Little Fishes Pre-School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children arrive happily at this welcoming pre-school and are greeted by the kind and caring staff. Children take part in self-registration and hang up their coats on the named pegs, which supports their sense of belonging. Staff are warm and encouraging, helping children to feel safe and secure. Children are well supported by staff as they take turns, listen and follow instructions, which helps to create a calm learning environment. Staff are positive role models, and as a result, children learn to behave well and develop positive attitudes to learning.

Staff promote children's communication and language skills well. They speak clearly, model words, ask questions and comment on what children are doing. Staff join in with children's play and interact with them, introducing words, such as chilli, squash and gritty, to expand their vocabulary. They use sign language alongside their speech to further support children's emerging speaking. Staff lead group times that support children to build confidence and follow instructions. For example, children are encouraged to speak clearly into a microphone to say their names and take turns choosing a song from the song cards. They delight as they join in with familiar songs and rhymes. Children twirl round and round as they pretend to go through a snowstorm as staff read the bear hunt story with enthusiasm and good intonation. This helps children to develop a love of books.

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

• The managers and staff support all children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities. They monitor and observe children from their initial assessments and identify any gaps in development. They plan activities which support children to close these gaps and move them on to the next stage in their development. Targeted plans are put in place for those children who may need it, such as one-to-one sessions or referrals to specialists. All staff use now and next boards, visuals and simple sign language to further support the children's needs. This practice means all children make good progress from their starting points.
• Staff provide many opportunities to develop children's physical skills. They play running games and football with children, which helps strengthen their large muscles and supports their agility and coordination. Children develop their core strength as they walk on stilts and balance as they hold onto the rope handles. Children manipulate play dough into cakes and mould candles on the top, which builds their small hand muscles in readiness for writing.
• Staff support children's early mathematics well. Children make a pizza in a box with magnetic shapes as staff introduce mathematical language, such as square and hexagon, to help children's understanding of shapes. Staff encourage children to count as they build towers with bricks and sing songs and rhymes, promoting children's understanding of numbers.
• Managers have a clear vision for providing high-quality, inclusive care for everyone. However, occasionally, children were excluded from particular activities that had been planned with specific children in mind. This means some children did not gain the same learning experiences as others.
• Managers and staff show a clear intent of what they want children to learn. The environment supports a well-planned and sequenced curriculum, which meets the needs of the children and promotes their learning. However, the routines of the day sometimes interrupt children's learning. For example, when children were excited to find insects in the gardening tubs and were investigating with magnified glasses, they were called inside to get ready for lunchtime.
• Managers have a positive ethos for supporting staff well-being. Staff speak highly of the support they receive. The leaders carry out regular staff supervision and arrange staff meetings to support staff development and to improve outcomes for children. Staff comment that they feel part of a 'family'.
• Managers and staff working with children understand their safeguarding responsibilities to protect children from harm. Staff understand how to identify and report concerns. They are confident to talk about wider safeguarding issues such as county lines and radicalisation. Risk assessments are conducted daily to ensure children are kept safe.
• Parents speak highly of the pre-school. They comment that their children are confident and independent. Staff share information about their children's needs and progress in their learning. Parents feel well supported and state children are well cared for.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen the organisation when transitioning between children's activities and routines so they are consistently engaged in learning
• support staff to arrange the planning of activities to ensure all children can benefit from all of the learning opportunities on offer.