Goudhurst Village Pre-School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are extremely happy in the welcoming and friendly environment. As soon as they arrive they are engaged and involved in their play. Children form incredibly secure attachments with the staff. This helps children feel safe in their environment. Their well-being is high. Children are eager to learn. They have a thirst for knowledge and want to know more. They fully involve themselves in activities. For example, in the craft area children show confidence to see through their ideas from start to finish. When they need support staff are on hand. Staff skilfully model and show children what to do, before getting them to try. Children are fully supported to embed their learning and learn new skills for themselves. This encourages the children to become enthusiastic and independent learners.

The curriculum is broad and incredibly well planned to meet the needs of the children. Staff know exactly what the children need to progress their learning and development. The environment is appealing and interesting to the children and they show mature levels of involvement in what they do. All children are making exceptional progress from their starting points.

Children behave impeccably well. They clearly understand the rules and expectations that staff have embedded. For example, when they find a spider and place it in the magnifying container, children are kind and caring. They pass it around for everyone to see without needing to be prompted to share. Children communicate well with each other and share their knowledge. For instance, they confidently talk about the spider having eight legs. Children use language to talk about feelings and show empathy and compassion. Once they have looked at the spider, they are able to recognise that it might be feeling 'sad' or 'scared' and release it outside.

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

• Staff implement a highly effective, broad curriculum that is led by the children. This provides children with endless possibilities to explore and experiment with their own ideas. Staff cleverly incorporate children's interests into the environment and learning experiences to motivate them in finding out more. This encourages children to be fully engaged in their learning. Staff observe what children are doing and step in to support and guide learning further. For instance, when children are building with large plastic blocks to make towers, staff question them on why it might keep falling when it gets too tall. Children use this information to look at their tower and express to each other that they need to make it wider at the bottom. Children then experiment with this and show pride at making tall towers that do not 'wobble and fall'.
• Children are exceptionally well supported to communicate. Staff value the importance of listening to children's ideas and introduce new language to further develop their speech and language. For example, staff regularly read to the children, introducing new words such as 'imagination'. Staff take time to fully explore the word so children can use it in the right context. Children are confident speakers. This is seen during group times when children get up to perform well-loved songs in front of their friends.
• Staff have an exceptionally strong relationship with parents and carers. This is based on mutual respect. Parents speak incredibly highly of the pre-school. Parents build close and secure relationships with their child's key person. Wherever possible, families are linked to the same member of staff for consecutive children. Parents greatly appreciate the consistency this provides. They praise the regular feedback they receive and use this to help continue development at home.
• Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are exceptionally well supported. The dedicated special educational needs coordinator (SENCo) works tirelessly with other agencies to give children and families the support and time they need. For example, the SENCo will plan in times during the day to work one-to-one with children on their target plans. This dedicated time, along with skilled staff who know the children and their needs remarkably well, helps all children make rapid progress.
• Children show incredibly high levels of independence. They confidently choose where they want to play and get their own coats and wellingtons on to go outside. If they need support, they naturally turn to their friends first. Children show such determination to do things for themselves. When walking to the playing field, children show maturity. They listen to instructions from staff to keep themselves safe and show they know the rules when outside of the setting.
• The dedicated and passionate manager strives for improvement. She is exceptionally skilled in evaluating staff practice and giving feedback. For example, she will spend time observing her staff team and is competent in recognising strengths and areas for improvement. She communicates with staff daily about the activities provided and what impact this is having on the children. This ensures that opportunities in the environment have meaning and that staff understand how to embed children's learning. Staff work harmoniously together putting children at the forefront of all that they do.