Bramford Pre School Playgroup

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children thrive in this welcoming, homely environment. They are greeted by the staff, who are knowledgeable about the children attending, attentive and nurturing. Therefore, children are confident, feel safe and are comfortable in their care. This is demonstrated as they excitedly enter the pre-school and leave their parents with ease. Staff praise children's independence as they self-register. This contributes to children's good behaviour and positive attitudes to learning.

There is a well-designed and ambitious curriculum for all children. Staff understand the curriculum and provide enjoyable and engaging learning experiences for children that ignite curiosity and wonder. For example, as part of the current topic of spring and farming, children experience ducklings hatching and learn about what happens in the natural environment at this time of year. Children follow staff's instructions well and successfully plant herbs outdoors. While digging holes in the soil, staff remind them how to use tools safely. They extend their knowledge of life cycles and empathy for living things through discussions with staff.

The management team and staff are highly skilled and trained so that they can effectively support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Consequently, children with SEND are extremely well supported and continuously make good progress towards achieving their best outcomes.

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

• Children lead their own learning and are motivated and curious learners, learning through trial and error. Staff provide meaningful interactions and ask questions during their play, which extends their thinking and problem-solving skills. For example, children attempt to build a tower out of bricks that exceeds their height, but it keeps collapsing. Staff encourage children to think of other places to build it. With perseverance they succeed, building a tower taller than themselves by using a bench. They high five each other's achievement, displaying that they are developing the value of teamwork and confidence in their abilities.
• Teaching is very good. Staff know individual children's next steps in learning and plan activities around these. This means children continually make good progress in all areas of learning and development. Regular and in-depth assessments of children's progress, help inform focused learning opportunities for children. However, at times, staff do not always consider children's individual learning needs and interests enough to maintain their engagement and achieve the intended learning outcomes.
• Children speak with confidence, and those who have more difficulty are swiftly supported. For example, staff work extremely closely with parents and outside agencies such as speech and language professionals. Working together ensures all children make the best possible progress in their communication and language development. Children benefit from small group activities to encourage good social skills and back-and-forth interactions with others. Staff frequently share stories and have immense fun as they participate in interactive stories and singing.
• Staff morale is high. Staff report that they feel fully supported by the management team that actively works alongside them, and their well-being is frequently considered. The management team has high expectations for the progression of staff and offers training to support this. However, the management team does not have secure arrangements in place to carry out regular supervision of staff's practice to continually raise teaching to an even higher level.
• Children love the challenge to pour drinks and collect their own plates and cups at mealtimes. This encourages independence in self-care and supports children extremely well as they prepare for the move on to school.
• Parents are overwhelmingly complimentary about the pre-school. Parents feel listened to and exceptionally well supported if they have a concern about their child's development. They gather feedback from parents in a variety of ways to ensure that each family has a voice and can influence their plans. For example, parents have regular meetings with their child's key person, sharing ideas and working collaboratively.
• Children behave well, and staff promote positive behaviour effectively. When children have a disagreement, staff sensitively model turn-taking and encourage them to listen to each other's opinions. As a result, older children show they are resolving peer conflict appropriately by themselves.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• closely consider children's interests and resources that are used in adult-led activities to enhance and extend all children's next steps in learning
• build on existing performance management systems to help raise the quality of teaching to an even higher level.