Battle Pre-School Playgroup

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children and their families are warmly welcomed at this inspiring setting. Children enter eagerly, excited to explore what staff have planned for them. For instance, they are enthralled by watching the caterpillars and tadpoles grow and talking with staff about them. These experiences successfully help develop children's understanding of nature and caring for the natural world.

Staff have high expectations for children and are good role models. For example, children enthusiastically join in with their favourite 'popcorn' game, where staff help them learn to count and identify numbers accurately. Other children enjoy learning to weigh ingredients to make their own play dough. These activities support children's mathematical understanding effectively.

Staff prioritise children's emotional well-being very successfully. Children develop strong bonds with staff and settle well. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are supported in managing their emotions effectively. For example, staff provide them with cosy, calm spaces to retreat to when needed. This helps children to feel comfortable and secure. Staff are patient and sensitive in their interactions with children. They praise children regularly and encourage them to have a go. Children beam with smiles as they persevere to dig holes for plants outside. These activities successfully develop children's confidence and positive attitudes to learning. All children make good progress.

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

• Leaders and managers are passionate and committed to giving children the best start. They offer excellent support for families. For example, children enjoy choosing books to take home from the book-swap shelf. Parents are encouraged to select food from the pre-school pantry to support with the cost of living. Staff join in with fundraising events in the local community to enhance what they offer. For example, they use funding to provide children with additional yoga sessions, supporting their physical and movement skills.
• Staff are proactive and hard-working. They seek out further training opportunities to ensure they continue to provide high-quality care and education. For example, they have recently undertaken training to support children's understanding of sustainability and recycling. They cascade training to other local providers to support families more widely.
• Children benefit from a very inclusive environment. They spend time learning about where their friends live and are respectful of their different cultures. Children concentrate well when exploring a globe to learn about different countries. They enjoy learning rhymes in Russian, valuing staff's own languages. This positively helps develop children's understanding of the world around them and other people.
• Children demonstrate that they feel confident and comfortable in the setting. They respond well to requests from staff. Children help get their lunch boxes when asked and put them away. However, during transition times, children are not always provided with support that best meets their individual needs. This impacts, at times, on their engagement and behaviour.
• Staff prioritise supporting children's language skills. Children learn words such as 'proboscis' when talking about how butterflies and bees feed. Staff use terms such as 'nasturtium' when talking about plants and flowers, developing children's vocabulary. These activities successfully support children's communication skills.
• Staff provide children with activities that support their understanding of keeping fit and healthy. Children learn to wash their own hands and brush their teeth effectively. Children thoroughly enjoy their forest school adventures, learning about the benefits of being outside on their mental and physical health.
• Staff encourage children to be creative thinkers. They provide children with a motivating curriculum. For example, children remain engrossed as they explore colour mixing. Staff nurture children's individual interests effectively. For example, staff provide children with dinosaur skulls and dragon eggs, fostering children's curiosity and imagination.
• Support for parents is exemplary. Parents talk highly of the support they receive and the progress their children have made. They appreciate the parent sessions that are offered on topics such as internet safety and healthy eating. Parents value the opportunities they have to come into the setting and the flexibility of the sessions. Their children settle incredibly well because of these. They praise the very caring staff and highly recommend the setting.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen staff's confidence in identifying how to best support children's individual needs during key transition times.