Happy Faces Pre-School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are greeted by friendly staff and happily leave their parents at the door. For children who are a little unsure, attentive key persons provide support and comfort while they settle. This helps to promote children's emotional security.

Children enjoy chatting and playing with their friends. They are imaginative; for example, they make a cover from play dough for a superhero to hide under, and disguise it with patterns. Children have thoughtful conversations with adults and explain what they are doing and why. This helps them develop their creative and critical-thinking skills.

Children enthusiastically join in morning exercise, singing and dancing. They respond to staff's instructions as they move slowly, quickly and shake their bodies. Staff talk to children about how their heart is beating very fast due to exercise. This teaches children to listen to their bodies and notice any changes, and helps them start to understand the importance of exercise and being healthy.

Children like to help staff. They join in with the washing up after snack and sort out bowls and cups. They find small brooms outside and help staff sweep up the sand, which makes them giggle, as they create little piles of sand. Through these self-directed tasks children build confidence in their abilities and demonstrate a sense of pride in their accomplishments.

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

• The partnership with parents is good. Parents praise the staff team. They report receiving regular feedback in the communication book about their children's progress. Parents talk about the books their children bring home and read together. This encourages a love of reading. Parents of children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) describe the staff team as 'local heroes'.
• Staff skilfully promote children's early literacy. They read to children in a way that engages them in listening and contributing to conversations. In addition, staff effectively use opportunities to encourage children to use their mathematical knowledge during the day. Children enjoyed listening to a favourite story about animals and confidently discussed this. They talked about the spider on top of a car and counted the animals in the pictures. A child demonstrated their knowledge of numbers saying, 'I can count to nine', and proudly counted aloud.
• The special educational needs coordinator (SENCo) works closely with outside agencies. Staff use a range of strategies to support children with SEND. For example, helping children find their voice by learning to communicate using
• Makaton and Picture Exchange Communication System.
• Staff teach children good hygiene skills. Children follow daily routines, including washing their hands before eating. Children serve themselves a morning snack; however, this is not always well-balanced to encourage healthier eating, such as offering foods like fruit and vegetables. Children enjoy their lunches and chat to adults about their favourite foods. The manager and staff sometimes do not consistently promote healthier options in children's packed lunches, to further support healthy choices.
• Staff teach children about their similarities and differences during the day. For example, during the 'hello' song they add new words in French and Kurdish. Children who speak English as an additional language beam with delight at hearing their home language. Children are learning about other cultures, and this promotes their understanding and acceptance of people different to themselves.
• The manager and staff plan a curriculum that supports the needs of the children who attend. There is a strong focus on children's emotional development. Staff teach children about feelings and they display good behaviour, treating each other kindly. This feeling of belonging and well-being can be seen in the younger children when they ask staff, 'how are you feeling today?'.
• Staff provide a wide range of activities in the outdoor area. For example, children enjoy the climbing frame and riding on the bicycles, which supports their physical development. However, staff do not fully consider ways for children to use natural resources, particularly when staff assess that the outdoor area is not suitable to use. This means that children do not always have access to a wide range of different resources, particularly those who enjoy exploring and engaging with natural materials.
• The manager uses additional funding effectively to close any gaps in learning. For example, staff attend training which supports speech and language development. The means that staff can quickly identify children who may benefit from extra support, which promotes children's good progress in their speech and language development.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• build on the partnership with parents to promote children's healthy eating, to help children further develop and understand the importance of a healthy lifestyle
• extend the opportunities to further children's experiences of the natural world as they play.