Hilmarton Preschool

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children thoroughly enjoy attending the pre-school. They benefit from the calm, inclusive and welcoming environment that staff provide. Children arrive happy and demonstrate their developing independence as they hang up their coats. They quickly settle and engage with different activities in the room. Children form strong bonds with staff and show that they feel safe and secure. Staff take time to get to know each child and tailor settling-in sessions to meet individual needs. Children engage well with staff and are keen to explore, showing increasing levels of attention.

Children show respect towards staff and their peers. They learn to share and take turns as they play. Children are familiar with the pre-school routine and know what is expected. This helps them feel safe and secure in the environment. Children have good opportunities to learn how to manage risk for themselves, such as climbing trees in the forest sessions. Children learn about healthy eating. For example, they take part in cooking activities. Staff help children to gain a good understanding of the world. They plant vegetables and sunflowers with children to teach them how things grow. Staff teach children about people in the community, such as postmen and shop keepers. They do this through informative discussion, storytelling and on walks around the local community.

Staff know the children well and regularly assess their learning and development. They use information from parents about children's learning at home, along with their own observations during pre-school sessions, to plan individual next steps that support each child's progress.

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

• Staff are dedicated practitioners, who take pride in their roles and responsibilities. They express happiness and unity, which positively influences children's attitudes towards the setting. There is a good team spirit, where staff help and encourage each other throughout the day. They deploy themselves effectively to help to ensure children are safe at all times. Good consideration is given by leaders to staff's well-being. Staff work well together as a team and have children at the heart of all that they do.
• Staff plan an ambitious, well-sequenced curriculum that builds on what children already know and can do. They place a strong focus on supporting children's communication skills, social interactions and positive behaviour. The curriculum is enhanced with weekly sessions which include outside professionals providing sports, songs, rhymes and forest school. This offers children a wider variety of structured learning experiences to help prepare them for school.
• Partnerships with parents are strong. Staff share information with them at drop off and collection times. Parents are invited to attend regular meetings with staff and share daily updates on social media. This helps to keep them well informed about their child's learning and supports continuity in learning at home. Parents attend regular events, such as Father's Day forest school celebrations, and walks around the local community. This enriches children's experiences and strengthens the link between home and the setting.
• Staff have established effective systems to support children with daily routines. For example, staff use signs and pictures to help some children to feel more settled when transitioning from one activity to another. Children demonstrate that they feel calm and quickly re-engage as they move from outdoor to indoor.
• Staff engage in playful interactions with children and encourage them to use and develop their physical skills. Children show delight as they run, jump and climb outside. They confidently use wheeled toys. Children take part in creative activities to help develop their eye-hand coordination. For example, children delight as they scoop flour or mix raisins in their creations as they learn to use various tools. Older children take care as they draw and colour pictures.
• Staff talk to children throughout the day, placing priority on children's communication and language development. However, occasionally, staff focus their questions towards the older children, which does not always encourage the less confident, younger children to join the conversation to help develop their confidence and communication skills. This reduces opportunities for younger children to share what they know to broaden their knowledge through conversation.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen opportunities for younger children to join in all conversations to develop their confidence and enhance their developing language skills.