Devoran Pre School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Staff have created a warm and welcoming environment where children feel safe and secure. They recognise the importance of building strong relationships with children and the positive impact this has on their development. Children are curious and enjoy taking part in activities. Staff help children develop their early mathematics and science knowledge by supporting them to weigh and measure ingredients as they bake honey biscuits. Older children choose the honey flavour to tie in with the weekly book theme 'Goldilocks and the Three Bears'. They enjoy sharing their creations with friends and develop their creative skills by decorating the biscuits with sugar icing. Staff understand how children learn and develop, and they design activities that complement each other, helping children to recall what they know and can do and strengthening their memory.

The curriculum is well designed and effective, enabling children to make progress. They develop a broad range of skills that prepare them for school, while also promoting their personal, social, and emotional growth. All children make good progress from their individual starting points. Children are encouraged to participate in daily outdoor activities, enjoying the fresh air and developing their physical skills. They engage in imaginative play, such as playing in a rowing boat, pretending to be at sea in a storm. Children develop their balance and core strength by walking along a balance beam. They practise mixing and scooping skills by mixing oats with porridge, linking with the setting's 'theme book'. As they do this, staff support children to develop their vocabulary, saying things such as 'my porridge is too lumpy' or 'my porridge is too sour'.

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

• There is a good focus on developing children's independence skills. Staff provide them with child-safe apple cutters and knives. Children chop up peppers, apples and grapes independently for snack time. Young children confidently find their place at the table for snack time, recognising their first and last name on their name label. They pour their own drinks and all children drink from open cups, as well as developing their hand-eye coordination as they use cutlery to eat.
• Staff understand the importance of developing strong relationships with children and the positive impact this has on children's development. Staff know the children in their care and there is a key-person system in place. Leaders particularly support key persons with their role in forming children's next steps and extending their learning and development. However, key persons do not always keep up to date with daily changes to children's care arrangements, or make sure this is shared with and implemented by the team working with the children.
• Staff have developed a strong, effective focus on literacy. They help children explore storytelling in various forms, fostering a love of stories and books. In small groups, they guide pre-school children to recall the focus story of the week. Using images on a story board, they help children retell the story, remembering what they can of the book. Pre-school children blend some sounds together, laying the foundation for early reading skills. The lending library provides a valuable resource for parents to support their children in developing a love of books. During group times, staff discuss with children the books they read at home, helping them to recall prior learning and share stories with their peers.
• Staff enjoy working at the setting and report feeling well supported by the rest of the team. The provider offers a range of training opportunities for staff, including some recent sensory play training that has had a positive impact on child development.
• Staff build relationships with parents, who appreciate the regular updates on their children's progress. Parents are pleased to see that their children's social and speech development has improved since starting. They report that children love coming to the setting. They recommend the setting to other parents.
• Children are supported by staff to develop their creative skills. Young children dance with joy to music while tidying up after the morning free-play session. Pre-school children focus and engage in a role-play game, putting on aprons and applying bandages to toy animals, helping to make them better in a pretend veterinary surgery area. Staff understand the importance of guiding children to express themselves in a variety of creative ways, such as through song, dance or making visual art with different materials.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen key person systems further, to help staff promote children's changing care needs even more promptly.