Little Dragons Childcare

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children appear happy, content and thriving in the calm pre-school environment. Changes made to arrival procedures due to COVID-19 (coronavirus) mean that parents no longer go inside the pre-school playroom. Staff have successfully supported children to adapt to this change in routine and they enter eagerly and with confidence. Children talk about the importance of handwashing when they arrive, to stop the spread of 'germs' and keep everybody safe. Children settle quickly into the daily routine and engross themselves in play.

Children have formed close relationships with staff and other children and have learned to treat each with kindness and respect. Children listen carefully when staff talk to them and follow the rules to help keep themselves safe. Children enjoy taking part in morning registration, particularly the opportunity to share how they are feeling through the use of sign language. Children confidently talk about emotions and self-regulation. They describe the strategies they have learned to help them to feel calm and relaxed after returning to pre-school. For instance, they discuss the effects of taking deep breaths when feeling worried, upset or angry. Children demonstrate a great deal of patience as they listen carefully to their friends and wait for their turn to speak.

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

• Leaders are clear about what they want children to learn. They have developed a broad, varied curriculum to help them achieve this. Staff use their good understanding of child development to identify what children already know and can do and what they want them to achieve next. This helps staff to plan activities and quality interactions, in line with the pre-school's curriculum, that challenge children's learning and help them to progress to the next stage.
• Staff use what they know about the children to identify those who are at risk of falling behind. Staff work swiftly and efficiently to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those whose learning has been impacted by COVID-19. This helps children to make good progress in their learning.
• Staff complete a range of training to help them promote children's communication and language development. Staff use this knowledge to help younger children to develop their vocabulary. For instance, when younger children babble, staff repeat these babbles before sensitively modelling the correct word. Older children are supported to develop into confident communicators and talk with ease about the things they enjoy at pre-school.
• Children have lots of opportunities to practise their physical skills. The large artificial turfed area allows them to play outside in all weathers. Children giggle in delight as they run to each area of the garden looking for 'bugs'. They use tools that develop fine motor skills to carefully catch and examine the insects they find. Children talk with interest about the selection of different insects they find in the garden area.
• Leaders have worked hard to form strong bonds with parents and families. They use a variety of ways to share general information about what children are learning at pre-school. Parents are very happy with the quality of care provided. However, information about children's individual development is not specific enough. This means that parents are unsure of how to fully extend children's learning at home.
• Staff are well qualified and committed to ongoing professional development. However, arrangements for supervision, coaching and mentoring are not robust. Feedback received by staff about their performance is not frequent or specific enough to help raise the quality of education to the next level.
• Children have learned to be independent in their self-care. They are eager to be involved in snack preparation and can spread butter on their toast and cut it into pieces. Children attend to their own toileting needs and handwashing. They confidently put on their own coats.
• Children have developed high levels of concentration. Younger children immerse themselves in the sensory experience of water play. Older children carefully sculpt 'chocolate cake' out of sand. Staff use these periods of engagement to introduce new words and develop children's thinking skills. For instance, older children think about words to describe how sand feels between their hands.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• build on the information given to parents about their child's development to help them extend this at home
• strengthen the arrangements for the supervision, coaching and mentoring of staff to help raise the quality of teaching to a higher level.