Playtimes Playgroup

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are welcomed into this small and friendly setting. Staff spend time getting to know children and families and prioritise partnership working with parents to support children's learning. Key persons are allocated to all children, and this supports children's sense of security and safety within the setting. Children benefit from exciting learning opportunities that are planned specifically to meet their needs. All children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), make good progress in all areas of their development.

Staff have implemented a secure curriculum that supports children's independence, confidence and well-being. Children are encouraged to learn important skills that enable them to complete tasks by themselves. This helps them to become confident and independent learners from a young age. Children demonstrate their strong independence throughout the day. They confidently find their own belongings, get themselves dressed, change their shoes and carry out personal hygiene tasks by themselves. Staff have recently reviewed and adapted the environment to ensure children are fully able to be independent during their play and daily routines. For example, coat pegs and storage are all low level so that children can access them freely and independently.

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

• Outdoors, children thoroughly enjoy experimenting with a range of equipment. They confidently ride the scooters and trikes, balancing and negotiating space as they skilfully avoid obstacles. Learning opportunities outdoors are varied and support children's gross motor development and strength.
• Children enjoy reading and listening to a variety of stories. Staff use books to teach children new knowledge. For example, when children listen to the story about a hungry caterpillar, staff link this knowledge to the real-life caterpillars they have at the setting. Children learn new words, such as 'cocoon', and develop their understanding as they observe the changes to the insects they are caring for.
• Overall, staff's teaching with children is good. Staff ask questions to support children's learning and give time for them to respond and share their ideas. Occasionally, during some activities, staff's interactions are limited and learning opportunities are less effective and therefore, not always fully extending children's knowledge and skills.
• Staff work closely with children with SEND. They monitor children's progress and set clear and achievable targets for children to work towards. Furthermore, designated staff work closely with other professionals, holding regular meetings and sharing information to benefit and support children. This helps them to make good, fast progress in their learning.
• Parents provide positive feedback for the setting and in particular, praise the excellent communication from staff. Parents feel well informed about their children's learning and the progress they make, as well as what they are learning next. Parents and children make regular use of the lending library that is available, helping them to understand the importance of early reading and language development.
• Staff well-being is paramount at the setting. The management team has implemented supportive and open lines of communication with staff. They 'check-in' with staff regularly and provide support and flexibility for staff when needed. Staff feel well supported and valued at the setting. Additionally, the management team holds regular supervisions for all staff. The team monitors staff's progress and skills and implement training opportunities that can enhance this further.
• The management team has high expectations of staff working in partnership with other professionals to support children's learning. However, they have not yet implemented a robust method of communication to enable information sharing with other early years settings that children attend. This can impact on the overall knowledge and understanding of progress that staff gain of some children.
• The setting has implemented 'rising-fives' sessions that focus on school preparation and the transition to a new setting. Children benefit from specific learning opportunities that are provided during these sessions, such as name writing and story reading. Furthermore, children benefit from regular visits to the local school, where they spend time with the teacher and visit the lunch hall where they enjoy their meals and become familiar with the new, busier environment.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support staff to provide a consistent high standard of interactions and effective teaching at all times
• strengthen communication with other early years settings that children attend to support consistency in children's learning and development.