Poplars Preschool

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children have close bonds with the caring staff and they settle quickly. Children are happy and focused on the activities offered. They laugh together as they feel ice, and learn about what happens if they put water on it. They use words they have learned, such as 'penguins', 'Iceland', 'earmuffs', and 'melt'.

Children progress well. For example, they show how to spell their name in the air with their fingers, and name the letters as they do this. Children enjoy familiar stories, such as 'Stick Man'. They list books they have read by the book's author. Children learn mathematical language. They count and say, 'one more', as they put coloured pegs into holes to make a pattern.

Children know the expectations for before they eat. They roll up their own sleeves before washing their hands, as staff say, 'let's wash the germs away'. Children take their plates to the dishwasher when they have finished. This teaches children to become self-sufficient. Children enjoy physical play outside, such as kicking a ball. They join in drawing a Christmas tree with chalks on the ground. They watch and wave through the fence to the school children in the playground next door.

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

• Children delight in listening to stories. For example, younger children listen to the tale of the three little pigs. Staff use words such as 'huff', 'puff', and 'blow the house down', as children join in with actions. Older children listen to the story 'Sam's Snowflake'. The children engage in back-and-forth interactions with the enthusiastic staff. This helps to encourage a love of reading and sharing books.
• Staff provide children with lots of opportunities to take appropriate risks and tackle challenges. For example, the enthusiastic staff encourage children to balance on the beams. Children proudly say, 'I can do it'. Staff encourage less confident children to have a go. This helps to promote children's confidence and physical health.
• Children have healthy snacks, such as apple, orange and carrots. They sit at the table in small groups to eat together. Leaders encourage parents to provide healthy lunch box contents.
• Staff do not have efficient routines for serving food and drink to the younger children at snack time. Younger children sit and wait at tables for too long for staff to pour their drinks and serve the fruit on to their plate. Some children become restless and disinterested, and want to leave the table before they get their snack.
• Staff work closely with parents to support and extend learning at home. For example, staff send home key words from the book 'Brown Bear'. Staff provide children in receipt of extra funding with books to take home. Staff have frequent meetings with parents and offer online information to them. This means that children's learning at nursery may be complemented at home.
• Leaders focus on improving staff's knowledge of managing children's behaviour. Children, overall, know staff's expectations for their behaviour. For example, staff encourage younger children to use 'good looking' at story time. Pre-school children know to hang their coats up when coming from outside. However, towards the end of sessions, the activities offered to children in the toddler room are sometimes not engaging for them. The children wander and run around the room. Staff do not consistently support children's curiosity, so at times they become disinterested.
• Following the COVID-19 pandemic, leaders are focusing on children's speech and language as a priority. This is a strength of the setting. For example, children spend time one-to-one with an adult. They play 'What's in the pot?' and learn to say words, such as mouse, rat and rainbow. Staff encourage children to use sign language for words, such as milk and water. Staff speak clearly and provide lots of communication and language. This means that children make good progress and enjoy meaningful learning.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• review and improve the snack time routines for younger children, so that they do not be distracted and restless while they wait for their food and drink
• plan and differentiate the curriculum more sharply so that the environment and activities take greater account of, and provide support for the individual learning needs and interests of the younger children.