Mount View Pre-School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children enjoy every moment of their time in this inspiring pre-school. They are very busy learning and having fun, from the warm, friendly greeting they receive when they register their arrival to their enthusiastic participation in songs and stories at the end of the session. Children are extremely well prepared for every stage in their learning, including starting school. Staff work strongly as a team to plan thoroughly for all children's learning. They engage children in activities which progressively deepen and extend their skills and understanding.

Children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), make very strong and sustained progress in all aspects of their learning and development. Children learn to be happy, confident and inquisitive. For instance, they eagerly scrutinise the seedlings from the wide range of vegetables they have planted in the classroom and garden. Children see if they look strong enough or need more water and sunlight to grow.

Children are safe and secure. They learn to recognise and manage risks in their play, such as when they develop their balancing skills on increasingly challenging obstacle courses. Children rise to staff's high expectations and are very well behaved and consistently polite and friendly. They eagerly follow staff's guidance and instructions. For example, children carefully tidy away their toys and promptly gather together as they look forward to the next part of their day.

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

• The experienced and well-qualified manager leads her team with passion and drive. She has a clear vision and a deep understanding of the learning and development needs of young children, which she communicates strongly to staff and parents. Staff morale is very high and they confidently strive to give all children the best preparation for their future education.
• Staff make excellent use of songs, rhymes and other repeated experiences to build children's knowledge. They teach children to sequence events such as days, months, seasons, weather and numbers. For example, children confidently explain that April follows March and that the '29th' has a 'two' and a 'nine' in it.
• Staff enrich children's communication skills extremely well. They carefully plan to ensure that children meet exciting new words in different contexts and help to make them memorable. For instance, children talk about putting the 'antennae' on their play dough butterflies and adding colourful beads and gems to make the wings 'symmetrical'. They know the seeds they planted will grow into 'beetroot' and 'basil'.
• Children's love of books and stories is strongly promoted. Staff identify a range of books that children experience as they progress through the pre-school to build their language skills and knowledge. They place them at the heart of learning and children love dressing up as favourite characters, such as The Very Hungry Caterpillar, or following a Gruffalo trail in the playground.
• The manager and her staff make full use of training opportunities to develop and enrich the curriculum. For example, through experience gained from training on the needs of the youngest children, staff reviewed and strengthened the provision for reading and use of classroom spaces. Staff rigorously and systematically evaluate all aspects of children's experiences to ensure the maximum positive impact on their learning.
• Staff provide highly effective support to children with SEND. They identify gaps in children's development at an early stage and act promptly to address them. Staff work with other professionals in education and medical fields to ensure that children achieve their potential. They use any additional funding well to support children's individual needs, such as developing their sensory awareness and early speech.
• Staff help children to manage their behaviour well and to develop positive attitudes and an awareness of healthy lifestyles. Children know that cleaning their teeth is important to 'stop the germs hurting their teeth'. They climb, balance and learn forward rolls in the indoor and outdoor play space and show their skills on sports day.
• Parents highly recommend the pre-school. They receive excellent information and guidance from staff on their children's learning. Parents welcome the many opportunities to be involved in their children's learning. For example, staff encourage children to grow the tallest sunflower at home or invite parents to accompany their children on bus rides and frequent visits to parks, museums and other places of interest.