St Josephs Playgroup Ltd

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children enjoy coming into the welcoming environment, and they are happy and excited to see the staff and other children. Staff reassure parents. Children choose from a variety of activities set up to capture their interests. Staff help children to follow the routines well and move safely between areas within the playgroup. Children talk to staff about their needs and come to them for comfort and help when needed.

Staff plan activities to encourage children's identification of shape. Older children pick up shape cards and name the shape. Staff ask children questions, encouraging them to develop their learning further by describing the features of different shapes. Children can say how many sides and corners shapes have. Children remain focused during their play and use the shapes to make artwork. Children create houses and cars. They put two semi circles together to make a wheel.

Children's communication and language development is prioritised. Staff know the children well and highlight where they may need extra support. Some children have additional activities planned to support children's language development. They participate in an intervention group. Staff role model language by extending children's sentences and asking questions. Children are given extra time to respond and offered key vocabulary to support them with their answers. This helps children to be more confident when speaking in small groups.

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

• Leaders plan a broad and balanced curriculum that prepares children well, overall, for the next stage in their learning. Children are provided with opportunities to thread beads, use tweezers at the investigation station and use scissors to cut paper. Staff recognise that children need to develop their fine motor skills to build muscles needed for early writing.
• The support put in place for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities is excellent. The special educational needs coordinator and manager understand the importance of early intervention. They work with external agencies to create clear actions that support children's developmental goals. Staff use Makaton signs to enhance children's communication. Furthermore, they support parents with training and strategies for use at home.
• Staff encourage children to manage their personal needs confidently. Children can find their own belongings and tell staff when they need to go to the toilet. At mealtimes, children pour their own drinks, get their own lunch bags and self-serve. Children scrape food from flasks onto their plates using serving spoons. As such, children develop high levels of independence.
• At times, children become frustrated and upset when playing with their peers.
• Staff are quick to respond to children's needs. They tell children their behaviour is inappropriate and take action to ensure that children remain safe. However, staff do not always talk to children about why their behaviour is not appropriate and how this impacts upon others, to deepen their understanding.
• Children form strong relationships with their peers and staff. Children talk to each other during activities. They make play dough models of cakes and doughnuts and describe what they have made. Some children choose adult-led activities that encourage them to concentrate for longer periods of time, such as water play, where they fill and empty containers. Although children remain engaged, not all staff focus their interactions sufficiently on their individual key children's learning, to support their good progress even further.
• Parents are very complimentary of the staff. They say they are caring, nurturing and approachable. Parents feel fully supported by staff, who keep them up to date about their child's next steps. Staff provide parents with resources to support children's learning at home. Books are sent home with children when they are ready to read or talk about stories. Partnership with parents is a strength.
• Staff well-being is a priority. The manager uses effective strategies, such as informal and formal supervision meetings, to support staff with training and development. New staff have briefings during their induction period. The manager shares the curriculum outcomes with staff and supports them to plan activities. Staff say their workload is managed well.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• improve strategies for managing behaviour to help children manage their feelings and emotions and to support them to understand the impact of their actions upon others
• strengthen key-person interactions further to ensure children's learning is more tailored to their individual needs.