Capel Pre-School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children and families are at the heart of this friendly community pre-school. Staff are gentle and kind in their interactions with children, frequently offering cuddles and comfort. This helps promote children's emotional well-being successfully. Children settle quickly to play and are highly engaged exploring the wide range of activities set up for them. They thoroughly enjoy riding their bikes navigating around each other in the hall and matching the numbers on their bikes to the 'parking spaces'. This helps support children's physical and number skills well. All children make good progress.

Staff have high expectations for children. They are good role models. Where children need support to understand how their behaviour impacts on their friends, staff gently and sensitively explain to them how to take turns and share. Children excitedly use different timers to measure their time on the scooters ensuring it is fair. These activities help develop children's social skills effectively. Staff plan an imaginative and motivating curriculum. For example, children delight in learning about different birds outside with staff. They eagerly wait for them to land on the feeder they have set up, using posters to identify what type of bird they are. These activities promote children's understanding of the natural world well.

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

• Children behave well. They are polite and well-mannered when talking to each other and staff. Children immediately respond when it is tidy-up time, telling adults what they have to do. Children demonstrate that they have learned the routines of the setting very well and are confident and comfortable.
• Staff promote children's understanding of others positively. They provide books to support children's understanding. For example, children learn about their friends' different cultures and beliefs and demonstrate respect when talking about them. As such, children are very inclusive towards each other.
• Staff help develop children's self-care skills well. They talk to children about healthy choices. Children are interested and engaged when learning how to brush their teeth. They talk with staff about the apples they collect from the community orchard nearby. These activities help develop children's understanding of healthy lifestyles.
• Children benefit from a well-planned curriculum based on their needs and interests. Children spend long periods of time exploring cars and trucks and making their own ramps. Other children concentrate for sustained periods making their own play dough models. These activities support children's concentration and attention successfully.
• Staff encourage children's language and literacy skills very well. Children delight in joining in with rhymes and songs. They eagerly request their favourites demonstrating good recall skills. Staff provide children with a range of books to take home supporting a love of reading.
• Staff set up resources for children to be creative, such as setting up easels for children to mix different coloured paints. However, they do not always identify when they could extend activities to enhance children's knowledge and understanding. This means children do not always have opportunities to expand their creativity and challenge their thinking further.
• Staff promote children's independence well. They encourage children to put their own coats on and celebrate their achievements when they do. Children wash their own hands before snack time and are considerate when putting their own plates and bowls away. This helps support their positive attitudes to learning.
• Leaders and managers are passionate and proactive. They have effective links with the local authority, taking on board suggestions and advice. They are evaluative and reflective of their practice. Staff use funding well to provide additional support to families if needed, such as help with books and uniform. They encourage children to donate to the food bank to help the community. Staff are well supported in their roles.
• Relationships with parents are strong. They are provided with a range of information about how their children are doing. Parents appreciate how well their children are prepared for school and the support they get to help them. Parents report how happy their children are and the good progress they have made.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen staff's skills in identifying when they could extend activities to support children's learning even further.