Whitsers

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are confident and happy in this welcoming setting. They are proud to show visitors their achievements and keen to talk about previous experiences. Children are active learners and have a strong exploratory impulse. They persevere to cut fragranced herbs with scissors and pretend to make cakes with them. Children work out how to play a concertina to create sounds. They discover how to change the sound by covering the air holes with their fingers.

Children enjoy painting. They mix different coloured paint together to create a new colour. Children add various quantities of water and notice how the paint changes in consistency. They have a strong sense of self-esteem and are proud to show staff and visitors their pictures. Children enjoy solving problems and testing their ideas. They discover the best way to completely bury a toy elephant is to lay it down in the dry sand. Children have good control and coordination of their hands in preparation for writing. They use a special pen to carefully move small magnetic beads around a maze on a puzzle board.

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

• Staff provide children with a rich and varied curriculum that thoroughly considers children's evolving interests. Parents work in close partnership with staff. They share a wealth of information to help children swiftly settle when they first begin attending. Children build strong bonds with their key person. All staff support children effectively to feel positive about their move to school when the time comes. Parents speak very highly of staff and the service they offer. They particularly appreciate the regular contact during periods of absence due to the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic.
• The committee and staff team are dedicated to their roles. They provide children with experiences that help them to feel a strong sense of belonging in the community. For example, children enjoy waving to local residents on walks in the village and are involved in organised fundraising events.
• Staff provide children with good opportunities to develop healthy lifestyles and be physically active. They help children to grow a selection of fruit and vegetables which will be tasted at snack time. Children benefit from quality time outdoors in the fresh air. They assess their own risks as they work out the best way to climb up and down a hill. Children safely handle a real saw to cut wood.
• Staff are positive role models. Children behave well, consistently use good manners and develop strong relationships with each other. They play harmoniously together and tell each other 'you are my best friend'.
• The manager is proactive in supporting staff's well-being. Staff benefit from regular supervision meetings and have access to training, helping them to develop their practice.
• Group time is a positive and interactive experience that engages children's attention. Staff's effective use of puppets make songs entertaining. This motivates children to join in with the words. Staff introduce children to mathematical concepts, such as addition and subtraction.
• Careful thought is given to how any additional funding the setting receives is spent, to ensure it has the strongest impact on children's development and learning. Staff work in close partnership with other professionals to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities to make good progress. However, staff do not fully support children who speak English as an additional language to hear and use their home language during play and routine activities, to enhance their understanding and speaking skills.
• Some staff encourage children to be independent individuals and have a go at doing things for themselves. However, this is not consistent so that children are fully prepared for the next stage in their development.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen opportunities for all children who speak English as an additional language to develop and use their home language
• make the best use of daily routines and opportunities to develop children's independence further.