Mather Street Pre-School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children have good relationships with staff and enter the pre-school confidently. Staff are caring and supportive and have high expectations for children's development. Children receive quality time and attention with adults who support them to play. Language is modelled by staff and they talk to children as they fill, empty and scoop sand. Mathematical language is promoted well.

Children use their imagination. They organise resources for a pretend party and sleep-over. They organise chairs to make a pretend vehicle to get them to their destination. Children generally cooperate with each other well. Staff allow children time to sort out their own disagreements. Staff intervene sensitively to develop children's thinking about how they feel if they are left out. Staff ensure all who want to be are involved in the role play, and this promotes inclusion.

The passion and dedication of leaders to children identified with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) is relentless. They go above and beyond to secure specialist support for children. They purchase additional resources and have low adult-to-child ratios to provide extra support for children. When adults work with children painting, they avoid questions which require one-word answers. Instead, they talk to children about their actions and paint themselves describing what they are doing. This allows children to hear lots of words which support language development. Staff also use simple sign language to aid communication. During an activity to make play dough, children's faces expressed their delight in enjoying the sensory experience. Children with SEND are well cared for. Leaders are determined to ensure they are included. They do access an appropriate language based, sensory curriculum in order for them to make progress.

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

• Staff are very knowledgeable and passionate about providing children with quality experiences. Staff identify what they want the children to learn each half term, based on assessments of children's knowledge and learning. They incorporate children's interests into planning, ensuring that children's curiosity is maintained. This results in children becoming effective learners and contributes to their good progress.
• Staff know their key children well and talk about them confidently. They know children's next steps and incorporate them into their play. For example, when playing with play dough, staff model words such as 'in front of' and 'behind'. They encourage children to place objects and say where they are putting them, using specific vocabulary related to their next steps in learning.
• Children are confident to talk to visitors. They demonstrate their counting skills, and know that one more than three is four. They say they like to paint or play in the home corner. Children know their opinions are valued by adults.
• Children play together well. In the role-play area, they take turns sharing an imaginary bowl of food for their 'babies'. They talk to each other in their pretend roles. Their language is appropriate and they take turns in conversation.
• The pre-school promotes healthy eating and has received an award. They work closely with parents to provide healthier packed lunches. Children are becoming aware of healthy food and beginning to make healthy choices.
• Parent partnerships are a strength of the pre-school. Leaders work well with families and they say the setting goes above and beyond their expectations. Families feel they are supported and involved with their child's development.
• Leaders prioritise speaking and vocabulary development across the setting. Stories are read to the children regularly. They explore new vocabulary and are encouraged to retell and predict what happens next. Children join in enthusiastically, singing and dancing in sessions exploring sounds, music and movement. Staff work hard to close the gaps and enable children to catch up with their language development.
• The pre-school welcomes visitors from the community. Visits from a dentist, nurse and a post lady develop children's understanding of the world and introduces new vocabulary. Further visits to a farm and a dance studio are planned to experience different social situations and develop language.
• Leaders promote independence and want children to do things for themselves. However, this is not consistently encouraged. At times adults get out equipment for children when the task is within the children's capabilities. They hand out items to children when a choice could be made. Staff do not consistently let children build on what they already know to develop their independence.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen staff's understanding of how they can support children to be independent.