on the activity centre. However, at times, the room becomes cluttered with toys and resources. This reduces the space available for children to move around without obstruction.
• Older children are supported to develop their physical skills during a planned 'squiggle and wiggle' activity. For example, children use scarfs as they sing the wheels on the bus song. Staff encourage them to make large circular movements with their arms to represent the wheels turning. Children then use chalks to draw big lines on the floor to represent the people on the bus moving up and down. This fun activity helps children to develop control and coordination in preparation for when they begin to learn to write.
• Children of all ages enjoy siting and listening to stories and engaging in singing activities. Staff understand how the use of story time helps children to hear more words and sounds, which extends their vocabulary. Planned group story time sessions are used with older children to develop their listening and attention skills. Staff regularly sit with babies, sharing a range of board and sound books.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support all staff to understand the learning intention of planned activities so that they can consistently support and challenge all children
• consider how to better plan the use of space so that babies can move around in areas, free from obstructions.