Burrsville Pre-School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children arrive eager to join in with the many exciting activities that staff have carefully planned for them. They show high levels of engagement and perseverance. For example, staff set up a bug hunt in the garden, inspired by the children. Children walk around the garden equipped with magnifying glasses and pictures on clipboards, identifying insects and ticking them off as they go along. They demonstrate excitement as they find them and comment on the size of each species. Staff introduce new vocabulary to describe the types of insects, such as 'earwig' and 'wasp', and children use the words in their discussions.

The staff team has developed a kind, warm and welcoming relationship with the children, which builds children's self-esteem. Children display signs of being confident and excited as they play with each other and talk about what they are going to do. Staff respond thoughtfully to children's questions and requests. Healthy lifestyles are promoted well. Children have access to drinks throughout the day and enjoy snack time and lunchtime, when staff encourage children to eat well. Children recognise what are healthy and unhealthy foods. For example, they play a shopping game with support from the staff, naming food products and working out what is good for them and what is not beneficial.

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

• The pre-school curriculum is designed to support children to progress through the setting with confidence and transition well into mainstream education. Staff are confident in their intent for planned activities, and as a result, children make good and steady progress.
• Children are assisted to reach important milestones, such as becoming good communicators and developing their independence. For example, children look forward to taking on responsibilities and helping with tasks such as snack time. They prepare food and cut up fruits. They complete child-friendly risk assessments of the garden areas before they play.
• Children have a range of opportunities to solve their own problems and develop good thinking skills. For instance, children use diggers and fill trucks with stones and pebbles. They build 'roads' and lay down planks of wood between tyres. They discuss this with their peers as they work out the best way to navigate obstacles. Children consider each other's ideas and try them out. They learn through trial and error as they persevere with pushing heavy trucks up the planks.
• Staff contribute in implementing new ideas and developments to support professional and positive changes in the provision. Although staff's general knowledge is good, the monitoring systems, such as staff supervision meetings, are not efficient enough to recognise possible gaps in their knowledge. This means that staff do not increase their skills to the highest level or remember and effectively embed information gained through training.
• Mathematics is promoted well. Children learn to count, recognise shapes and numbers and match numbers to quantities. For example, children count each other during circle time and as they line up to go out into the garden. They learn about the numbers of days in the months. Counting is used throughout the day at every opportunity.
• Staff manage children's behaviour effectively. They teach children to be polite, well-mannered and kind to each other and to share and take turns. Children understand the pre-school rules and follow them extremely well. For instance, they stand quietly and listen to the staff when they shake the tambourine to explain what is happening next. As a result, children are well prepared for routine changes during the day. Children know what to expect and can return to enjoy their last few minutes of play.
• Children benefit from fresh air and exercise in the pre-school garden. They run, negotiate space, climb and balance. Children push each other on the tyre swing, balance on crates and planks and slide down climbing frames. This helps children's physical development, increases their large-muscle skills and enables them to have lots of fresh air daily.
• Parents provide positive feedback about the pre-school. For example, they feel children have plenty of opportunities to play and learn and that they are making good progress. Parents comment on the flexibility of booking settling-in sessions to support the emotional needs of the children. Parents appreciate the communication they receive, particularly the daily discussions with staff.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• provide more effective support for staff to identify training needs and gaps in their knowledge.