Laurels Playschool

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy at the playschool and arrive eager to start their day. Staff form lovely relationships with children and get to know them well. They find out what children enjoy doing and talk to them about their homelife. Staff engage in nurturing interactions which promotes children's well-being and helps them to feel settled and secure. Children behave very well. They follow staff instructions, such as helping to tidy up in preparation for mealtimes. Children are developing a good understanding of what is expected of them.

Leaders plan a curriculum that is ambitious for all children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Children's physical development is particularly well promoted. They have daily access to a well-equipped outdoor area and take part in a variety of sports related experiences, such as yoga and dance class. Children demonstrate a great deal of strength and agility when using the outdoor equipment. They skilfully master how to balance on the parallel bars, carefully managing their own risk. Children are self-assured and confident in their own abilities. Staff support children with SEND to take part in the playschool sports day activities. This helps children to feel valued and promotes inclusion. All children develop the skills needed for the next stage in their learning.

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

• Leaders plan a broad curriculum which helps children to develop the skills they need for school. They choose topics and celebrations that link to children's interests to help promote engagement and a positive attitude to learning. Staff accurately identify children's next steps and carefully weave these into their planning. This helps to ensure that children build succinctly on their existing skills and knowledge.
• The procedures for supporting children with SEND are effective. The special educational needs and disability coordinator works closely with staff to identify gaps in children's learning. Children with SEND access smaller groups and targeted intervention to help them learn. Additional funding is used appropriately to support children's needs and interests. This helps all children to make good progress from their individual starting points.
• Staff support children's communication and language development well. They engage children in purposeful back-and-forth conversations about the things they like and are interested in. Staff extend children's language further by adding description words to their sentences and introducing new vocabulary. Children are becoming confident, articulate communicators.
• Children show good levels of engagement. They demonstrate perseverance and determination when working together as a team to make a den. Children concentrate intently as they carefully thread the rope through the tarpaulin eyelets. They use their problem-solving skills to unwind the rope and secure it down with pegs. When children succeed, this boosts their confidence and helps them to become motivated learners.
• Overall, children enjoy taking part in circle time. They sing familiar songs and listen carefully as staff read stories. Children share their 'news' and show confidence when speaking in a group. However, whole group activities are not always organised well enough. Groups sizes can be too large, and children spend a lot of time sat or waiting for their turn. For some children, this is overwhelming, and they do not get the most from the learning experience.
• Children demonstrate good levels of independence. They use knives safely to cut up fruit for snack, carefully adopting a sawing motion for harder vegetables, such as carrots. Children pour their drinks, tend to their own personal care needs and take responsibility for their belongings. They are developing some lovely skills that will help them when they move to school.
• Parent partnerships are in important part of the playschool ethos. Staff keep parents up to date about children's development and provide resources and ideas of how learning can be extended at home. Parents visit the setting to share information about their jobs, cultures and cuisines. This develops children's knowledge of those who are different from themselves and broadens their understanding of the world.
• Leaders are dedicated to the playschool and work well together as a team. Staff feel happy and enjoy carrying out their roles. Leaders have some procedures in place for staff supervision and professional development. However, staff practice is not monitored consistently enough. Staff do not all receive precise feedback that will help them to extend their skills and knowledge further. Consequently, there are some minor weaknesses in the quality of education.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• review the organisation of group activities to help all children get the most out of the learning experience
• monitor staff practice more consistently and provide staff with precise feedback that will strengthen their skills and knowledge further.