Little Gems Aldershot

Inclusion: Expected standard

Leaders get to know children and families from the start. They use conversations, six-week baselines, information from parents and advice from specialists to understand what each child needs. Clear plans and next steps help staff know how to support children. Training, induction and regular discussions help staff understand children's individual needs and make suitable changes to their care and learning.

Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities are supported throughout their day. Familiar adults, flexible routines and changes to communication and the environment help children overcome barriers and take part alongside their friends. Leaders work closely with families, schools and other professionals. Parents contribute to reviews and share the progress they see at home. This joined-up approach is helping children communicate more, grow in confidence and join in for longer. Children who speak English as an additional language hear clear, repeated words supported by signs and pictures. Adults help children progress from single words to short phrases and value their home languages through familiar songs and experiences shared from home.

Leaders use early years pupil premium funding to reduce barriers for disadvantaged children. This helps children attend and take part in experiences alongside their friends. Children known to social care are supported through close work with families, social workers and other professionals, with important information shared when children move rooms or schools.

Leaders review children's progress with families and professionals and change targets as children's needs change. However, they have not yet consistently completed and evaluated the full cycle of support. As a result, leaders cannot clearly demonstrate the impact of the support provided or identify which approaches help children make the best possible progress over time.

Curriculum and teaching: Expected standard

Leaders shape the Little Gems curriculum around belonging, communication, contribution, exploration and wellbeing. They find out about children's starting points and interests from families and six-week baselines. Leaders reflect on what works. For example, familiar cars and ramps were kept because returning children immediately re-engaged with them, and less successful activities are changed.

Adults use children's experiences to make learning meaningful. Children's conversations about journeys led to road building, where they learned about direction, solved problems, took turns and worked together. In the garden, children learned how plants grow and later picked tomatoes and peppers they had grown. Adults used this to develop children's understanding of healthy food and where it comes from. Stories and songs develop language too. Children predict what might happen next, recall earlier events and learn words and signs to ask for help.

Physical, personal, social and emotional development are woven through the day. Children play outdoors in all weather, practise self-care and learn to wait, cooperate and manage their feelings. Babies develop movement and early communication through floor play, songs, rhymes and responsive interaction.

Adults adapt teaching so children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and other barriers can participate. They use individual next steps to decide what children need to learn next. Adults also consider the needs of disadvantaged children and children known to social care when planning experiences and transitions, so that they can take part and continue their learning.

However, leaders have not yet fully set out how learning builds across all seven areas, and this is not consistently understood when children move rooms or staff are new. As a result, adults do not always build precisely enough on what children already know and can do. This means that some children may not make as much progress as they could across all areas of learning.

Achievement: Expected standard

Children make progress from their starting points. Babies make progress in their physical development, including moving from crawling or pulling themselves up to walking. They increasingly use sounds, actions and words to communicate. Children who initially find separating from parents difficult become settled, explore confidently and join others in play.

Children develop their communication and language. They listen to stories, recall events, predict what might happen next and use words and signs to express their needs. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) develop their attention, communication and participation when support is matched to their needs. Children become increasingly independent. They prepare fruit, pour drinks, wash their hands and clear away after eating. They learn to share, take turns, solve problems, manage their feelings and ask for help. These skills help prepare children for school and their next stage of learning.

Disadvantaged children are supported to attend and participate alongside their peers. Children known to social care benefit from continuity of support. However, leaders cannot yet show clearly enough the longer-term progress of children with SEND, disadvantaged children and children who speak English as an additional language. This means that support may not be changed quickly or precisely enough to help these children make the best possible progress over time.

Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines: Strong standard

Children benefit from a harmonious and respectful environment. Kindness is embedded in everyday routines, and adults consistently model being gentle, helpful and respectful. Children are settled, confidently choose activities and seek familiar adults when they need reassurance. Warm, trusting relationships help children feel secure and ready to learn.

Children consistently show positive attitudes towards learning and each other. They learn to wait, share, cooperate and take turns. Adults notice minor disagreements and respond calmly before they escalate, helping children return to play. Children increasingly learn to manage their different emotions and behaviour. For example, timers help them wait for a turn, while breathing, words and signs help them recognise and express how they feel.

Routines are highly effective. Visual schedules, warnings before changes and familiar transition cues help children know what happens next. Adults adapt their approach according to children's age, stage, communication needs and individual circumstances. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities receive appropriate support to understand and follow expectations alongside their peers.

Leaders closely monitor attendance, follow up unexplained absences and identify patterns. They work with families to understand and overcome individual barriers, including through flexible attendance arrangements. As a result, children establish positive routines, attend regularly and benefit consistently from the learning and relationships the setting provides.

Children's welfare and wellbeing: Strong standard

Children's welfare and wellbeing are at the heart of the setting. Children form secure, trusting relationships with familiar adults. Effective key-person arrangements, family photographs and close partnerships with parents provide continuity and reassurance. Adults know children extremely well and respond sensitively when they need comfort or support. They notice changes in children's behaviour and wellbeing and share important information. As a result, children feel safe, secure and confident to explore and learn.

Adults help children recognise and manage their different emotions. Children learn ways to calm themselves and communicate how they feel. Regular outdoor play in all weathers helps children develop physical confidence and enjoy being active. Children develop healthy habits and increasing independence through everyday routines. They prepare fruit, pour drinks, wash their hands and clear away after eating. Toothbrushing and conversations about dental care help children understand how to look after their teeth. Growing and harvesting vegetables helps children learn where food comes from and supports discussions about healthy choices. Adults supervise children closely while they eat and carefully follow arrangements for allergies and dietary needs.

Babies' care reflects their age, stage and individual routines. Adults follow safer sleep procedures, maintain safe sleep spaces and supervise babies closely while they eat. Familiar routines, responsive interactions and secure relationships help babies thrive physically and emotionally.

Leadership and governance: Expected standard

Leaders have a secure understanding of the setting's strengths and areas for development. They are managing significant change as the setting moves from mainly term-time care towards opening all year, alongside changes to staff roles and room arrangements. Leaders are visible and approachable and have maintained a clear focus on children during these changes.

Leaders place children's needs at the centre of their decisions. They work closely with families, schools, the local authority and other professionals. This supports disadvantaged children, children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, children known to social care and those facing other barriers. Leaders have also reviewed recruitment arrangements and strengthened interview procedures. Staff feel valued and supported. Leaders consider workload and family commitments when making staffing decisions. Flexible working has helped retain experienced staff, while external human resources advice and confidential counselling provide further support for staff wellbeing.

Leaders use induction, supervision, staff meetings, training and peer observations to develop staff knowledge and practice. They also carry out audits and follow up identified actions. However, leaders do not yet evaluate clearly enough how this work improves practice. They have not yet ensured that all staff, including those who are new to the setting, use key information about children and the curriculum consistently enough. This means that improvements may not always have a clear impact on children's learning and progress.