Fizzy Fish Pre School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Staff are vigilant in promoting children's safety and well-being at this welcoming pre-school. They get to know children well and have warm, caring relationships with them. They are kind and responsive towards children, for instance, if they feel tired or upset, which helps children develop a strong sense of security and feel safe in staff's care.

Children quickly grow in confidence and join in activities with great excitement and enthusiasm. Staff are calm and patient, which creates a positive atmosphere at the pre-school. They make their expectations clear so that children understand how to behave well. Children are familiar with the daily routines and happily explain that it is time to tidy up before snack and outdoor play. They patiently wait for their turn with resources and cheerfully share out the slices of apple at snack time.

Staff plan a broad range of experiences for children that help them make good progress in their learning. Children particularly enjoy playing outside in the large outdoor space. Staff offer lots of encouragement as children practise their physical skills on large equipment. They give them time to test out their ideas during tasks, such as fitting guttering together, so they can roll balls down it. Staff monitor children's learning closely and quickly identify any gaps or areas where children would benefit from extra challenge or more support. They adapt activities as needed to make sure all children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, can take part. They make effective use of any additional funding, for example, to provide children with small group or individual activities.

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

• Managers and staff have a clear overview of what they want children to learn at the pre-school. They focus especially on helping children gain useful skills for their future learning and starting school. For example, children develop strong self-care skills. They use the toilet independently and wash their hands afterwards, use the water dispenser confidently when they need a drink and manage their own coats and wellington boots when they go outside.
• Communication and language are given high priority by staff. Children concentrate for long periods of time as they explore, talk about and taste different fruit. Staff successfully encourage them to use new words to describe how the fruit looks, feels and tastes. Children confidently use vocabulary, such as 'zingy', 'scratchy' and 'sour'. Throughout the day, they have lively conversations and are enthralled when staff read them books. They become capable communicators.
• Children thoroughly enjoy the experiences that staff provide. They take part in some well-planned, interesting activities that successfully encourage particular skills, such as strengthening the muscles in their hands or building on their existing knowledge of how plants grow. However, occasionally, some activities are not as precisely focused on building on what individual children already know and can do to help them gain all they can from the full range of experiences that are available.
• Each child's unique background is valued, and staff encourage them to share their experiences with their friends. Children use their home languages happily in the pre-school, for instance, to say 'please' and 'thank you', and staff use the same language to reply. Staff plan activities to help children find out about the different countries that their friends have come from, hear stories in other languages and taste traditional food. These experiences help them learn about the world and develop a respect for different cultures and communities.
• Staff are good role models and encourage children to be thoughtful and kind. Children are delighted to take on the role of special helper and take responsibility for small tasks. When children struggle with their emotions, staff are quick to offer guidance and support. They make sure strategies are in place to help children calm down and begin to manage their feelings and behaviour.
• There are effective arrangements in place to support staff and monitor their practice. Managers have recently reviewed staff's training plans and make sure that everyone has regular opportunities to update and extend their knowledge and skills. This has a positive impact on the quality of teaching.
• Overall, managers are careful to make sure all requirements are met, however, the provider did not tell Ofsted about some recent changes to the company, as required. However, this does not have an impact on children's safety or welfare and the provider is now fully aware of their duty to notify Ofsted of any changes in the future.
• There are positive partnerships with parents. Staff provide parents with regular updates about what children are doing at the pre-school and their progress and development. However, they have not fully extended information-sharing to make sure all parents are fully up to date with their child's next steps and how they can continue their child's learning at home.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• build further on the link between what children are ready to learn next and the activities that are provided
• strengthen the arrangements for sharing information with parents to help them continue children's learning at home.