Stepping Stones Playschool

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Staff are friendly and welcoming as children arrive ready to start their day. Children know their routines well. They confidently find their belongings, open their own containers during mealtimes and get themselves dressed. Children demonstrate high levels of focus when engaging in activities. They are resilient when facing challenges, such as using scissors with increasing control to cut tape into pieces to make musical shakers. This enables children to develop their independence and not be highly reliant on staff to complete tasks for them.

Opportunities for outdoor play are plentiful. Children demonstrate good physical dexterity as they navigate the secure and purposeful outdoor area, developing their large-muscle skills through activities such as climbing and balancing. Staff teach children to take appropriate risks and challenges as they learn to climb small trees. This builds children's confidence and resilience and gives them a sense of achievement when they succeed.

Children learn how to be healthy. Staff teach children to care for their own hygiene needs and why it is important to develop good hygiene practices. For example, they encourage children to wipe their own noses and remind them about the importance of washing their hands before eating. During warmer weather, staff help children to stay safe in the sun by ensuring they wear sun hats, apply sun cream and have access to their drinks.

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

• The key-person system is embedded well. This helps staff get to know children and their families, as well as how to support them. This means activities are planned to build on what children already know and what they need to learn next. Planning in the moment is fully understood as the curriculum is designed around the children's interests. All children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), make good progress.
• Staff provide an environment that motivates children to develop early writing skills. Children have access to a wide range of mark-making opportunities, and staff model writing for a purpose. Children show their confidence as they attempt to write letters to staff and their friends. Children are becoming eager and confident early writers.
• Children demonstrate their excellent communication skills as they engage in conversations and share experiences from home. For example, children share that they recently rescued a hedgehog. Staff skilfully teach children about hedgehogs and how they use their spikes to protect themselves from predators. However, there are occasions where staff do not give children the opportunity to provide their own thoughts and opinions. This limits children's opportunities to demonstrate their knowledge or explain their thinking.
• Staff ensure that routines during the day, such as tidy-up time, are seamless and well organised. For example, staff use songs, timers and countdowns to help children manage expectations of what is happening next. Children are encouraged to make their own decisions. For example, systems in place enable children to decide when they are hungry and when to eat snack or lunch. This also means children's play is not interrupted.
• Staff consistently praise children for their good behaviour and achievements. Children play cooperatively with their friends and respond positively to staff's requests. However, staff do not consistently help children to understand how their actions affect others or how to resolve conflicts independently. This means children are not fully supported in managing their own behaviour.
• Partnerships with parents and local schools are highly effective. Parents comment on the regular support and two-way communication they have about their children's learning and development. Teachers are invited to visit the nursery to observe and gather key information about the children, which helps to ensure a smooth transition for them. This helps to meet the needs of children and their families.
• Leaders monitor the quality of the provision and teaching. They provide regular support to staff to engage in training opportunities and develop their skills, confidence and knowledge to meet the learning and development needs of the children they care for. Staff well-being is good. Staff value the levels of support and encouragement they receive from leaders.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen strategies for children to share their own thoughts and ideas
• support staff to help children understand how their behaviour impacts others so that they begin to resolve conflicts independently.