Charfield Pre-School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children arrive at the pre-school eager to play. They are warmly greeted by caring and nurturing staff who actively listen and value what children have to say. Children have lovely conversations with staff who promote their communication skills well. For example, staff ask them about events in their lives, such as recent birthday celebrations. Children clearly have strong bonds with staff. This helps them to feel safe and secure. Staff are positive role models for children and have high expectations of them all. They remind children of rules and boundaries and, as a result, children are polite and behave well. Children enjoy an inviting curriculum that supports learning and stimulates their curiosity. For example, children learn how to care for the pet guinea pigs as they help to feed them.

All children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), make good progress. Staff act swiftly to close any gaps in children's development and put measures in place while they wait for referrals. Staff use additional funding effectively to support individual children. They organise outings to enrich their life experiences, including a trip to an arboretum. Children benefit from smooth transitions when moving on to school. Staff have effective partnerships with local schools and arrange for children to visit throughout the year.

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

• Staff get to know children well from the start. They gather information from parents about children's preferences and personalities. Staff create family books with photos of meaningful people in children's lives. Staff also visit children in their homes prior to starting. This helps to develop trusting relationships and learn about children's home lives. As a result, children's emotional security is promoted so that they feel confident and ready to learn.
• The manager values her staff team. She provides opportunities for constructive team discussions and meets with staff individually. She encourages them to talk through any concerns they may have. She checks in on their well-being and staff report high team morale. Staff have opportunities to attend training to help them in their roles. For instance, recent speech and language training has helped them to work effectively with children who are delayed in this area. However, the manager does not yet focus precisely enough on remedying minor weaknesses in staff practice.
• Children delight in imaginative play. Staff observe and plan the curriculum according to children's interests and recent experiences. Staff incorporate many areas of learning into activities. For instance, children are animated and expressive as they pretend to be hairdressers. They re-enact previous experiences as they ask each other, 'What would you like in your hair?' They practise mathematics skills as they enjoy using pretend money. They say, 'That will be ten pounds please.'
• Children with SEND receive good support. Staff work effectively in partnership with parents and refer to other professionals to get children the help they need. They implement individual plans to help children make the best possible progress. However, sometimes, when children struggle to follow routines, staff do not consistently use available resources to help children understand what to do next.
• Partnerships with parents are strong. Parents report how well staff communicate with them about their children's learning. Staff also encourage learning to continue at home. For example, they encourage children to take books home for parents to read with their children. This promotes parental involvement in children's learning and further develops children's love of books.
• Staff work hard to provide a rich set of experiences for children. Children learn about the world around them, as staff arrange for visits from people of different professions, such as police officers and vets. Staff champion diversity and teach children to learn about cultures other than their own, such as Black history.
• Staff support children to gain helpful skills required for the future. They teach children to become independent in tasks, such as serving themselves fruit at snack time and pouring their own drinks. Furthermore, older children benefit from attending 'Rising Fives'. This is where staff have a strong focus on helping children practise specific skills needed for school, including changing for physical education.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen arrangements for monitoring staff practice to ensure minor weaknesses are identified and addressed, to raise quality of practice to the highest level
• support staff to use available resources consistently to help children who have difficulties understanding and following routines.