Kind Hearts Preschool - St Georges

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy and enjoy their time at the pre-school. A wide range of activities are available and emphasis is placed on child-led learning. Children are calm and relaxed as they play their favourite games. Physical development is well supported as children use a range of play equipment that helps encourage their gross motor skills. Children enjoy risky play as they learn how to keep themselves safe when using the equipment. For example, staff remind children how to use the climbing frame, so they do not get hurt. Children focus on exploring water, predicting what will float and sink and then testing their ideas. Water spills out of the container so children extend their play further as they put on their wellington boots and jump in puddles.

Staff are nurturing, they offer cuddles and reassurance to those who feel upset when they arrive. Children demonstrate good levels of confidence as they speak to staff to share their thoughts. Good friendships are formed with the support of staff and children enjoy playing in small groups. Children are kind to each other. They comfort one another when they are sad and encourage those children playing alone to join in, saying, 'come play with us'.

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

• Parents praise the staff for the care they provide. They highlight how well staff know their children. Parents feel informed about their child's learning, as staff give regular feedback. Staff share advice with parents to help them support learning at home. Parents report that their children are progressing well. Close partnerships allow parents and staff to work together. For example, parents speak about the improvements to their children's behaviour since working together on behaviour support plans. Good partnerships with parents are well established and support children's learning.
• The leadership team is committed to evaluating and continuing to develop the pre-school. They have recently reviewed the provision of activities, and made changes that encourage children to use different areas. In addition, they have identified more popular areas that are more commonly used, such as the role-play area. Staff have included additional resources and expanded this space, to allow for more children to play. The leadership team has recently made plans to complete training that will further develop staff skills in promoting early language development. Strategies, such as staff supervision meetings and peer-on-peer observation, help to support their ongoing professional development. Leaders and staff work together to make positive changes.
• Each key person has a good understanding of their roles and form strong bonds with children. They have a deep knowledge about the children they care for and confidently talk about what each child is currently working towards. Parents provide information about children before they start, contributing to the knowledge staff gain about a child's personal needs and development. Observations and interactions inform the baseline assessments of children. Key persons use their knowledge to accurately identify next steps in learning. Key persons monitor progress, ensuring children achieve to their best abilities. Staff understand how to build on children's learning to support progression.
• Staff are quick to identify those children that need additional support. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are well supported and make good progress. Staff work with parents and outside agencies to make plans that support children's individual needs. These early interventions and planned strategies help reduce gaps in learning. Each child with SEND has a key person, who fully understands their needs. Parents comment that staff offer advice and support when needed.
• Staff provide a broad range of learning experiences, primarily based on children's interests and levels of development. The quality of teaching is not consistent across the staff team. For example, some staff use open questions to introduce new ideas and language, such as 'what do you think will happen? or 'What could we do to fix it?', allowing children to draw on previous learning and use their own ideas. However, some staff currently lack the confidence to extend an activity or idea to engage children and promote their learning to the optimum.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• continue to support staff to develop their understanding of teaching and learning, to make sure children receive consistently high-quality teaching from all members of staff.