Anfield Pre-School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy and settled in this pre-school. Staff are close by to offer children reassurance and encouragement. This supports children's emotional well-being. Children seek out staff for comforting cuddles and show staff lots of affection. This shows that children feel safe and secure in this pre-school.

Children follow and understand the setting's rules, with some gentle reminders from staff. They behave well and are incredibly polite. Children are making good progress in their learning. This is due to leaders and staff having high expectations for children's development. Children have great fun learning in the outdoor environment. They practise their coordination skills as they work together on large scooters. Children enjoy filling and emptying containers in the large sand area. They experiment with how they can move the sand, using their hands and spades.

Leaders have identified some gaps in children's learning as a result of the COVID- 19 pandemic, particularly in children's personal, social and emotional development and their communication and language development. Leaders have put in place effective measures to support children, such as creating communication-friendly spaces in the pre-school environment. This has helped to close the gaps quickly.

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

• Leaders have a clear vision for what they want children to learn next. They plan an exciting curriculum that supports children to build on what they already know and can do. However, on occasion, staff do not encourage children to develop high levels of involvement and engagement in activities. Therefore, some children move quickly from one area of the provision to another.
• Staff use observations and assessments effectively to identify children's next steps in learning. They incorporate number, counting and colour recognition into children's learning. However, staff do not consistently support children to learn about different mathematical concepts in their play.
• Children enjoy stories and songs with staff at different times throughout the day. Staff hold meaningful back-and-forth conversations with children. They use effective measures, such as visual aids, to support children with their speech development. Staff model new words and sentence structures to children during their play. This supports children with their growing vocabulary.
• Staff know the children incredibly well. They plan activities that support children with their emotional well-being. Children identify and express their feelings incredibly well. Staff tailor settling-in sessions to meet the individual needs of children. This supports children to feel confident about their move to their next stage in learning.
• Children learn some of the ways to live a healthy lifestyle. They have daily opportunities to learn outside, where they can exercise and get fresh air. Children learn about the importance of teeth hygiene and how they can look after their teeth by regular brushing and eating healthy foods.
• Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities are supported very well. Staff are highly trained to support children's different needs. They identify children's individual needs and work very well with other professionals. Tailored plans are put in place for children. These support children to make the progress that they are capable of.
• Children learn about what makes them unique. Staff support them to understand similarities and differences between themselves and others. Children learn about different cultures and ways of life to those of their own. This supports children to understand the world around them.
• Leaders evaluate the provision effectively and put plans in place to make improvements. For example, they have recently changed the way they do snack time to support the needs of children. Staff keep up to date with their mandatory training. They have recently completed training to support children's communication and language development to the highest level.
• Parents speak highly of the pre-school. They comment on the high quality of support that staff provide for their children. Parents talk about how staff share different strategies with them that they can use at home. They feel these help their children with their development.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support staff through training and coaching to deliver a stimulating curriculum for mathematics, introducing children to different mathematical concepts
• enhance experiences for children to support them to develop high levels of involvement and engagement in activities.