Wymondham Pre-School Playgroup

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children develop strong relationships with staff at this welcoming setting. Babies happily babble to staff, who respond warmly, developing early conversation skills. Older children play contently alongside both staff and their peers and develop good friendships. Staff support children to talk about their feelings with their friends. In a group, older children talk about things that make them feel happy or sad. Staff model new words to the children, such as 'uneasy'.

Staff take pride in getting to know each child and their family well. Parents speak highly of the strong daily communication between staff and parents. Staff engage in conversations with the children, talking about their plans for the weekend and events from home. Staff also model positive conversations and relationships between one another, demonstrating positive behaviour for the children. This creates a welcoming, friendly atmosphere for all.

Staff encourage independence for the children. Children wash their hands before meals and older children confidently serve their vegetables at lunchtime. Staff know the children well and use this knowledge to plan an interesting environment that supports learning. Children confidently make choices on where to play, both indoors and outdoors. Children cut paper with scissors and engage in role-play games. Outside, children laugh together as they make pretend pasta in the wet mud with their friends. Inside, children enjoy rolling and squashing scented dough. They play with a range of puzzles, concentrating as they twist and turn pieces until they find the correct place.

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

• Staff provide the opportunity for children to access books and develop a love of reading. Babies are encouraged to explore touch and feel books as staff model simple language. Older children are engrossed as they listen to staff read familiar stories. They eagerly join in with repeated phrases. Leaders have developed a book borrowing shelf to allow families to continue this learning at home.
• Parents speak positively about the care that their children receive at this setting. They comment that communication is well managed, and they feel included and listened to by staff. This helps staff get to know children well and in turn supports them to know how to meet children's individual needs.
• The management team supports staff well. They role model to staff how to use well-considered questions to further support children's play. Staff state they feel listened to and this creates a positive atmosphere within the nursery. Staff feel confident that they can raise and share concerns with the management team. The management team provide regular supervision meetings for staff as well as regular whole team meetings. This supports staff to share information effectively.
• Staff plan activities and opportunities to extend children's learning and offer exciting new experiences. Children are supported to care for pets and grow flowers in the garden area. The management team are mindful of the rural location of the setting. Staff take children on walks in the local area to collect sticks and visit the stream. They go on an annual theatre trip with the local school.
• Staff actively interact with children as they play. They talk about what children are doing and show genuine interest. However, on occasion some less confident staff do not take steps to further children's thinking during play. For example, they do not always encourage children to attempt more complex building when playing with construction materials, or help them understand more difficult mathematical thinking. This means that sometimes children move on to another activity quite quickly.
• Staff provide children with opportunities to develop their gross motor skills. Babies are supported to stand and walk between activities as appropriate. Younger babies are encouraged to pull themselves up to stand for short periods of time. Older children enjoy daily free-flow opportunities into the garden space. Children enjoy space to run alongside their friends. They use their skills to confidently climb up tyres to take turns sliding down the slide.
• Staff work alongside other professionals to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities or those supported by multi-agency teams. Parents comment that they feel supported and involved in the process. Where other professionals are not yet involved, the setting put in place their own targeted support plans to ensure the best outcomes for all children.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• help less confident staff understand how to extend children's learning so that children are challenged more precisely.