Billy & Boo Ascot

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Staff work hard to create a welcoming and stimulating environment in this pack-away setting. Children gain a sense of belonging as staff greet them enthusiastically as they arrive and they see colourful displays of their own work around the walls. Leaders and staff have developed a curriculum that enhances children's cultural capital. They carefully consider the experiences each child brings to the setting to enhance the opportunities that are available to them. For example, they provide additional sports sessions to support children's physical development and have asked a local firefighter to join in the children's emergency evacuation practise. Parents are asked to come in and read stories to the children, and staff bring in their pets so that children can learn about different animals first hand.

Staff have considered the current topic of minibeasts carefully so that the theme runs alongside many of the activities they provide. For example, children search for toy bugs hidden in a tray of soil, create their own bees using glue and different materials and join in singing songs, such as 'Incy Wincy Spider'. When children arrive, they quickly become engaged in their play. They behave well and follow the pre-school rules. For example, children know to raise their hands and listen when the chime rings. They work together to tidy up and receive lots of praise from staff.

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

• The manager is relatively new but shows great passion for her role and a genuine love for the children. She is reflective of practice and seeks to continually make improvements to the provision to meet the needs of the children. For example, the manager moved circle time to later in the day as she recognised that children benefit more from exploration and play, rather than having to sit soon after arrival.
• The staff team is also relatively new. Staff bonded quickly and are supportive of each other. They benefit from frequent training opportunities to continually build on their good teaching skills. Leaders and staff have all worked hard to make improvements since the last inspection.
• Staff establish what children know and can do when they start and plan for children's needs and interests well. They closely monitor children's speech and language development and provide 'bucket time' activities to promote children's language, listening and attention skills.
• Staff often create spontaneous learning opportunities, such as re-enacting favourite stories in the garden. On occasions, however, staff do not make the most of opportunities to extend children's learning. For example, when children find an insect outside, staff do not use the reference books they have made available to help children find out what it could be.
• The support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities is excellent. Staff pride themselves on supporting the families and creating personalised support plans for each child. Each year, the pre-school cares for children from other countries who come with their families for sporting events. Staff work hard to learn key words in the children's home language and are teaching the current children a welcome song in that language so that they can greet their new friends.
• Staff support children well through consistent routines and guidance to help children learn what is expected of them. However, some routine activities are not always well planned. For instance, staff do not check how many chairs are set out for snack time and some children find they cannot sit down. Staff work quickly to reorganise the chairs and tables but this disrupts some children who are already eating.
• Parents praise the kind and approachable leaders and staff. They appreciate the regular communication about their children's learning and development and how they can support their children's learning at home. They comment that there is a genuine sense that every person matters.
• Staff encourage children to think about their own safety at the pre-school, such as how high to climb the branches in the bush outside. Staff also support parents to approach subjects, such as road safety and online safety, with their children at home in an age-appropriate way.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support staff to further develop their already good interactions with children so that they make the most of opportunities to extend children's learning and build on what they already know and can do
• review the planning of routine activities, such as snack time, so these are well organised and consistently meet children's needs.