Horrington House Pre School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy and settled in the warm and welcoming environment of the pre-school. Children take part in a wide range of activities, which they thoroughly enjoy. They develop high levels of independence, follow their interests, and share close relationships with one another and the staff.

Children are eager to explore, whether they are making patterns with paint or finding out what happens when they drop items into water to see if they float or sink. Children are very well behaved. They play harmoniously with one another, share resources and take turns well.

During the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic, staff maintained communication with parents. Throughout this time and since the setting has fully reopened to children, staff have ensured a good two-way flow of communication between themselves and the parents. Although parents do not currently come into the setting, they receive daily information at drop-off and collection time about their child's day and learn about any progress their child has made. This helps parents to feel fully involved. There has been a big focus on supporting children in developing good physical skills since returning to pre-school. Staff have developed the indoor and outdoor areas to maximise and enable physical activity to support children's well-being.

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

• Children thoroughly enjoy role play. They use their imagination well as they pretend that they are driving to Australia. They find the country on the world map, confidently showing staff where they will find it. They take on the role of important people of the moment, such as the Prime Minister, and talk about what they have done in their day. They dress up and use language well to negotiate their role.
• Children develop good communication skills. Staff and children talk about a variety of subjects and learn new vocabulary. However, occasionally, staff introduce new words, such as 'transparent' or 'investigate', but do not ensure that children know what these words mean.
• Children excitedly explore outside. They turn over logs and look for bugs, using photographs to help them identify what they find. They learn about the centipede, woodlouse and slugs, using magnifying glasses to look closely and compare the different insects.
• Children's behaviour is good. They are kind and respectful to the staff and one another. For example, children help each other if they trip or fall over outside. Children show acts of kindness as they give up their chair at lunchtime so that other children can sit next to their best friend.
• The staff team meets regularly to reflect on their practice and the provision. They accurately identify areas for development and implement effective plans to ensure ongoing improvement. They regularly review the use of the outside area and introduce new activities, such as planting potatoes and strawberries. The children enjoy looking after the plants and take part in activities such as shelling peas to develop their physical skills further. This also helps them when holding a pencil and practising early writing in preparation for school.
• Children have lots of opportunities to count and use numbers in activities. Staff skilfully engage children by using their interests to increase their understanding. Children count small wheeled vehicles, such as tractors, or sort farm animals into categories. However, staff do not make the most of opportunities to encourage the children to make simple calculations or think about which numbers are bigger or smaller.
• Children have a good understanding of keeping healthy. Staff encourage children to follow good hygiene routines and talk to them about the importance of handwashing. Children are very independent in managing their self-care skills successfully. They have good social skills, showing good manners when enjoying mealtimes with their friends.
• Staff recognise how effective partnership working with parents has a positive impact on children's well-being and learning. Staff encourage parents to share children's learning at home. Parents are very happy with the provision and the progress that their children make. They comment that their children have grown in confidence since starting at the setting and are happy.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• develop further strategies to explore the meaning and sounds of new words
• extend opportunities for children to use the mathematical language associated with making simple calculations.