Pelham Pre-School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children and parents are greeted by friendly staff offering a warm welcome. The children are familiar with the routine and enter with confidence. They are keen to get involved in the activities on offer and show positive attitudes to learning. Staff get to know children from the outset and build strong relationships and bonds with them. Children make good progress in their learning during their time at the pre-school and gain a range of skills that aid their eventual move to school.

Children develop close friendships here and learn from each other, benefitting from the mixed age range. For example, the younger children learn to pour drinks by watching the older children. Older children demonstrate patience with younger ones joining in with their play. Staff promote independence in self-care and encourage children to lead their own play and learning. Older children persevere as they work hard to solve problems. They show a sense of pride in what they can do for themselves.

Two-year-old children enjoy listening to stories and exploring the water-play table. They actively seek staff to join them in their play. Older children are focused in their play, exploring the setting and carefully choosing the activity that interests them the most. They are keen and motivated learners. For example, they eagerly create individual pictures to add to the sea life wall display, discussing the creatures they draw with their friends.

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

• The staff treat children with kindness and respect. They are consistent with their expectations, which are high for all children. This results in children following their lead, and they behave very well. Good manners, sharing and waiting for a turn are modelled across all areas of the pre-school.
• Staff have a good understanding of how to support language skills. They engage with children in a skilful way to extend their vocabulary. Staff use Makaton sign language to support children and work on ways to build their confidence with trying new words.
• The staff ensure that every child has the opportunity to progress in their development, with careful planning for their next steps. They follow children's interests and set out activities to entice children to engage with the learning that is offered. However, staff do not always offer ways to extend children's learning. For example, during snack time, children are served pre-cut fruit. Children do not have the opportunity to explore the whole fruit or attempt to peel a satsuma themselves.
• Staff support children's independence well. They encourage children to take responsibility for their belongings as well as the resources in the pre-school.
• Children eagerly help at tidy-up time and demonstrate respect for the toys they have played with. They actively enjoy tidying up the toys throughout the session when they have finished playing with them. This means that the children benefit from a well-organised, tidy environment.
• Children proudly show staff their achievements. For example, when they anticipate which items will float or sink at the water table, staff share in their excitement. Staff offer praise when children correctly predict the outcome. They extend children's knowledge of mathematics, comparing volume and weight of full and empty containers.
• Transition to school is very good. Staff have developed close working partnerships with the local schools to support a smooth transition. Teachers are encouraged to visit the pre-school to meet the children as well as pre-school staff visiting the school. This means that they are aware of the school routines and expectations. They work with children to ensure that they are ready for the changes ahead.
• Parents are keen to share their thoughts on the pre-school. They talk about the progress that their children have made since attending here. They particularly praise the staff and say how their kind approach makes every child feel valued.
• Leaders are dedicated to ensuring that the pre-school offers families a welcoming, inclusive service. They spend time, outside of operating hours, hosting fundraising events to support the financial challenges they face. This includes raising money for additional staff training to further enhance their professional skills. Staff benefit from regular support and supervision from leaders. This helps raise staff morale and improves outcomes for children.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support staff to make the most of every opportunity to extend children's learning within the routines and activities available.