Bishopdown Farm Community Preschool & Farm Friends

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children arrive happily and greet their friends with excitement. They quickly engage with interesting activities that have been set up by staff to nurture their interests. Children confidently explore the pre-school, demonstrating that they feel safe and secure. Staff comfort and soothe children, when needed, to support their emotional well-being. Children learn to be independent in preparation for school. For example, older children attend to their own toileting and put on their own coats. Children's behaviour is generally good. Staff work with other professionals, when needed, to help them to manage more challenging behaviour.

Children enjoy free access to outdoor space and extensive amounts of fresh air and exercise. They balance, run, jump and ride tricycles to develop their physical skills. Staff encourage children to explore a variety of sensory materials to develop their creativity and fine motor skills. For example, children sprinkle glitter and scoop and pour water. Staff read stories with enthusiasm to foster a love of books. For example, they use puppets and props to bring stories to life, and children listen and join in with excitement. Staff plan appropriate next steps for children's development that build on what they already know and can do. All children make good progress from their starting points and are well prepared for the next stage in their education.

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

• The manager organises a curriculum that focuses on developing children's social, communication and physical skills. Staff use assessment well to identify any gaps in children's development and take swift action to close them. The manager works with local schools to support children's smooth transition from the pre-school to school.
• Staff sing songs and engage in high-quality two-way conversations with children to support their language development. They introduce new words to extend children's vocabulary. For example, they ask children to 'predict' what might happen next. Staff learn a variety of techniques to support children's individual communication styles, including signing.
• Children demonstrate motivation to learn. They eagerly assemble to listen to stories and clap their hands when staff offer them jigsaw puzzles. They show pride in their achievements, jumping up and down in delight when they connect some pieces of the puzzle together.
• Children learn to take responsibility for small tasks to build their self-esteem and confidence. For example, they help to sweep the floor, tidy away toys, and put their rubbish in the bin and their plates away after eating.
• Staff encourage children to test out their ideas, which develops their critical thinking and problem-solving skills. For example, children consider whether items will sink or float in water and learn mathematical concepts, such as light and heavy.
• Children enjoy listening to stories and look at books independently to develop their literacy skills. Staff encourage children to retell stories to help them to understand their structure. However, staff have not had up-to-date training to enable them to teach children the correct pronunciation of letter sounds. As a result, staff do not always model this well enough to support children's future phonics learning.
• Staff support children to learn to recognise their feelings to nurture their social and emotional development. For example, children join in with stories that teach them to 'tuck like a turtle' and count to three when they feel cross. However, at times, staff do not make the rules and expectations of the pre-school consistently clear to help children learn to manage their own behaviour.
• The special educational needs coordinator works in partnership with staff, parents and other professionals to provide effective care and learning for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. The manager spends any additional funding with integrity, for example to provide fidget toys to support children's concentration.
• Staff build strong professional relationships with parents from the outset to help children to settle into the pre-school. For example, staff ensure they have a thorough understanding of children's likes, dislikes and abilities before their first day. Parents report that staff are supportive and welcoming and that their children enjoy their time at the pre-school.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• provide training to support staff to use the correct letter sounds when interacting with children to develop children's literacy skills further
• support staff to apply the rules and expectations consistently to help children learn to manage their own behaviour.