Peter Pan Pre-School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children enjoy attending this warm and nurturing setting. They arrive happy and are enthusiastic to learn. Children develop warm relationships with all the staff, who are attentive towards their needs. Staff support children's behaviour and make them aware of expectations in the setting. Children follow instructions well and quickly tidy up their toys before mealtimes. Staff gently remind children about sharing and taking turns. As a result, they learn how to play cooperatively with their peers.

Children are curious learners and enjoy spending time outside. They develop their physical skills as they independently walk across balance beams and manoeuvre cars around the garden. Children have developed a love for books. They join in with familiar phrases as the staff's animated storytelling captivates their interest and brings the story to life. Mathematics is well embedded into the curriculum. Children are encouraged to count how many bricks they have as they build towers with their peers. They develop good levels of independence and enjoy sharing their accomplishments. Children dress themselves and take delight in showing adults how they can do their zips up on their coats. This supports children to be well prepared for the next steps of their education.

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

• Children explore the rich learning environment and readily take part in a wide range of activities. For instance, children enjoy making their own play dough as they enthusiastically follow a recipe. They confidently measure the ingredients that they need and identify when they need more flour as they discuss the play dough is 'sticky'.
• Partnerships with parents and other professionals are well established. There are effective systems in place to support children and families with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). The special educational needs coordinator (SENCo) works closely with parents and other professionals to ensure children have access to high-quality education and achieve positive outcomes.
• Children make great progress in their learning and development. Staff observe and track children's progress and share this with parents online and during key-person meetings. They make regular assessments of children's development to ensure they are hitting their developmental milestones.
• Children learn about the importance of physical exercise and how it leads to a healthy lifestyle. They understand hygiene practices. They confidently wipe their noses, and they wash their hands before eating. Staff discuss with children what food is good for them and the importance of a balanced diet. Children learn about the importance of good oral health. For instance, they role play dentists and learn how to brush their teeth correctly.
• Parents speak highly of the setting. They comment that the staff are friendly and approachable and understand their children's individual needs. Parents discuss that there is a strong key-person system. They feel well informed about what their children are learning and are provided with information to help support their children at home.
• The management team is passionate about providing a supportive setting for children and their families. There is a high priority on supporting staff's professional development to maintain the quality of education available to children. Staff have regular supervision meetings with the manager. This helps to support staff's practice and professional development and identify any additional training needs. Staff enjoy working in the setting and comment that they feel well supported in their roles.
• Children benefit from good-quality interactions from staff. However, on occasions, staff do not look at ways to further extend children's learning to enhance their development. For example, when children are exploring in the mud kitchen, staff do not effectively question the children and introduce new knowledge. This limits the challenge for children when they are ready for more extension in their learning.
• Staff provide a language-rich environment and engage children in meaningful conversations. They understand the importance of supporting children's communication and language development. They swiftly identify when children need additional support and provide one-to-one sessions to help them make excellent progress. Children who speak English as an additional language make great progress in their communication and language skills.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support staff members to provide further challenge to children during activities to fully extend the quality of children's learning experiences.