Bilton Sunbeams Pre-School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children enjoy coming to pre-school and enter the setting happily. Staff spend time talking to children and parents as they arrive at pre-school and listen to what children have to say to them. This builds children's self-esteem and confidence and supports good relationships with parents. Staff know children well and plan a curriculum that supports their individual learning needs. Activities are attractively displayed, and children settle quickly into their chosen play. Children confidently recognise the days of the week, the month and date during circle time. They take turns to check what the weather is like and look out of the window to make sure they are correct. Children count how many children and adults are at pre-school, including the inspectors, and add them all together.

Staff build close relationships with children. They introduce children to visitors and explain that they may want to talk to the children about what they are doing in pre-school. This helps children relax and they chat to the inspectors, showing that they feel safe and secure in the setting. Children develop independence. They understand the need to wash their hands when they arrive at pre-school and at key times during the day, such as snack time and after using the bathroom. Children behave well. They show kindness towards each other and staff support children as they learn to take turns and share the toys. Children suggest using the sand timer when they are waiting for their turn to use a popular toy. Staff praise children, recognising that it is a good idea and children wait patiently for their turn.

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

• The manager and staff work well together. They use their observations and assessments of children's abilities to ensure the curriculum meets the learning needs of all children. Resources effectively enhance learning and children take pride and care of the things they play with. Staff have introduced a lending library and children enjoy selecting books to take home and share with their parents. Song sheets are also available to take home.
• Effective recruitment and selection procedures are in place. The staff team talks daily, sharing ideas and new information. While supervisions take place between the manager and staff, these are not yet used as effectively as they could be to help identify individual team members professional development needs.
• Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are supported well. Staff use their observations and assessments to identify any gaps in children's learning and development. They work closely with parents to seek additional support for their children so that they make the best possible progress. Staff use simple sign language with the children. Pictorial cards enable children to understand the routine of the day. Children are very observant and recognise that some picture cards have been changed.
• Parents are very happy with the service provided. They comment that the setting is unique and, because it is a small and friendly setting, the staff can really focus on supporting and settling children. Parents feel that children with less confidence blossom, as they participate in smaller groups, and as a result it is less daunting for them. Parents share that staff keep them informed about their child's progress and development. Parents say they have recommended the pre-school to friends and neighbours.
• Children thoroughly enjoy being creative. They use a vast range of pens, chalks, paints and materials to decorate paper plates to create a dragon during Chinese New Year. Children enjoy listening to stories about the celebration. Using scissors, children make small cuts to the paper plate to make a frayed edge to the dragon's face, like the one they have seen in the book. Children's artwork is displayed throughout the pre-school and parents can see what their children have created. However, when staff write the children's names for them on their creations, they do not support them well enough to learn the concept of reading and writing, starting from the left to the right.
• Children's health and well-being is supported well. Snack time is a social occasion where children help themselves to a variety of nutritious snacks. Individual dietary needs are known and catered for. Children have a choice of drinks and staff support them where needed to pour their own drinks.
• Staff nurture children's love of books, which helps them to develop a love a reading. Children sit alone or with their friends and look at books together. They enjoy retelling the story of 'Handa's Surprise' to each other. They use finger puppets to reflect the different animals that take the fruit from Handa's basket. Children learn to respect books and turn the pages carefully.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• improve systems for supervision of staff to help professional development become more targeted
• support children more effectively to learn to read and write in readiness for school.