THE EARLYRISE CENTRE

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children arrive at the setting excited and eager. They are warmly greeted on arrival by kind and caring staff who build strong, affectionate relationships with them. Children clearly demonstrate they feel safe and secure in the nurturing environment. They confidently explore the activities and play with their friends.

Managers develop a well-structured, engaging curriculum, which places a strong emphasis on promoting children's physical health and communication and language skills. Staff have high expectations for children's learning. They have a thorough understanding of children's current stages of development. Staff use this knowledge to carefully plan meaningful activities, and they have clear intent for what they want children to learn. They incorporate teaching opportunities that support all children to make good progress from their individual starting points.

Children show good levels of attention and curiosity. They follow instructions given by staff, such as listening for their name and forming a line ready to wash their hands. Children learn to take turns and share as they play. They demonstrate a clear understanding of the routine and behavioural expectations. Staff gently remind children of the rules of the setting, saying, 'Walk, please,' and 'Remember we take turns.' This supports them to behave very well. They are kind towards their peers and staff. Staff praise the children for their efforts, which promotes children's confidence and self-esteem.

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

• Staff plan engaging activities to support children's core strength and stability. This includes indoor activities such as jumping, hopping and dancing. Children enjoy the fully equipped soft-play room. Outdoors, children confidently climb up the slide and balance well on the scooters.
• Children are supported very well to become confident speakers. Staff use singing, action rhymes and stories as part of everyday practice, for example recalling a new snowman song in a large group. Children experience a high level of interaction during play, as skilful staff narrate, explain and introduce new words. For example, children talk about the feel of the snow and the animals.
• Children are supported by staff to become independent. Children roll up their sleeves and wash and dry their hands. They put on their coats, and the younger ones request help when required. Children make choices and serve themselves during snack time. This prepares them well for their next stages of learning, including starting school.
• Staff provide substantial support to children who are learning to speak English as an additional language. This includes obtaining essential words and phrases in the children's home languages and using visual aids, such as objects of reference and visual timetables. This supports children's developing communication and provides a sense of belonging.
• Diversity is celebrated at the setting; for example, children visit the shops to explore different foods, and they celebrate festivals and access a range of books and equipment that reflect different cultures. They discuss the large display that shows each child's 'passport' on the wall, which contains their country of origin, the language they speak and some key words in that language. Staff play songs related to the children's home languages. Children learn to appreciate and value each other's differences.
• Staff provide a good balance of adult-led and child-initiated activities that are based on children's interests. Overall, children demonstrate high levels of motivation and engagement. However, during group sessions such as circle time, not all children are as well engaged in activities as others. This means that some children do not benefit fully from all learning opportunities.
• The environment is rich in opportunities for children to develop their literacy and mathematical skills. Staff regularly incorporate counting into daily routines and provide plenty of literacy-rich activities. For example, during group-time activity, children confidently fetch their names and read out the letters. Children enjoy shared reading, which fosters a love of books. This is extended through a range of stimulating activities staff plan for them around a book of the month.
• Partnerships with parents are highly valued. Parents enthusiastically speak about the level of progress their children have made, particularly in their speech, language and literacy skills. Parents appreciate the help to support children's learning at home. The setting has termly parent meetings and daily conversations and parents are sent newsletters. This provides continuity in children's learning and development.
• Managers have a clear vision for the setting and aim to provide every child with a high-quality early years experience. Managers act on the views of staff, parents and children to continuously improve the quality of provision. Staff receive effective supervision and coaching to help them to develop their skills. They comment on feeling well supported and working closely as a team with the managers.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen strategies to support all children to engage in group activities.