Little People At The Limes

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are excited to learn and eager to join in with activities. They happily sing to themselves while they are playing and maintain focus for extended periods as they try out new ideas. For example, children suggest adding more flour as they make their own dough. They excitedly shout 'that's better' when they notice the consistency of the dough changing. Children are making good progress and are developing positive attitudes to learning.

Children's emotional well-being is prioritised in this nurturing setting. Children's feelings are acknowledged by the attentive staff, who respond with an abundance of cuddles and reassuring words. Children develop secure bonds with their key person and engage in thoughtful conversations with them. For example, as children look at photographs of their family, they excitedly talk about the imminent arrival of a new sibling. Children are developing positive relationships and feel safe in the care of the staff.

Children respond positively to staff's high expectations of behaviour. They follow their instructions and listen carefully as staff speak to them. The embedded routines support children to understand what is happening and to anticipate what will happen next. For example, toddlers enthusiastically help to tidy the room and wait patiently as their drinks are poured. Children get along well with each other. They take turns and have thoughtful conversations with their friends. Children take care of the resources and are respectful to each other.

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

• Leaders are clear on what they want children to learn. They plan activities and adapt the rooms to ensure that their curriculum sequentially builds on what children know and can do over time. For example, staff carefully consider how to support children to learn to walk. Once children are confident to do this, staff add opportunities for climbing and balancing. Children are supported to be ready for the next stage of their development.
• Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) flourish in this supportive setting. Staff engage effectively with parents and other professionals to enable targeted support to be put in place for children. For example, children access specific activities and resources that promote speech and language development. Children with SEND make good progress from their starting points.
• Staff know children well and effectively meet their individual needs. Staff gather detailed information from parents. They use the knowledge gained from this to provide continuity of care between home and the setting. Babies who have only just started attending are calm and settled in the care of the staff, who already understand their needs. Children's physical and emotional needs are supported well.
• Parents are full of praise for this home-from-home setting. They state that their children settled quickly and feel they are making good progress. Parents speak highly of the communication they receive through a dedicated app, which they say helps them to understand their child's next steps. Parents appreciate the personalised support that they receive from staff, including signposting them to services for help and advice. Parents say that this setting is 'like a family'.
• Children are taught about making healthy choices. They eat a range of nutritious food, drink water throughout the day and enjoy being physically active. Children talk about the importance of washing their hands to 'get the germs off'. They describe the progress they have made in the swimming lessons and sports activities that the setting facilitates them to access. Children are developing an understanding of what it means to be healthy and active.
• Children enjoy hearing stories read to them by staff. They look carefully at the books and join in with the familiar parts of the story. Younger children wave at the characters on the page. Older children talk about the similarities between the characters in different books that they have read. These experiences are supporting children to develop a love of reading.
• Overall, staff's interactions with children are positive and support children to make good progress. However, not all staff are confident to consistently extend children's learning, particularly during unstructured activities. Staff do not always adapt their teaching in the moment to build on what children are showing them about their current understanding.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support staff to extend children's learning to the highest level through ensuring that they consistently build on children's knowledge through their interactions with them.