Playaway Preschool

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Staff welcome the children warmly. Children arrive happy and settle quickly, choosing from a range of interesting activities indoors and outdoors. They play together building their games. For example, children play on the carpet with the wooden blocks, making roads and creating ramps for the cars. Other children choose to play in the mud kitchen, looking for bugs.

There is a strong emphasis on developing children's communication and language development. The children are learning about growing plants and vegetables. At snack time, staff place items on the table and encourage children to talk about what they can see. For example, they put pine cones on the table for the younger children and flowers for the older children. This supports children to revisit ideas about things that grow.

The staff know the children well. They use their knowledge of child development to plan a curriculum that is inclusive to meet the needs of children. This means all children make good progress, regardless of their starting point. Parents of children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) speak highly of the setting. The manager uses additional funding to promote children's well-being and learning. Parents comment on how staff provide support with resources and experiences to develop their child's learning.

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

• The manager has a clear vision to develop children's learning. The staff share the vision and use training to develop all areas of the learning environment. For example, children can select their own resources and activities. Younger children choose song pictures for staff to sing their favourite songs to them. Older children select rechargeable torches to investigate light and shadow. This enables children to make active choices and direct their own learning through their interests.
• Children learn mathematical skills through play. For example, they use weighing scales to explore the weight of vegetables and fill measuring pots with water. However, staff do not make the most of all opportunities to develop older children's mathematical knowledge further to extend their learning.
• Staff understand the importance of developing children's language, particularly children who speak English as an additional language. Staff naturally sing songs to the children as they play. This inspires children to respond and join in. At story time, staff enthusiastically read 'Shark in the Park'. The children join in with the actions. For example, they pretend to have telescopes to look around. This helps to broaden their imagination and extend their vocabulary and love of books.
• Staff prepare children well for their transitions to school. They organise meetings to share information and plan visits for teachers from the local schools to meet the children. However, younger children need more support when they transition to the older age group, particularly to encourage them to take part in activities fully.
• Children behave and know the routine well. Staff are respectful to children and model polite communication. They give a five-minute warning before an adult-led activity. The children have further reminders, allowing them time to finish off what they are doing. Children sit for group circle time, where they sing songs and welcome each child. Older children learn the days of the week and letter sounds. This helps them prepare for further learning.
• Staff encourage children's independence. Children have snack time when they are ready. This supports the development of children's self-help skills. For example, children pour their own drinks and help themselves to healthy food. They use spoons to feed themselves. Staff support children who are still learning to develop these skills.
• Children have a good understanding of a healthy lifestyle. They know to wash their hands after playing outside, before eating and after using the toilet. Staff are sensitive to younger children's needs. They know the importance of the key person to make them feel safe and secure. Children's key persons sing gently to them as they have their nappies changed.
• All children are physically active. They use the climbing walls to build their core strength and muscles. Older children develop their fine motor skills using play dough to make pretend cakes with natural resources.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support staff to extend older children's mathematical development in activities
• strengthen the transition for the younger children moving up to the next age group to further support the care and learning leads.