Finches Preschool

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children enjoy their time at the pre-school. Staff take the time to get to know the unique personalities of each child. They place a strong focus on supporting and embedding the relationships they build with them. Children benefit from the strong bonds they establish with staff, which supports their growing confidence and emotional well-being. Staff teach children about what behaviour is and is not acceptable. They explain consequences as children are given time to think about and learn what are good choices. Children's behaviour is good. Older children demonstrate genuine care and consideration for their friends. For instance, they help younger friends take off their coats and hang them up as they invite them to play.

Leaders plan a meaningful curriculum around children's interests and developmental needs. Children develop good attitudes to learning. They are excited to learn and join in with activities with enthusiasm. Staff work closely on building children's communication and language skills. Leaders carefully consider how to spend additional funding, such as early years pupil premium, to have a positive impact on children's individual progress. For instance, funding is spent on outside services that visit the pre-school and help to inspire older children's interest through storytelling sessions. The quality of education is good, and children's learning progresses well.

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

• Leaders and staff are committed to providing high-quality care and early years education to children and their families. Leaders have a good understanding of the curriculum they plan and the rationale behind this. Staff know the children well. They plan and create activities and learning experiences that motivate children to learn. However, sometimes, the links between what children need to know or to be able to do next are not fully considered. At times, some staff do not tailor activities successfully to what they identify that they want children to learn next. This limits how staff can adapt their teaching to fully focus on children's next steps in learning to help ensure that children make the progress they are capable of.
• Leaders and staff work well together. They create a happy and welcoming environment for children. Staff say that they feel happy and valued in their roles. They benefit from regular supervision meetings with leaders to improve their personal effectiveness. Leaders take the time to develop the staff. Training is used to build on knowledge and skills that have a positive impact on the children's learning. For instance, staff have used new knowledge and strategies from partnerships with speech and language professionals to help review and enhance the pre-school environment. Where children start behind in their speaking skills, staff help them to catch up quickly.
• Partnerships with parents are good. Staff establish and maintain good relationships with families. They use daily conversations to share children's activities, their care needs and celebrate their achievements. Staff successfully share ideas of how to support children's learning at home. Parents say that the sharing of information, particularly around children's personal development, has helped to grow children's confidence, including outside of the pre-school.
• Children's health is important to the staff team. Children benefit from healthy fruit and vegetable choices at snack times. Staff teach children routines, such as washing their hands before they eat, to help them learn how to keep themselves healthy. Staff encourage children to be physically active. For instance, children learn how to balance and control their bodies as they move along stepping stones indoors. Outside, children push themselves along in ride-in cars as they learn to navigate the space to move around their friends. These activities help to promote and strengthen children's physical skills.
• Staff plan interesting hands-on experiences that support children's natural curiosity as learners. Children develop positive attitudes to learning. Overall, children concentrate well in activities that interest them. For instance, older children practise leaf rubbing as they explore the patterns they can create. Younger children listen to and respond to staff, such as when they help to tidy away toys in readiness for lunchtime. However, sometimes, whole-group activities are not planned for the differing needs and abilities of children. At times, some children struggle to focus and join in for the whole session because of other distractions around them.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen staff's understanding of the curriculum intent so that teaching consistently focuses on the individual learning needs of each child
• make better use of group activities to ensure that all children are fully involved and engaged.