Lincoln Gardens Pre-School Ltd

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are made to feel welcome by the highly qualified staff, who greet them at the door on their arrival. Staff are caring and nurturing, and children form very close bonds with them. They attentively and meticulously provide high levels of care to meet all children's individual needs. For example, staff provide favourite storybooks on children's arrival. Children feel safe and secure.

Children are at the heart of everything that staff do. Managers and staff have the highest aspirations for all children. They recognise each child is a unique individual. Children are very happy. They play with their friends with great confidence. Children who are new to the pre-school settle very swiftly. Staff gain a deep understanding of children's needs, through collecting detailed information from parents about their children's development and children's individual portfolios. They build inspiring relationships with families and celebrate special occasions, such as birthdays and new additions to the family. Staff encourage a shared learning approach between home and the pre-school, enabling children to flourish and thrive.

Children thoroughly enjoy the wealth of exciting learning opportunities, which stem from their interests. They follow familiar routines and are highly motivated to take part in everything that they do. For instance, when children count eggs, staff enrich children's understanding of the natural world. For example, staff help children to think about the cycle of chicks hatching, and explore the feathers and different textures of the eggs.

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

• Managers have high expectations for all staff. They design an ambitious and well-thought-out curriculum. Staff meticulously plan learning experiences for individual children. They consider how to build on children's prior knowledge in each area of learning. For example, children learn about building a campfire and what it would be like to sleep outdoors. Staff encourage children to think of the sounds that they might hear and where they come from.
• Staff plan a curriculum which places an importance on developing children's social and emotional development, as well as their early communication skills. Staff are highly reflective and use many effective strategies to develop children's communication and literacy skills. Children consistently use new vocabulary that enables them to communicate effectively. They speak with increasing confidence and fluency. This helps children to build secure, strong foundations for future learning, especially in preparation for them to become fluent readers.
• Children wear appropriate clothing when they access outdoors and explore their natural surroundings. Children have great fun playing in muddy puddles. They add more water to create an even bigger puddle, which they enjoy splashing in. Staff encourage children to measure using their wellingtons so that they can consider how deep the puddle is before stepping into it. Children find sticks and explore the marks that they can make in the mud. This helps to support their early writing skills.
• Children learn to lead healthy lifestyles. Staff remind them to put their hand to their mouth when they cough. They enjoy healthy snacks and develop their self-care and independence skills by independently washing their hands and collecting their own packed lunch from their bags or boxes.
• Parents are extremely complimentary about the pre-school staff and managers. They comment that they are 'supportive', 'fabulous' and 'amazing' staff. Parents say that their children love attending and are always well cared for. They comment on the excellent methods which staff and managers use to communicate with them. Staff use social media, emails, telephone calls and face-to-face discussions at drop-off and collection times to update parents about their children's learning.
• Managers and staff work extensively with professionals to ensure the best outcomes for each child. As such, children with special educational needs and/or disabilities get the help and support they need through timely intervention. The manager has been instrumental in obtaining specialised help and support from professionals, and bespoke training for staff. For example, around planning learning outcomes to meet children's individual needs.
• Staff give careful consideration to how any additional funding is spent and to where it has the greatest impact to improve outcomes for children. For instance, funding is used to employ additional staff to work specifically on a one-to-one basis with children.