Nazeing Pre-School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children settle quickly in this friendly, welcoming pre-school. They separate from their parents confidently, greeting staff happily. They are keen to join in with play and excited to see what activities are available. Children are encouraged and supported to be independent. They learn to self-register using individual name labels. Children begin to recognise letter patterns in their names. They take responsibility for their own belongings, and show pride in demonstrating this independence.

Children enjoy playing with each other with the wide variety of resources that are on offer. Their behaviour is very good. Staff model kind and calm behaviour to set a positive example for the children. Children are supported to share with their friends. They show respect and consideration for their peers and adults. They take turns with each other, respecting their friends' requests and being considerate.

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

• The key-person system is well embedded in this pre-school. The staff form strong links with the parents as well as children. This leads to children feeling safe, secure and happy in this welcoming environment.
• A child-led ethos offers children learning opportunities in line with their interests. Adults use their skills and knowledge to expand children's interests. They extend conversations to introduce new concepts, which adds to learning opportunities. Staff ensure that they use every opportunity to support children's language and communication skills. They are skilled in helping children to learn new words and to respond in sentences.
• Children are busy and engaged. This means that there is little disruption to their learning. Yet, on occasion, staff do not provide sufficient extension to activities to ensure that every child is challenged.
• Children develop their love of stories and books through frequent reading with staff. Books are available across all areas of the pre-school inside and out. Children request story time and adults readily join them to read the books chosen by the children.
• Children are well supported in learning to be independent. At snack time, children manage their own hygiene, and wash their hands independently. They experiment using different utensils to serve snack and pour their own drinks. They are encouraged to make healthy food choices. Children showed the inspector how they need to keep their teeth clean. They enjoy using the oral hygiene resources to practise good toothbrushing techniques.
• Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities make good progress and are included in every aspect of the day. Individual needs are supported. Adaptations are made to ensure that all children access all aspects of the curriculum. Staff work in close partnership with parents and other professionals. This results in consistent individualised strategies to support children make progress. Additional funding for children is not always utilised effectively and this may result in missed opportunities that extra funding could offer.
• Parents report they feel very well informed of their child's day. They know their child's key person and feel that their children are well cared for. Parents report that their children make excellent progress. They praise the friendly community feel and the support they received when joining the pre-school.
• Staff report that they feel valued and appreciated. Leaders make use of their professional expertise to develop aspects of the curriculum. This leads to a dedicated team that strive to do their best for the children and families they care for. Staff feel supported to undertake higher level training to further develop their skills.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support staff to consistently challenge and extend children's learning to help them to achieve as much as they can
• ensure that additional funding is consistently used to maximise opportunities that directly benefit individual children.