Newchurch Pre-school Limited

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children and their families receive a warm welcome from the dedicated staff team. When children first start, staff gather detailed information about each child's routines, interests and previous learning. This information is used effectively to help meet children's individual needs from the outset. An effective key-person system helps children to form close attachments and settle, ready to begin learning.

Leaders have a detailed understanding of each child's progress and next steps. They create a curriculum based securely on children's next steps in learning. Children's interests are used to motivate them in their play. For example, staff provide opportunities for those who enjoy sensory activities to explore paint. Children enthusiastically explore the texture of the paint on their hands and begin to predict what will happen when they mix certain colours together. Staff have a good understanding of how children learn and develop. They sequence children's learning effectively to help ensure that all children make good progress from their individual starting points.

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

• Staff observe and assess the progress that children make. They carefully monitor each child's progress and swiftly identify when gaps begin to emerge. Staff are incredibly proactive and well supported to source the precise support some children may need. They liaise effectively with external agencies, when required, in order to ensure that the needs of all children are met.
• Staff are eager for all children to do well. They offer their reassurance and support when needed. Overall, staff support children's learning effectively. Children engage deeply as they make decisions about what would like to play with and practice previously taught skills. That said, on occasion, staff sometimes do not recognise the best time to intervene in children's play in order to extend their learning further. On occasion, this interrupts children's engagement and they move away from the learning experience.
• Staff place great emphasis on developing children's communication and language skills. Stories, rhymes and songs are a fundamental part of the daily routine. Children gather eagerly to listen to familiar stories and have fun predicting what they think will happen next. Furthermore, staff model language well. They talk about what they observe children doing and skilfully introduce new words as they engage in conversation. For example, while pretending to brush teeth, staff introduce words such as 'gums' and 'molars' to help extend children's vocabulary further. Children are developing good communication skills.
• Children are very independent and show great determination in doing things for themselves. Overall, children demonstrate positive 'can-do' attitudes to learning and are willing to try new things. Younger children eagerly work things out and show great determination as they attempt to place balls through tubes. Older children help each other to wash the dishes after snack time. They wash and dry the plates, carefully stacking them ready for next time. Opportunities, such as these help to develop children's confidence and independence.
• Staff support children to understand the importance of leading a healthy lifestyle. For example, children have regular opportunities to play outdoors and are reminded of the benefits of eating healthy foods. That said, at times, staff quickly wipe children's noses for them, without explanation. Furthermore, they do not consistently remind children to cover their mouths when coughing in order to further support their understanding of effective hygiene practises.
• Parents speak incredibly highly of the support staff give to their child. They remark that staff feel like 'part of the family'. Parents value the electronic communication system and daily opportunities to discuss their child's progress when collecting their child. Parents praise the information sharing and feel well informed. They value the ideas provided to help them to contribute to their child's learning and development at home.
• Leaders are effective role models who provide a range of effective supervision, coaching and monitoring for all staff. Opportunities for further professional development are carefully targeted to ensure that staff have the necessary skills to best support the children in their care. For example, training in the use of sign language is used well to ensure that all children can communicate effectively. On-going staff suitability is regularly checked to ensure that all those working with children remain suitable to do so.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support staff to recognise the optimal time to intervene when enhancing children's learning to help ensure that children remain engaged and involved in the opportunities provided
• build upon children's understanding of good hygiene practises to further support their good health.