2J's Pre-School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children leave their parents and carers with ease. They are greeted warmly by staff and show great independence in the morning routines. Children settle straight down to activities that interest and engage them. The curriculum is ambitious for all children. It currently has a focus on emotions, self-regulation, communication, and language development. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), make good progress. Staff break down next steps into small achievable tasks. This provides all children with the support they need to succeed.

Children are keen to explore the wide range of activities on offer. They enjoy time spent engaging with the staff. For example, children ask staff to join them in playing a game of 'Hungry Hippos', and staff allow children to take the lead and follow their direction. Staff take a keen interest in learning about the children and what they do outside of the pre-school, to develop an understanding of their home lives and interests.

Children behave well. They show that they know the staff's expectations. Staff act as positive role models and are quick to support children in making the right choices. For example, when children show an interest in throwing beanbags, staff make this into a game for them to throw into a basket. This channels the children's interests in a safe and constructive way.

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

• Managers are passionate about the pre-school. All staff work effectively as a team. They have regular meetings to discuss the curriculum and the environment. Staff spend time reflecting on their practice and the needs of the children. The manager makes good use of training to develop staff's knowledge and skills. They feel well supported in their role and feel that their well-being is a priority. There is a positive open-door culture which means staff can raise any issues or concerns as they occur.
• Children benefit from activities that support their communication and language skills. Staff are skilled at introducing new words to children as they play. They ask questions which require children to give thoughtful responses. For example, staff will ask, 'Can you tell me that again?' to check children's understanding and embed their learning. Effective small-group activities focus on children developing their listening skills. However, staff do not help children develop a love of stories by reading to them or using books to find out further information. This means children do not always understand the value of books, reading and sharing stories.
• Parents speak incredibly highly of the pre-school. They refer to it as an extension of their family. Parents appreciate the communication they receive regarding
• Inspection report: 2J's Pre-School 8 February 2024 2 their children's learning and development. They praise the support they receive for their children who have additional needs and feel fully included in the referral process. Parents feel that they are listened to and give huge praise to the 'kind and caring' staff team.
• Children are provided with ample, engaging activities to promote their physical development. Children enjoy being active. For instance, children create their own assault courses. They experiment with ways of moving and climbing safely over equipment, learning to hold out their arms to balance. The indoor environment also has large swings and bars for children to hang from. This supports children in building strength in their upper bodies. Children patiently wait for their turn when using popular resources.
• Staff are well deployed to ensure that children are well supervised. However, staff tend to stay in one area for extended periods. This impacts on staff getting to know new key children, spending time building relationships and working on their next steps.
• The knowledgeable and passionate special educational needs coordinator (SENCo) knows the needs of the children well. Communication is effective within the team. This ensures that any concerns are brought to the attention of the SENCo and their parents quickly. The staff have a wealth of knowledge. Strategies are put in place straight away, to ensure that children's gaps in development close quickly. The SENCo has good links with outside agencies, who are invited into the setting to support children and staff.
• Children are provided with valuable experiences to learn about their community and the wider world around them. For instance, children take regular trips out to local parks, they visit supermarkets to buy food for snack and are regulars at the charity shop. They take money to buy resources and things of interest to explore back at the setting. This provides children with hands-on experiences to prepare them for the future. For example, in addition to learning how to manage money, these outings help children to learn about road safety.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• enhance the opportunities for children to develop a love of stories and books to further support their literacy and language skills
• review and strengthen the arrangements for the deployment of staff to ensure they get to spend quality time with their key children.
• Inspection report: 2J's Pre-School 8 February 2024 3