Huby And Weeton Preschool

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are warmly welcomed upon arrival by a friendly and caring staff team. Staff provide a happy, nurturing, and safe environment where children can play and learn. They know children well and build strong, positive relationships with both them and their families. As a result, children settle quickly into play, supported effectively by staff who help them feel safe, secure, and valued.

Staff plan a sequenced and balanced curriculum that they adjust to suit the learning needs of each individual child. Children show a positive attitude to their play and learning. Staff work hard to create interesting indoor and outdoor learning experiences for children. For instance, during an outdoor activity, children wash dolls using sponges, delighting in the sensation of the bubbles and water as they run it through their fingers. Through this activity, staff effectively teach hygiene by encouraging children to gently wash all parts of the dolls to ensure they are clean. Children are happy and make good progress from their starting points.

Staff are positive role models and embed an understanding of appropriate behaviours from an early age. Children treat each other, adults, and the resources they use with care and respect. Staff offer gentle reminders to be kind and share and regularly praise children for their efforts. Children often use their manners and share with their friends without prompting.

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

• The pre-school is led by experienced and knowledgeable managers who have a deep understanding of the children in their care and how to support their development effectively. Staff understand each individual child's abilities and learning progress. They complete regular observations and assessments of children. With both passion and expertise in child development, staff deliver a carefully planned and well-sequenced curriculum that builds on what children already know and can do.
• Staff help children to develop a deep understanding of early mathematical skills. They consistently embed mathematical concepts and vocabulary into everyday interactions. For example, children engage in activities that challenge them to match numerals with quantities. They eagerly search for number blocks and cards to correspond with the number of discs they have. Staff further extend learning by encouraging children to compare the heights of towers they have built, promoting comparative language and deeper mathematical thinking.
• Partnership with parents is overall strong. Staff maintain open communication with parents through daily conversations and regular newsletters. Feedback from parents is overwhelmingly positive, highlighting the close and trusting relationships they and their children form with the nurturing staff. Leaders provide effective support for families who may have challenges. However, staff do not yet provide specific, tailored guidance to parents on their children's next steps in learning or how these can be supported and extended at home.
• Staff have developed a curriculum that fosters children's independence. Children are encouraged to serve their own drinks and cut up their own cheese and fruit during snack times. They wash their hands and use the toilet independently. Staff encourage children to try to complete tasks for themselves before asking for help. This approach builds children's confidence in their own abilities and prepares them well for the next stage in their learning.
• The well-being of staff is a high priority. Staff enjoy working at the pre-school and feel their contributions and opinions are genuinely valued. They are well supported through regular observations, supervision meetings, and access to training. All staff complete mandatory training and participate in targeted professional development, such as supporting children who speak English as an additional language (EAL). Staff morale is strong and retention remains high.
• Staff actively promote children's health and physical development. Children benefit from daily access to outdoor play and a wide range of physical play activities that support their gross motor skills. Staff provide healthy and nutritious snacks and ensure parents are well informed about the importance of balanced, healthy packed lunches. Staff embed education around good oral hygiene practices into children's daily learning experiences.
• Overall, staff effectively support children's communication and language development. Children who speak EAL benefit from tailored and consistent support. During play, staff engage meaningfully with children. They use open-ended questions to encourage conversation, support the recall of familiar phrases, and promote sentence development. However, on occasion, staff move on too quickly and ask further questions without allowing children enough time to think and respond.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• provide parents with information on their children's individual next steps and provide ideas for how to support these at home
• allow children time to consolidate their thinking during activities before asking them more questions to help support their listening, attention and understanding even further.