Little Stars

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy at the setting. Those who are struggling to settle confidently look to their familiar member of staff for support and are quickly comforted. Children are motivated in their play and learning. They sing and dance enthusiastically with their friends. They develop their confidence to perform a song to the group. Some children are joyous in their learning. They exclaim excitedly that they are going to 'mix the colours' as they make their own play dough.

Staff know the children in their care very well. They find out what children like to do and also about their family backgrounds. This helps staff to plan for children's continued learning and to keep them safe. Staff prioritise children's personal, social and emotional development. They praise children warmly for their good behaviour, for persevering with tasks and for helping to tidy up. Children share and take turns with minimum adult support.

Staff understand the difficulties that children and their parents have faced due to the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic. Staff acknowledge how periods of isolation have affected children's confidence and, in some cases, their development. They work hard to support children who need extra help to catch up with their peers. There have been recent changes to the leadership team, which has raised additional challenges. However, the developing team and their plans for improvement are beginning to have a positive impact on children's learning.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• develop further the focus on children's language development so that all children are supported to make the best possible progress
• continue to drive improvements in monitoring and supervision of staff to provider even greater consistency in the quality of their interactions with children.