Cliffe Preschool

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are safe and happy in this friendly and welcoming pre-school. They have secure attachments with staff, who are caring, nurturing and kind. Children eagerly join in with the wide range of activities on offer and enjoy their time at the pre-school. For example, children are creative, exploring textures, such as shaving foam. Children are able to test out their own thoughts and ideas as they play. For instance, they explore pouring water from teapots to cups. Children investigate different construction materials and build towers. This helps to develop their physical skills.

Children are well behaved and polite. They know what is expected of them and carefully follow the rules and boundaries that are in place. Staff regularly praise children's achievements. This helps to raise their self-esteem. Older children learn to manage their self-care needs on their own. For instance, they use the toilet themselves and learn to dress for outdoor play. Children play independently together. They share toys and resources well.

Children spend time outside in the spacious and well-planned garden. They run around, climb and balance on pre-school apparatus, investigate sand and role-play shopping. Children help to grow potatoes, carrots and cucumbers in the garden in the warmer months. Children learn about the importance of good oral health. These opportunities help children to learn about healthy lifestyles.

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

• Staff support children's communication and language development well. They speak clearly, use sign language and hold conversations with children. Staff help to extend children's vocabulary. For example, they ask questions to encourage children to respond and speak. Staff introduce new language and repeat words.
• Children are inquisitive and explore the stimulating and well-resourced environment with confidence and enthusiasm. They are beginning to understand early mathematical concepts appropriate to their stage of development. When playing with play dough, they talk about different shapes and sizes.
• Staff make effective use of settling-in arrangements to build strong relationships with parents and children. They gather information to plan familiar care routines for children. Overall, children make good progress from their starting points in learning. Staff identify next steps to build on children's prior skills. However, staff do not always focus on what they know about children when planning and delivering some of the activities.
• Children enjoy making marks and develop a love for practising their early writing skills. They benefit from learning pre-school rhymes and listening to stories. Children are supported to develop skills in preparation for school. Staff work closely with teachers at local schools, to help children be prepared for their move to school.
• Partnerships with parents are good. Staff share what children are doing and learning through an online app. They hold daily discussions and invite parents into the pre-school to talk about their children. Parents speak very highly about the small and friendly pre-school. They say that the communication is good and that they are kept informed about their children's day. Parents explain that they enjoy special planned events, such as sports day.
• Staff say that leaders and managers are supportive. Staff attend good training opportunities, overall. This includes providing training that help staff to promote children's communication and language skills. However, the monitoring of staff performance is not fully embedded into practice, to help staff to improve their knowledge and teaching skills even further.
• Robust recruitment procedures are in place to ensure that all staff are suitable to work with children. Staff use risk assessments to help minimise potential hazards and maintain a safe environment. They are vigilant about safety and maintain correct ratios to keep children safe.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• plan activities more effectively to help children build on what they already know and can do, so they can make the best possible progress
• strengthen the monitoring of staff performance and focus even more precisely on identifying how individual staff may raise the quality of their teaching to the highest level.