Butterflies Preschool

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children arrive with a smile at this nurturing setting. They settle quickly and are keen to explore the activities on offer. Children who have only been at the setting for a short time have already built positive bonds with the staff. Children who are upset are given additional care and reassurance. Children feel safe and secure.

Children become immersed in books and storytelling. Staff are animated as they read aloud, encouraging children to act out the stories and to anticipate what will happen next. Children join in with the repeated phrases in stories and stomp around as they pretend that they are 'going on a bear hunt'. They snuggle up with a friend or a cuddly toy and carefully turn the pages as they explore books that they have chosen. Children are developing a love of reading.

Overall, children behave well. They are aware of the routines and respond positively to adults' instructions. They promptly tidy up and sit calmly as they eat their lunch. Children treat the resources with respect. For example, they notice when something has fallen on the floor and pick it up without being asked. On the isolated occasions that children struggle to regulate their behaviours, they are supported by staff. Children are developing their understanding of how to play safely and how to manage their emotions.

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

• Children benefit from a curriculum that builds on their knowledge and skills over time and gives them the cultural capital they will need. Children describe how the wind and rain make the leaves fall off the trees. They notice a caterpillar on a leaf and predict that he wants to eat it. Children are broadening their knowledge of the world and developing positive attitudes to learning.
• Staff know the children well. They consider children's needs and interests when planning activities. However, staff do not always know how to respond and adapt in the moment to ensure that children remain engaged and are consistently challenged. For example, when children are showing that they need to be physically active during a story session, staff do not adapt their teaching to meet this need. During activities, staff do not always adapt their modelling and questioning to build on children's knowledge and skills.
• Staff understand how to promote children's communication skills and how to expand their vocabulary. They talk to children about what they are doing and encourage them to use language in their play. Staff pick up the telephone outside and encourage children to listen and respond at the other end of the telephone line. Staff frequently sing to children and find ways of linking songs to their everyday experiences. As the children pretend to make a cup of tea, staff sing the nursery rhyme 'Polly put the kettle on'. Children's language is developing well.
• Children's mathematical knowledge is developing well. They count accurately and use comparative language spontaneously in their play. Children count the spiders that they can see outside. They group the farm animals together and say, 'I found two horses, they are the same.' Children have a secure understanding of early mathematical concepts.
• Children take an active part in managing their own personal needs. They put on their own coats, use a spoon competently when eating a yoghurt and learn to use the toilet independently. As children finish their lunch they say, 'I am going to wash my hands now.' Children are becoming increasingly independent.
• Parents speak highly of the nursery. They appreciate the care and attention their children receive. They value the support that the nursery offers to families, particularly the support that was offered during the COVID-19 pandemic. Parents say that staff work hard to meet all children's needs, including children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Parents describe the staff as 'friendly and approachable'. They feel that their children are making good progress and state that they are happy at the nursery.
• The manager strives to provide high-quality teaching and learning. She seeks advice from the local authority and improves staff's knowledge and skills through supervision, feedback, modelling, and training opportunities. However, the manager does not always ensure that coaching and mentoring are used effectively by all leaders to improve staff practice and to cascade knowledge and skills.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• develop staff's understanding of how to respond and adapt in the moment, so that they provide teaching that consistently meets children's needs and builds on what they know and can do
• strengthen the use of coaching and mentoring by all leaders to improve staff practice by cascading knowledge and skills.