Anthony Roper Pre-School CIO

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are warmly welcomed into this very relaxed and calm pre-school. They put their lunch boxes in the trolley and hang up their belongings. Children independently choose the resources they want to play with, and staff are available to support children's learning. Those who enjoy being outside are able to access the secure garden as soon as they arrive and they can freely move between the indoors and outdoors all day. Promoting children's happiness and emotional well-being is a real strength at the pre-school.

Staff manage children's behaviour well and sensitively support them to understand what is acceptable. Children remind each other of key rules, such as 'walking feet inside'. They have a good understanding of what is expected of them. The pre-school room is full of happy chatter between staff and children. Staff talk about what they can see and introduce new words. This helps to build children's language effectively. Children benefit from secure routines that support positive behaviour and clear expectations. Staff help children to embed routines through strong relationships and effective use of aids, such as visual timetables.

Leaders make sure that children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are supported effectively. Staff have high expectations for what all children can achieve. They develop individual next steps in learning tailored to each child's stage of development. This helps staff and leaders to monitor the progress children make.

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

• Children have many opportunities to develop their understanding of different feelings and emotions. For example, staff have ongoing discussions and plan specific activities that encourage children to talk about their feelings and emotions. They talk about how they are feeling, such as when they express that they are happy or sad. This helps children to begin to make connections between their feelings and emotions.
• Children understand early mathematical ideas. Staff support children with thoughtful conversations about what they know. Children explain their thinking clearly and talk confidently with adults and friends. For example, children enjoy shape-sorting activities, naming circles and hexagons and demonstrating their ability to create and identify a variety of shapes.
• Overall, staff create a balanced curriculum. They know where their key children are up to in their development. However, staff do not always extend experiences to further develop children's awareness of diversity in their own community or the wider world in meaningful ways.
• Staff provide activities that build children's physical skills. They support gross motor skills by encouraging climbing and large scale mark making. Children strengthen fine motor skills by using scissors to cut dough in creative play. This supports children to develop strong physical skills.
• Staff focus on supporting children's communication and language skills well. For example, they use gestures, consistently comment on children's play and use visual prompts. Staff read stories and sing nursery rhymes that children enjoy. Children excitedly use props and sing popular action songs.
• Children build their perseverance skills when being creative with materials, such as tape, scissors and construction. For example, staff encourage children to think critically and reflect on their plan and designs as they construct a car wash for the small cars using recycled resources.
• Leaders work collaboratively with the committee, creating a strong leadership team. All staff receive regular supervision and feedback and have access to a range of training opportunities to ensure consistency in practice and continuous improvement. Staff feel well supported in their roles, with regular team meetings providing space to share information and think collaboratively.
• Leaders and staff care deeply about children and show a genuine commitment to do their best for them. As a result, children receive programmes of support to ensure they make progress in their well-being and involvement.
• Staff provide excellent support for parents to enable them to work in partnership with the setting. Parents feel well informed about their children's care and what they are learning. Information is regularly shared at drop off and collection times or at the regular parents' meetings. As a result, children make progress in their learning and development. For example, staff developed oral hygiene activities to use in the setting and at home to develop children's understanding of making healthy choices.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen the curriculum for understanding the world to help children learn about more diverse representations of life in modern Britain, beyond that of their immediate community.