Little Willows Kindergarten

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children enter the setting excited, happy and pleased to see their friends and the warm, friendly staff. They settle quickly and flourish in the nurturing environment. Children independently access a broad range of resources that are set up by staff, who know children and their interests well. For instance, toddlers place trains onto wooden tracks and hunt for bugs hidden in sand. This helps to develop their fine motor skills and hand-to-eye coordination. Older toddlers practise yoga moves with staff, developing their physical skills as they learn how to move and stretch their bodies. They confidently mix mud and pour water in the outdoor mud kitchen. This helps to develop their large- and small-muscle skills.

Older children demonstrate high levels of engagement in small-group activities. They take turns describing and guessing the names of different types of fruit. Children excitedly name a kiwi and explain that it is 'furry' and 'hairy'. Children take part in weekly French lessons and are eager to use the words they know in French to describe the colours of each fruit. Babies actively engage in activities of their own choosing. They crawl into a low-level sandpit and stack wooden bricks on top of one another. Staff encourage babies to select items from a song bag and they eagerly move their bodies as staff sing 'Twinkle, Twinkle'. Staff are excellent role models. They have high expectations of the children in their care. Children behave very well.

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

• The manager is ambitious and passionate about her role. She has good support from the regional manager and the provider. The manager has implemented a number of changes to improve the quality of the setting. For example, communication with parents has improved, and staff and parents report how the changes have made a positive impact on the setting.
• The special educational needs coordinator (SENCo) is knowledgeable and understands her responsibilities well. She knows where to go to access advice and makes swift referrals to ensure that children get the support they require. As a result, children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) make the best possible progress.
• Children have superb opportunities to develop their physical skills. They go on regular outings to local parks and each room spends quality time in the setting's well-resourced garden. Older children relish using spray bottles and pretending to put out 'fires'. Toddlers enjoy climbing across wooden planks and painting on large sheets of paper. This helps to develop their small-muscle skills, balance and coordination.
• Children are kind and polite. They use good manners without any prompting from staff. Where children need support, staff provide gentle reminders, such as
• 'kind hands' and 'walking feet'. This helps children to understand the expectations within the setting.
• The manager carries out regular supervision meetings and staff attend regular training sessions. However, managers have not further developed the coaching and mentoring that staff receive, to support their teaching and raise it to an even higher level.
• Children's mathematical skills are developing well. Babies sit with caring staff and sing 'Five little ducks'. Toddlers count as they bounce balls up and down on the parachute. Older children add sea creatures into a jug and count to eight independently. Staff encourage them to compare which jug has the most water in. Children confidently use mathematical language, such as 'full' and 'empty'. This helps to develop children's early mathematical skills.
• Children benefit from a language-rich environment. Staff introduce a wide range of vocabulary and use simple sign language to help children to communicate. They ask age-appropriate questions and support children to express their ideas and recall past experiences. For example, staff ask children to recall their favourite memories. This helps to develop children's communication skills.
• Partnership with parents is a real strength of this setting. Staff gather detailed information about children's backgrounds and developmental starting points on entry. Staff use the information to help children settle quickly. Where children struggle to settle, staff work closely with families to support them. Parents feel well informed and involved in their children's learning. They comment that they feel staff 'go above and beyond'.
• Children's independence is well supported. Babies move around the room, independently accessing their favourite resources. Toddlers put on their own coats and attempt to put on their own shoes. Older children serve themselves lunch. Staff provide lots of praise and encouragement. This helps to develop children's confidence and raise their self-esteem.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen support for staff through coaching and mentoring to raise the quality of education to an even higher level.