Ridgeway Methodist Preschool

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

All children come into the pre-school with a smile, waving goodbye to their parents and grandparents. Staff greet them warmly, take their hand and lead them into the pre-school to play with a range of educational activities. Children happily follow, showing they feel safe and secure.

The pre-school staff design and implement their curriculum well. They know what they want children to learn. For instance, staff introduce 'social groups', whereby small groups of children join to take part in various games. Children enjoy rolling the ball to one another. They use their language skills to communicate with their peers to indicate who they will roll the ball to. Children listen carefully for their name and get ready to catch the ball if it is their turn. Children develop their social skills effectively. They use these during their independent play, saying 'my turn, your turn' when sharing resources with others.

Children have a positive attitude to learning and show a willingness to investigate new activities. Younger children enjoy painting Christmas-themed pictures and talk about the colours they are using. Older children use scissors effectively to cut out pictures of toys from magazines. They talk to their friends about which ones they will stick to their paper stocking. All children make strong progress from their starting points.

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

• Children enjoy sharing books with staff. Staff emphasise words such as 'prickly', 'shiny' and 'bumpy' while children touch the different textures within the story. They talk about how the lights on the Christmas tree at the end of the book are 'sparkly' and relate this to their own home experiences.
• Overall, children maintain attention and concentrate well, especially during adult-led groups. They enjoy playing number games with staff, such as identifying how many spots are on the picture cards, to support their mathematical knowledge. However, at times, staff do not consistently engage children, particularly boys, to sustain their attention and further their learning. They run around inside disturbing other activities.
• Children benefit from taking part in growing activities. They competently scoop up soil with their trowel and carefully tip it into their plant pot. Children place a bulb in the soil and staff talk to them about the 'root'. They encourage children to identify the flower from the picture, such as a daffodil. Additionally, children grow fruit and vegetables at the pre-school, such as potatoes. Once grown, children dig them up and eat them later for snack. Children develop an understanding of where food comes from.
• Parents and carers compliment the pre-school and the nurturing staff. They comment that the pre-school has a 'family feel', where children's uniqueness is embraced. Parents say they receive detailed feedback about their child's day alongside ideas and ways to support their children at home. Parents say their children have made progress in their confidence, social and communication skills since starting.
• Children are confident learners and show a willingness to learn new skills. However, occasionally, staff do not enable children to do things for themselves. For example, staff write in children's Christmas cards, hang up their coats and prepare their snack. Staff do not enable children to be consistently independent to help prepare them for their next stage of development.
• Staff take children out into the local community, where they collect natural items such as conkers and leaves to use in artwork. Children learn about nature and make leaf rubbings and paintings with the items they have found. Staff also take children to the local memorial to see the poppies and learn about the people who fought so bravely in the war.
• Children enjoy singing, which helps to support their communication skills. Staff teach them new songs, such as those they will be using in the Christmas nativity. Children join in with enthusiasm, using their voice and actions to express their enjoyment. Later, children recall these songs independently, singing 'We Wish You a Merry Christmas' as they play.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• develop and implement strategies to keep children engaged in learning, particularly boys
• enable children to consistently develop their independence skills.