Emmanuel Pre-School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children demonstrate how happy they are at the pre-school as they eagerly run in and embrace staff when they arrive. They display a high level of familiarity with the routines and quickly settle into their play. Staff are on hand to provide support and encouragement. This helps children to feel more confident and secure in their environment.

Staff have high expectations for children's behaviour. They provide effective support to help children understand and manage their emotions, while fostering the development of confidence, social skills, and friendships.

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

• Staff create an inclusive environment. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are well supported. This helps create a sense of belonging, promotes acceptance, and provides opportunities for children with SEND to interact with their peers. Staff know their key children well. They provide tailored support and interventions, addressing individual needs and preferences well. This helps children with SEND to make good progress.
• Partnerships with parents are good. Parents report the pre-school have been invaluable in supporting their children. Staff make timely referrals and provide support to parents as well as their children. They say staff provide them with ideas on how to continue support at home. This enables children to receive consistency in their care and learning. Staff engage parents in discussions on how best to use early years pupil premium funding. For example, they increased sessions to help children develop a routine and prepare for school.
• Children enjoy listening to stories. Staff encourage children to connect with the characters emotions, and how they may be feeling in different scenarios. Staff prompt children to recall words they have previously learned. This helps strengthen children's memories, expand their vocabulary, and enhance their language skills. However, during group story times, there are many interruptions and distractions. Children disengage and become distracted. This means that children do not benefit fully from all learning opportunities.
• Staff provide a range of different fruits and cereals for children to try for snack. Children develop their fine motor skills as they use tongs and spoons to serve themselves. Staff use the opportunity to teach children patience and how to wait their turn. Children enjoy this time where staff engage them in conversation. However, chairs that are too small prevent children from comfortably reaching the table. This hinders their ability to feed themselves effectively.
• Leaders have developed a curriculum that focuses on communication and language as well as physical development. This is in response to gaps they have identified following the Covid-19 pandemic. As a result, children are making good progress in these areas of learning.
• Children develop their knowledge of numbers, counting and size as staff introduce mathematical language in their play. For example, they praise children for finding a 'big' stone and a 'bigger' fish. This helps children to understand mathematical concepts in everyday life.
• The manager understands the importance of reflection and open discussions with her team. They work together to create a plan of action to support improved outcomes for children. Staff feel their own well-being is supported and this creates a happy working environment.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• help staff to develop group story times so that children can listen without distraction and benefit from the rich learning experience
• consider the seating arrangements for children at snack and mealtimes to ensure they can comfortably practice feeding themselves.