Little Wisp Town

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children arrive happy and ready to learn at the setting. All children, including those new to the pre-school, settle well with support from the caring, attentive team. Staff use assessment well and invest time in getting to know the children. They fully consider and respect children's individuality. Staff speak knowledgeably about their key children. They successfully plan activities around children's interests and what they need to learn next.

Children access the wide range of opportunities available to them. They make their own play dough and predict which ingredients come next in the recipe. Children behave well and show good attitudes to learning. They persevere with weighing and measuring during their outdoor water play. Children work cooperatively together as they make 'strawberry pie' in the mud kitchen.

Communication is a clear focus for the pre-school. Children take part in small focus group sessions to support their speech and language development. Most of the time, children listen to stories well. They take part in song times, singing number rhymes such as 'Ten Fat Sausages' and 'Five Currant Buns'. This helps to increase children's vocabulary and develop their mathematical language skills. All children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), make good progress.

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

• Leadership is strong. Leaders promote staff well-being and morale is high. They support staff through a thorough induction process. Leaders ensure that all staff have regular opportunities for training. They act as good role models to support staff. The leadership team is very evaluative. Its members reflect on the provision and practices. For example, two-year-old progress checks have recently changed. As a result, they better meet the requirements. Additionally, real food, introduced to the role play area, as a result of further change, is popular. Children enjoy playing with this and transporting it around the setting.
• Parents comment positively on the support they receive from the staff team. This ranges from potty training, to helping to manage children's use of technology at home. Parents say their children have developed well at the setting. They report that children have learned new language and gained in confidence and skills. Parents say how much they enjoy the book lending library provided. They talk about how they read the books regularly to their children. This further promotes language development.
• Children with SEND thrive in this pre-school. Staff identify any concerns about children's progress early. They engage effectively with parents and other professionals. This enables individual targeted support. Staff act on advice and put in place strategies to support children's development.
• Staff plan the curriculum well. Children make good progress from their starting points. Staff provide children with a range of interesting indoor and outdoor learning opportunities. Children are confident and independent in their play. They move freely indoors and outdoors, choosing what they would like to do. Sometimes, however, staff interrupt children's play. They gather all children in to join large group activities. For example, before lunch all children come inside for a whole group story time. This is not always effective and does not meet the needs of younger children. As a result, some children lose interest and become restless.
• A well-established key person system helps children form secure attachments. Overall, staff manage children's hygiene needs well. Older children independently use the toilet and wash their hands. Younger children's nappies are regularly changed and appropriately disposed of. Staff encourage children to wash their hands before mealtimes and after using the toilet. However, there is no explanation given to children about why they need to wash their hands. This does not help children to understand the importance of handwashing.
• Staff help children to learn about the benefits of eating a healthy and varied diet. They provide parents with examples of healthy food choices for inclusion in children's packed lunches. Staff implement effective processes to ensure that children's individual dietary requirements are met. They sit and talk with children as they eat, promoting good manners and social interaction at mealtimes.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• review the organisation of group times to ensure that children have their needs met consistently throughout the day
• further promote the handwashing procedures so that children understand the importance of hygiene.