Bybrook Pre-School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children do very well and their personalities blossom at this exceptional pre-school. Parents/carers report that their children love attending and that the setting is like one big family. Children eagerly bounce up and down while they wait for staff to answer the door bell. Staff talk to children about things individual to them as they arrive. Children are at ease and separate from their parents with smiles. They happily find their names on the self-registration tree to start their day.

Leaders and staff create a warm and stable environment in this village hall pre-school. They have clear goals for children's learning based on their interests and needs. Children take ownership of their belongings, using coat pegs and drawers independently. Resources are set up into zones, so children know where they can create, read and explore activities. Outside, the setting provides small climbing frames, tricycles, slides and stepping stones, helping to develop children's physical skills effectively. Children are extremely enthusiastic and talk freely with their peers and adults. Staff interactions with children are very positive. They ensure they speak to children on their level, bending down and making good eye contact. The setting is language rich. For example, staff introduce new words, comment on what they see children doing and ask interesting questions to challenge their thinking. Teaching is engaging and all children actively take part. They share their ideas about stories and finish sentences to create rhymes. Children's confidence and communication skills develop superbly.

Children who speak English as an additional language and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities gain inclusive support and the involvement of professionals happens in a timely manner. The setting uses additional funding effectively, providing training for staff, specialist resources and trips to provide wider opportunities for all children.

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

• Leaders are enormously supportive of their team. They identify where staff may need to improve and work with them to ensure their skills are to a very high standard. The team attend regular training that they then share with their colleagues. Children receive quality teaching practices. Consideration into staff workload is of utmost importance to leaders. They regularly check to make sure staff have good well-being. Leaders promote open communication and the staff report that they can speak to them if they need to. The team act with integrity and are reflective. Leaders are ambitious and strive to improve with the children's best interests at heart.
• The staff create a variety of interesting experiences for the children. The curriculum excites the children and builds upon their interests and what they already know. For example, when looking at colours of fruit in a book, children express interest in carrying items on their heads like the girl in the images. The staff provide opportunities to extend on the children's ideas and include balancing and carrying into a physical development session. In this way, staff show they are highly skilled and can quickly adapt.
• The children are highly motivated to learn. Younger children show high levels of concentration during adult-led activities. Attentive teaching across all areas of learning keeps them involved. Older children demonstrate great levels of independent learning. Children commit their learning to memory. They recall colours while making rainbow collages or sending cars down tubing. All children focus and show fascination when adults read them books.
• The children are a testament to the setting. They show compassion and respect for one another. Older children place their hands on the shoulders of less confident younger children when they are speaking aloud for reassurance. Staff encourage children to support one another. For example, they join in with songs when children attempt to sing alone in front of their peers.
• Staff are exceptional role models. They create clear behaviour messages that they deliver consistently. Staff use phrases such as 'We use 'kind hands' as what you are doing will make someone sad' or 'Please give your friend space'. Children use the setting's 'stop' hand gesture to help resolve conflict. Children can amend their behaviours and are aware of their impact on others.
• Staff champion involvement in the community with trips to a nearby forest school. They also investigate tractors and crops at a local farm. The children take part in village activities, such as litter picking. This contributes to their development of character and they learn to respect others and the environment. The children can identify ways to reduce their negative impact on the world for the future.
• Children are extremely secure and happy in the environment. The key-person system is very well established. Children and parents show high levels of engagement with their key person. Relationships within the setting show great care and attention. Key persons effectively use shared information. They create each of their key children 'learning packs' to target their individual needs. This broadens the children's knowledge and results in excellent progress for all.