Ashmore Pre-School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children arrive happy and enthusiastic to start their day at this friendly pre-school. They separate from their parents with ease and show excitement to see their friends. Children thrive at this pre-school. They participate in engaging activities and are confident and keen to explore the environment. Leaders spend time talking to parents on arrival to gather information regarding children's current needs and well-being. This information is communicated effectively across the team, ensuring children's needs are met throughout the day. Staff regularly gather information from parents regarding children's interests and learning at home. They use this to plan activities to support children's ongoing development.

Leaders have clear intentions for what they want children to learn. They implement a broad curriculum that promotes a strong focus on children's emotional development and independence skills. Staff support new children to develop close relationships with their key person. They quickly get to know children well and develop an awareness of children's individual needs and interests. This helps children to feel secure and settle quickly. Children behave well. They know what is expected of them and routines are consistent and clear. Staff are warm and caring in their interactions with children. They teach children how to share, take turns and act swiftly to give comfort and resolve conflict situations.

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

• Leaders and staff reflect carefully on the service they provide for children and families. They work together as a committed team to make continuous improvements that give children high-quality experiences. They have enhanced the outdoor spaces to increase opportunities for physical challenge. Leaders deploy staff effectively across the pre-school and ensure children are supervised diligently at all times.
• Staff say they enjoy working at the pre-school. They have good opportunities for professional development and feel valued by leaders. They build on their strengths through training and sharing good practice with colleagues. Leaders monitor staff regularly and support them in their work with children.
• Parents speak highly of the pre-school. Staff work in close partnership with parents to provide continuity in children's development. Parents value the regular conversations with staff about their child's progress. They say they feel confident that children are safe, secure and making good progress in their learning.
• Staff ensure that appropriate assessments are carried out by other professionals, when needed. They work with local authority advisers to create focused plans for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Children with SEND receive effective support to make good progress.
• Staff take children on trips to learn about the world and their local community. Children learn about a variety of celebrations, which helps them to develop an understanding of the lives of their friends. Children learn about healthy meals as staff discuss this during the daily activities. For example, staff help children to think about nutritious food as they talk about their breakfasts during a creative activity.
• Hygiene routines are well established and consistently followed. Staff encourage children to manage their own handwashing throughout the day. Children know they must wash their hands after messy play, before lunch and after using the toilet. They develop good hygiene habits and become confident in managing aspects of their self-care.
• Children's communication and language are generally well supported. Staff sing a wide variety of songs that children enjoy. They pause skilfully to allow children to sing familiar words. Staff use clear speech, maintain eye contact and adapt language to children's ages. Children recall and use words they have previously learned. However, not all staff fully understand how to extend and support children's communication and language. For example, during story time, staff introduce new words but do not consistently ask questions or encourage children to join in. This limits opportunities for children to build vocabulary, develop thinking skills and share their ideas.
• Staff assess children's development as they play and quickly identify gaps in their learning. They plan activities around children's interests and needs. For example, children use play dough to strengthen their finger muscles. However, children do not have easy access to mark-making tools. This limits their ability to develop early writing skills needed for school readiness.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen questioning techniques and develop staff knowledge to better support children's communication and language, so they can extend vocabulary, think more deeply and express their ideas effectively
• provide easy access to mark-making tools so children can strengthen early writing and literacy skills.