J&S Playhouse

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Children receive a good quality education. As a result, all groups of children, including those who speak English as an additional language and those who have specific speech, language and communication needs, make good progress. There are close emotional bonds between children and the friendly and caring staff in the setting.

Children enjoy positive interactions and receive lots of praise for their good efforts. This supports children's emotional well-being effectively. Children show they are happy and feel safe.

There is a wide range of opportunities that enable children to gain new knowledge and skills. For example,... older children learn about simple mathematical concepts during activities. They talk about 'more' and 'less' or 'light' and 'heavy' to compare different objects.

Younger children are beginning to count and recognise numbers with increasing confidence. Staff make good use of the outdoors to promote children's physical health and well-being. Babies enjoy practising their early walking skills and older children explore new ways of moving, as they play in the garden.

Pre-school children learn about the importance of looking after themselves. For instance, they know that, 'we have to brush our teeth for two minutes' and, 'before we go to bed'. This helps to promote children's good oral hygiene.

Children learn to use polite words, such as please and thank you. They play well together with their peers or alongside them. Children are motivated to learn and have positive attitudes to learning.

They are socially confident and independent learners.

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

The management team has a clear vision and high expectations of themselves, staff and children. They work successfully together to create a welcoming and inclusive environment where children learn and play happily.

Parents speak highly of the staff and praise their flexible approach to children's care and learning. They feel well informed about their children's progress. The strong partnership between parents and staff benefits children well.

Staff engage children in age-appropriate conversations to develop their communication and language skills. They read story books and sing songs to extend children's vocabulary. On some occasions, staff do not use questions as effectively as possible to enhance children's thinking and understanding.

Overall, staff teach children the rules and boundaries of the setting. For example, they encourage children to share and take turns. However, some staff are less confident than their colleagues in managing children's behaviour.

This does not provide children with a consistent approach.Staff observe and track the progress of all children very carefully, and make good use of the information gained to plan a variety of stimulating and age-appropriate activities. For instance, older children concentrate hard as they practise their early writing skills in readiness for school.

The curriculum is supported by a range of extra-curricular activities to enable children to take part in many interesting learning experiences. For example, before the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic, children visited local farms and went on boat rides. This broadens children's understanding of the wider world.

Children see positive images of people and places in the setting. They play with toys and resources that reflect the community they live in, such as books, dressing-up clothes and small world people. Children gain a good understanding of similarities and differences between themselves and others.

Staff are skilful at promoting children's good health. A few good examples include encouraging children to wash their hands before handling food, and cleaning the toys and equipment regularly. This practice helps to reduce the risk of cross-infection and it protects children's well-being.

Staff benefit well from effective support and guidance. For example, following training, they have improved their knowledge of how to promote children's independence skills. As a result, children are more confident in undertaking manageable tasks, such as setting the table for lunch.

The management team includes staff and parents who evaluate the setting rigorously. For instance, after a consultation, they worked together to improve the outdoor area. This change has had a positive impact on children, particularly those who prefer to learn outdoors.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.The management team follows a rigorous process to check the suitability of staff. They offer new staff a thorough induction programme so they are aware of how the setting operates.

Staff have a good knowledge of the appropriate actions and who to go to if they have any safeguarding concerns. The management team monitors children closely for any changes in their behaviours and attendance to help keep them safe. There are effective measures to prevent accidents in the setting.

These include a good risk assessment of the areas that children use. Staff supervise children at all times.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: nuse questions more effectively to challenge children's thinking and understanding nextend support further for individual staff to ensure they are more consistent in their approach to managing children's behaviour.