Greyfriars Pre School

Inclusion: Strong standard

Leaders are committed to improving children's outcomes. They embed robust monitoring systems across the setting. This enables practitioners to identify children who require targeted support promptly. As a result, they implement interventions swiftly, ensuring that children receive the support they need. For example, practitioners support children in small groups during story and rhyme time, using fun props and visual aids to help them stay focused and enjoy the session.

Leaders achieve this through the effective use of targeted strategies and by working closely with children's key persons, parents and carers, and external professionals. Consequently, all children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, make sustained progress from their starting points. For example, leaders work proactively with feeder schools to develop well informed, individual transition plans that support each child's smooth and successful move into school.

Practitioners access high-quality training. This includes gaining knowledge about how to assess and plan for children's individual learning needs. Furthermore, effective training enhances their ability to support children with speech and language needs. Practitioners embed newly acquired skills enthusiastically into targeted interventions, ensuring that children receive effective and personalised support. In addition, they provide clear guidance to families, enabling parents to reinforce strategies at home and contribute to their children's ongoing progress.

Practitioners use early years pupil premium funding and disability access funding effectively to provide resources that support shared home learning. This targeted use of funding ensures that families who may be struggling receive additional help, enabling them to engage more fully in their children's learning. As a result, children benefit from consistent support in the setting and at home.

Curriculum and teaching: Strong standard

Leaders carefully plan a broad and ambitious curriculum that meets the needs of all children. Practitioners regularly assess children's progress to ensure that learning builds progressively on what children already know and can do, while providing enrichment to extend their skills further. Practitioners thoughtfully sequence and adapt activities so that every child can access them meaningfully, regardless of their ability. For example, during a bug hunt activity, practitioners provided tailored support to ensure full participation by modelling each step using simple, visual cues and additional time for exploration.

Children are highly engaged in creative learning experiences that spark their imagination and extend their skills. For example, they design transient art Christmas cards using a rich variety of loose parts and festive decorations. This activity enables children to explore colour, shape and pattern, while strengthening their small physical skills as they carefully place and rearrange items.

Practitioners skilfully support learning by introducing positional language and encouraging children to explain their choices. This not only develops their communication and vocabulary, but also promotes their early mathematical understanding.

To ensure inclusivity, practitioners use a range of tailored communication strategies so that children with communication difficulties can participate fully and express themselves. This thoughtful and well-planned approach enables every child to feel valued, confident and motivated to learn.

Achievement: Strong standard

Children are enthusiastic and motivated learners, and the setting is a vibrant hive of purposeful activity. As a result, children make sustained progress across all areas of the early years foundation stage. Children benefit greatly from the curriculum building on their starting points, ensuring that learning is ambitious, engaging and accessible to all.

Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) receive targeted support, enabling them to make excellent progress, particularly in the prime areas of communication and language, physical development and personal, social and emotional development.

Children have focused opportunities to practise their independence, build resilience and strengthen their communication and language skills through dedicated 'school-ready sessions'. These sessions support all children, including those with SEND, to feel confident and well prepared for their transition to school.

Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines: Strong standard

Leaders and practitioners work in close partnership with parents and carers to promote positive behaviour management strategies, ensuring consistency between home and the setting. They have high expectations of children's behaviour, which is clear when observing children at play. Children demonstrate high levels of respect for one another and share resources willingly. They show growing independence in managing their own actions.

Practitioners consistently model positive interactions, guiding children to understand boundaries and encouraging kindness and cooperation. Older children act as role models for their younger peers. They support them to look at books carefully by turning the pages gently. Older children remind younger children to use good manners, such as saying 'thank you' at snack time. They encourage patience, for example, reminding their peers to wait 2 minutes before they can have the binoculars. These everyday moments highlight the strong culture of respect and responsibility within the setting. Children make secure progress in their personal, social and emotional development.

Practitioners join children's play at their level, following their lead and extending learning through conversation and modelling. They show genuine interest in children's ideas, responding with curiosity and encouragement.

Leaders have robust systems in place to promote positive attendance and punctuality. They work proactively with families to overcome barriers, recognising that some children may arrive late due to delays at home. Practitioners offer practical support, such as giving lunch to children who would otherwise miss out because they were late eating at home.

Children's welfare and wellbeing: Strong standard

Leaders greet children warmly by name and take time to check in with them at the start of the day. Practitioners consistently encourage children to develop their independence skills through everyday routines and activities. Children learn to manage their own needs, such as serving themselves at snack time and tidying away resources. Practitioners use stories as an important tool in helping children to recognise and regulate their emotions. They skilfully use resources linked to stories to encourage children to talk about their emotions, supporting them to develop self-awareness and strategies for managing how they feel.

Promoting healthy lifestyles is firmly embedded across the curriculum. Children are active and energetic as they learn the importance of moving their bodies and being active through a wide range of daily opportunities. Practitioners support parents and carers with oral health advice, including information about spaces available at dentists. Children take part in practical activities to help them to understand the importance of brushing their teeth. Practitioners actively encourage healthy eating. For example, the setting takes part in a local 'healthy heroes' project, which encourages children to make positive food choices and develop lifelong healthy habits. During mealtimes, practitioners create a calm and nurturing atmosphere that supports children's wellbeing and independence. They sit alongside the children, engaging in relaxed conversation and modelling positive eating habits.

Children take great pride in joining the daily garden risk assessment with 'Superbear'. This promotes a strong sense of responsibility and awareness of safety. Through this routine, children learn to identify potential hazards, discuss how to manage them and understand the importance of keeping themselves and others safe. Practitioners skilfully guide the process, encouraging children to use language to explain their observations and decisions. In the garden, children confidently remind adults not to go on the bridge because it is wet and slippery. This demonstrates their growing ability to assess risks and apply their knowledge in real situations.

Leadership and governance: Strong standard

Leaders are reflective in their practice and continually seek ways to make ongoing improvements. They regularly review the provision, using feedback from parents and carers and practitioners to adapt routines and activities. This ensures that the curriculum remains ambitious, inclusive and responsive to children's needs.

Leaders carefully prioritise staff's welfare through regular supervision meetings, where they discuss their individual support and professional development needs. The staff development programme is thoughtfully planned around the needs of each cohort of children. For example, this year, practitioners are undertaking specialised speech and language training to strengthen provision in this area.

At monthly meetings, practitioners reflect on their practice and discuss how best to use any additional funding received through early years pupil premium and disability access funding. This ensures that resources are targeted effectively to enhance outcomes for children, particularly those who may be disadvantaged or have additional needs.

Leaders have development plans to support parents who may not have the funds to buy books. They have introduced a shared book scheme, allowing families to borrow books to share with their children at home. This will ensure that all children have access to stories, further supporting children to develop their early literacy skills and positive reading habits.