Little Explorers Pre-School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are warmly welcomed by the attentive staff as they enter this nurturing pre-school. Staff take time to get to know children well during a series of dedicated transition sessions. As a result, children build positive attachments that help them to feel happy and safe. Staff nurture a culture of positive behaviour. Children receive recognition and rewards for their kindness. For instance, when children share with their friends, staff celebrate this at circle time by presenting them with a certificate. Children smile with pride as they tell their story of their kindness.

Staff carry out effective risk assessments of the setting to ensure the safety of the children who attend. They create opportunities for children to experience challenge and manage risk. For instance, staff create a ground-level rope swing for children to explore. Children approach the swing in anticipation and are supported to sit and learn how to move themselves backwards and forwards. Staff encourage children to explore different ways of moving, such as lying on the swing and using their arms to pull themselves forward. Children take turns with their peers and gradually build their confidence as they practise this new skill.

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

• Staff recognise the importance of providing children with quality experiences that extend and enrich their knowledge and vocabulary. They spend time growing a variety of fruits and vegetables with children. The children demonstrate positive attitudes towards their learning. They pick peas and delight at the sound that they make as they snap them open. Staff engage children in conversation about the number and size of peas that they have found inside.
• The manager and staff instil a love of books among the children and families who attend. Children visit the library bus to choose new stories for pre-school. They learn how to take care of books and are keen to read stories with their peers and staff. Children learn about making choices as they vote for the story that they would like to listen to at circle time. They join in with repeated verses, and staff pause for children to finish sentences from familiar stories.
• Children are independent and confident learners. They attend to their own needs at snack time. For instance, children pour their drinks and spread butter on their toast independently. They follow routines and are able to wash their own plates after eating. Staff provide a positive level of praise, which results in children developing a positive sense of self.
• Children, including children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, make good progress from their starting points. Staff make effective use of additional funding to ensure that children receive opportunities that are beyond their experiences. For instance, children take part in creative arts activities, where they learn about art, music and culture from around the world. They explore mindfulness through yoga and practise this daily with reflective breathing exercises. Staff recognise the positive impact that this has on children's concentration and participation in activities.
• The manager and staff develop positive partnerships with parents. Parents speak highly of them and are grateful for their devotion to the care and education of their children. They are very happy with the progress that their children make and the good level of communication that they receive from the dedicated team. The manager works in collaboration with parents to support children's learning and development at home. Parents can borrow dedicated resource bags to support children's attention and concentration, or to enhance positive bedtime routines. This promotes positive outcomes for children's development.
• The manager is passionate about strengthening the knowledge and skills of her staff. She encourages them to attend dedicated training that extends their understanding of child development. Staff speak positively about the training that they have attended and are confident to share the knowledge that they have gained. However, consistently high-quality supervision is not yet embedded. This means that staff are not yet fully aware of how they can improve their practice so that they can continuously enhance their teaching.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen staff supervision further to provide more-focused targets and to continuously improve the quality of teaching.