Castle Playgroup

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

There is a firm focus on immersing children into their immediate community to help them to acquire important social skills. The playgroup is very close to the local school.

It sits in a unique location, where there are lots of opportunities for children to be physical and to explore the local environment. Children take part in experiences such as Parish council events, and they run free in the large open spaces and explore the local woodland. Children form secure attachments with staff and their peers.

They are happy, confident and motivated to learn. Children arrive for their session with a smile on their face. They g...reet staff warmly and instantly begin to play and explore the resources on offer.

Children with less confidence show they feel safe to explore when their key person is close by to offer support and a guiding hand. Children manage their feelings and behaviour well. They share, take turns and play harmoniously together.

Staff have high expectations of children. They have a firm but fair approach to very minor lapses in behaviour. This helps children to learn about expectations.

As a result, children show respect to staff, visitors and their peers.

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

The qualified manager has a good understanding of what needs to be done to improve the playgroup, such as further developing the outdoor environment. She appreciates where the playgroup excels, such as parent partnerships and knowing the children and their families.

Staff create an environment that encourages and supports children to have a go and do things for themselves. This means children display good levels of confidence in their own abilities and resilience. However, staff occasionally miss opportunities to provide the highest level of challenge to children.

Staff provide opportunities for children to be independent and capable learners. They sound a tambourine to signal tidy-up time. Children listen to and follow instructions well and are happy and eager to help tidy away their toys.

Staff draw upon resources in the local community. This provides children with interesting learning opportunities, beyond those they might not otherwise experience. For example, they attend storytelling sessions in the local library and events at the local school.

This helps children to learn about their community and the wider world.Staff make sure they cover all the areas of learning when they plan activities for children. They take account of children's interests and what they need to learn next.

This contributes to children being ready for the next stage in their learning journey, such as starting school.Staff read books with good expression. Children confidently answer questions about the story to show that they understand what happened and why.

Consequently, children develop a love of books and build on their speaking and listening skills.Staff use appropriate strategies to support those children who speak English as an additional language. Children have opportunities to hear and use their home language during their play.

Staff use clear words in English and accompany these with gestures to extend children's vocabulary.Staff ensure that children spend time outdoors each day and encourage them to develop their physical skills. Children show muscle strength when they kick a ball to each other.

Other children develop good coordination as they send balls down a complex pipe system. They concentrate well and persist in perfecting the correct sequence required to catch the ball in a bucket at the end of the run.Staff support parents to continue their children's learning at home.

For example, they encourage parents to borrow books from a lending library so they can engage their children in reading activities at home.Staff enjoy their work and this helps them to provide a welcoming and happy environment. They warmly welcome older children before and after their school day.

Older children understand they must wait to play on the computer games. They appreciate there is a time limit to their screen time.The manager has systems in place to monitor and support staff.

However, these are not yet focused sharply enough on helping to enhance the quality of teaching to the highest levels.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.Most staff are qualified and experienced.

They are aware of the types of abuse and know their signs and symptoms. Furthermore, staff know how to respond to concerns about a child's welfare. The manager tests staff's knowledge and understanding of safeguarding through, for example, questions in one-to-one meetings.

The manager and staff have a broad understanding of wider safeguarding issues and how to identify and report any concerns. The manager regularly reviews and adapts policies and procedures to ensure they contain the most up-to-date information.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: nextend the existing systems for supervision and monitoring of staff's teaching to provide the highest level of challenge to children.