Weston Rhyn Playgroup

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Children say that they 'love playgroup'. They especially like the superhero toys and this interest is fostered by staff. This really captures the imaginations of boys.

They learn how to dress and undress when putting on and taking off the superhero clothes. Their passion is also developed during their weekly trips to forest school, where they use their 'magic powers' to climb trees. This helps children to develop their physical skills, including their agility.

Children benefit from learning across the curriculum and achieve the desired knowledge and skills. Indoors, they precisely empty and fill containers of 'evil pea...s', which also helps children to revisit the story of the core book of the curriculum. Children revisit their learning, for example, about dinosaurs from their morning session in the host school nursery class.

On their clipboard, children write stories about their favourite dinosaur, a Tyrannosaurus rex.Staff teach children how to behave well. Children independently manage turn-taking by using a sand timer to take turns with popular resources.

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

There is a well-designed curriculum that helps all children to make progress from their starting points, including those with additional needs and who the provider receives additional funding for.Staff support children who have gaps in their learning and those adversely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic effectively. These children benefit from early intervention in their learning through a nurture programme.

This helps them to receive the help they need while they wait to receive support from other professionals.Staff benefit from regular support and feedback to improve their teaching. The manager targets professional development accurately to enhance staff's interactions further.

The quality of staff's interactions is good. Staff model language for children correctly. They introduce vocabulary to children from the chosen curriculum book, such as 'defrost'.

Staff explain and show children what defrosting means by observing frozen peas defrost and an ice lolly melt.Staff use assessment well when children start to attend to find out what children know and can do. They use this information to target gaps in children's learning from the outset.

Assessment is not a burden for staff and they report manageable workload and positive well-being.Children's love of reading and books is skilfully promoted at the playgroup, indoors. Children take books home from the playgroup to practise their reading skills with their parents.

The indoor environment is full of reading material, including illustrations and text from the chosen curriculum book. However, outdoors, children do not have the same opportunities to make connections between their learning and the stories and books they know because they do not have access to them. This means children cannot develop their early reading skills in all areas of the playgroup.

This is especially the case for children who prefer to learn outdoors.Children learn skills for school, such as mathematical skills to match quantity to number. During group circle time, older children count how many children are present and write the numerals on the board.

They can correctly count up to and write the number 17.Older children have positive attitudes to learning and engage well in activities. They are motivated to learn and to think critically, such as making predictions about whether things will melt or not.

However, the planning of routines means that some two-year-olds do not develop these skills as quickly as possible. For example, two-year-olds sit for 30 minutes during group activities, and while they behave well, their levels of engagement are sometimes low.Staff care for children well.

Children receive the first-aid treatment that they need when they bump themselves. Staff sooth children by giving them physical reassurance when they occasionally struggle to manage their emotions.Equality and diversity are promoted by staff throughout the curriculum.

They teach children about concepts such as democracy and involve them and their families in regularly voting for things, such as outings. These trips help children to experience things beyond their communities.The curriculum helps children to learn about healthy lifestyles.

Children know the importance of keeping safe in the sun, eating a balanced diet and cleaning their teeth.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.The manager, who is the designated safeguarding lead for the playgroup has a strong understanding of local safeguarding issues.

She has plans in place to address these, such as ensuring families have access to local food banks. Staff understand the safeguarding procedures and know how to identify abuse or neglect of children. There are procedures for the management of allegations against staff.

The suitability of all staff has been checked. Through the curriculum, staff teach children how to keep safe, including reporting if they feel unsafe online to their trusted adults, known as their 'VIPs'.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: refine the planning of routines to help to increase younger or less-able children's level of engagement and to reduce the amount of time that children need to engage in adult-led activities continuously develop the outdoor learning environment through the identified plans in place and provide opportunities for children to extend their early reading skills so that they can revisit learning from the core books of the curriculum and access text and illustrations outside, specifically for those children who prefer to learn outside.