Fordcombe Preschool Limited

Inclusion: Expected standard

Leaders take incisive and timely action to meet the individual needs of disadvantaged children and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Staff assess children's progress to identify and address gaps in their learning and development. Leaders engage with other professionals and parents and carers to develop suitable learning plans that help children make progress from their starting points. They regularly review these plans to ensure that children receive the right support at the right time. Staff adapt their teaching strategies and expectations of what children with SEND can do, to provide appropriate levels of challenge and to help them achieve. Leaders understand the importance of sourcing additional resources, training for staff and funding for some children. They monitor the impact of teaching and the environment to improve outcomes for all children.

Curriculum and teaching: Expected standard

Staff know the children well. They plan stimulating and fun activities that introduce children to new learning and experiences. Staff observe children's reactions and responses to help them plan a curriculum that meets their individual needs. They regularly review the curriculum with leaders, who monitor the impact teaching has on children's outcomes and plan well for improvements. This includes for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, those who speak English as an additional language and for children who may be disadvantaged. Staff seek the views of parents and carers and provide them with additional support to help children continue to make progress at home.

Overall, the curriculum is sequenced to help children practise and consolidate what they know. Children form friendships and enjoy imaginative play. They enjoy space to move freely outside and develop motor skills when they make models with construction toys. Staff use spontaneous opportunities to teach areas such as mathematics. Older children use a tape measure to find out how tall they are, and they use their knowledge of numbers to predict the tallest and shortest. However, staff intentions for the youngest children's learning are sometimes less well matched to their age and stage of development. This means some learning targets are too ambitious for these children.

Leaders and staff build children's communication and language skills. They model words, phrases and sentences to help children develop their vocabulary and fluency. Children engage with staff when they listen to stories, sing songs and repeat rhymes. This helps to add depth to their understanding. Children join in enthusiastically with parts of stories they recognise. Young children vocalise and use body language to ask for their favourite songs.

Achievement: Expected standard

All babies and children achieve well from their starting points and are well prepared for the next stage in their education, including school. Their physical development, communication and language skills and personal, social and emotional development provide them with the skills they need to develop a love of learning. Children demonstrate positive attitudes to learning when they explore, ask questions and enjoy creating their own imaginative games together. They demonstrate independence and self-confidence and can appropriately express their feelings and emotions. They show balance and coordination when they tackle physical challenges and control and dexterity as they develop their fine motor skills.

Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines: Strong standard

Leaders have worked hard to establish new and highly effective routines that promote children's personal and social development extremely well. They have high expectations for children's behaviour, which are consistently and gently reinforced by staff in ways that are age and stage appropriate. This leads to a very calm and deeply respectful environment where staff and children consistently demonstrate kindness, thoughtfulness and politeness. Staff and children establish firm bonds and attachments, built on reassurance and trust. Children feel a sense of belonging with their friends and staff. They demonstrate high levels of empathy and understanding of the needs of others.

Leaders prioritise teaching children about self-regulation and helping them to build resilience. Children learn that they can recover from setbacks and ask staff to support them when appropriate. Staff consistently apply thoughtful strategies to help children to negotiate and understand the needs of others. This helps babies and children build friendships. Leaders work extremely well with parents and carers to support attendance and to help parents actively engage with children's learning.

Staff give children the space and time they need to develop and enhance their play. For example, they help children solve problems and make comparisons, drawing on knowledge they already hold. Children thrive in an environment that stimulates their thinking, curiosity and desire to learn more.

Children's welfare and wellbeing: Expected standard

Leaders consistently monitor staff's practice to support children's welfare and wellbeing. They seek the opinions of parents and carers and use these to inform improvements. This means changes, such as improving the menu to reduce children's sugar intake, prioritise children's health and wellbeing.

Children develop secure attachments with staff. Kindness flows between staff and children and is reflected in children's feelings of security. From the moment they arrive, children are settled and ready to play in the nurturing and inviting environment. Staff work with parents to establish familiar routines around feeding and sleep for babies and young children. For children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and other barriers to their learning, staff provide especially reassuring and welcoming care.

Children learn the importance of making healthy and safe choices to support their mental and physical wellbeing. Children are encouraged to play outside in the fresh air, choose healthy options at mealtimes and to independently manage their personal care needs. This helps children to manage their emotions, build positive relationships with others and make choices that lead to better health and lifestyle outcomes.

Leadership and governance: Strong standard

The new leadership team is highly ambitious and has significantly improved the quality of teaching, safety and staff wellbeing since the last inspection. Leaders meticulously review and reflect on the quality of education and care to ensure they are meeting and exceeding the needs of all children. They accurately identify priorities for improvement that will have the most impact for children and work with staff to put these into practice. Leaders have a robust and effective plan to continuously drive these improvements based on their secure oversight of the setting. They act with integrity to provide high-quality teaching and experiences for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and other barriers to learning.

Leaders regularly review and monitor staff practice. They provide well-targeted training and support to help staff embed new and ambitious teaching strategies. Staff feel valued and supported and are focused on achieving the highest levels of professional practice. Leaders work hard to establish themselves within the heart of the community. Parents and carers comment on how positive changes have enhanced their involvement in the setting. Leaders support parents to extend children's development, learning and wellbeing at home.