Waterbeach Community Playgroup

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

This is a friendly and welcoming setting. Staff work with parents to support children settle in. They warmly greet and engage with children as soon as they arrive. This helps children to settle quickly to their play. Staff follow children's interests when planning their learning environment. They set up an inviting environment with a range of interesting learning opportunities each morning. Children also choose to add their own resources. This enhances their engagement and concentration. Children are confident to engage in a wide variety of activities. Children from disadvantaged backgrounds make good progress with their development.

Staff develop close relationships with their key children. Children eagerly approach staff to play with them. The setting implements a flexible routine. This helps children to feel emotionally safe and secure. Staff manage children's behaviour positively. They support children to understand the boundaries of the setting. Children remind each other that they need to 'walk indoors'. Staff provide children with plenty of time to eat, sleep and learn and children are relaxed. Children who speak English as an additional language are supported effectively. Staff create visual timetables. These help children understand what is going to happen next.

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

• Mealtimes are social occasions. Staff sit with children. They talk to children about the importance of drinking water. Staff promote children's independence at snack times. Children chop their own fruit and wash their own hands. However, staff sometimes do things for children that they can do themselves. This means that children do not consistently learn to be independent.
• Staff carry out regular risk assessments. This helps them keep children safe and secure in the setting. Leaders organise staff to ensure children are supervised and frequently checked when they are sleeping. Staff keep children safe when they are out in the community. Staff take children to the local library. They collect food items for the local food bank. Staff provide weekly opportunities for children to cook. Children are proud of their vegetable soup, which they take home for their families to try.
• Staff plan well-thought-out activities to promote children's communication and language. Children learn to take turns as they choose a prop from the song basket. They enjoy singing songs relating to that prop. Staff sing songs slowly so that children can hear the words clearly. Children listen and engage with stories that staff read to them. However, staff have not considered how to make the reading area sufficiently engaging for children to encourage them to independently access books and stories.
• Children enjoy a range of creative activities. They develop their fine motor skills as they cut out shapes and stick these on paper. Children explore how colours mix as they paint. Staff embed mathematical learning in children's play and teach them the names for different shapes. They help children to count backwards from 10 while reading a story. Staff arrange a football session where children develop their coordination as they dribble the football and try to score goals. They stretch and run and balance.
• Parents are very happy with the care their children receive. They appreciate the regular cooking and football activities the setting arranges. Parents attend regular meetings to get information about their children's learning and development. Staff provide extra support for families from disadvantaged backgrounds. Staff carry out thorough assessments, including statutory assessments of children's learning and development. They quickly identify when children require extra support and provide this swiftly.
• Leaders care deeply about the children they look after. They identify areas to further improve in the setting. They have booked training so staff can learn more about how to support children with construction and engineering. Leaders support staff with their well-being and professional development. Staff attend regular supervisory meetings which help them to develop their practice. Leaders work closely with other local settings and schools. They share information to ensure that children receive consistent care.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• guide staff to support children's developing independence consistently
• consider developing the reading area so children are motivated to access books by themselves.