Roborough Preschool

Inclusion: Needs attention

Disadvantaged children and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) make progress from their starting points, but inconsistencies in teaching and support means that they do not make the progress of which they are capable. Leaders are aware of the inconsistencies in staff's knowledge and skills to best support the progress of these children. Leaders are providing coaching and mentoring, alongside targeted monitoring and supervisions, to develop consistency in teaching. Leaders can identify areas of progress, such as supporting children who lack confidence, but recognise that supporting children with SEND to make best progress is an ongoing focus for staff's professional development.

Leaders monitor children and swiftly identify children's needs. They liaise with parents well and make referrals for early help as needed. Children do receive targeted teaching from specialist teachers to support their learning and development. For example, children thoroughly enjoy a music and movement session where teaching targets children's listening and attention as they sing songs and explore instruments, such as tapping sticks. Children giggle in enjoyment and focus well as they engage. However, the pre-school staff's interactions with children vary in quality and frequency.

Curriculum and teaching: Needs attention

The quality of curriculum and teaching requires further development. Not all children are making the progress they could because of weaknesses in curriculum planning and teaching. This is particularly evident when considering the targeted support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, and other barriers to learning, should typically receive. On occasion, they do not receive interactions that help build on what they already know and can do. Other groups of children make steady progress from their starting points across all areas of the curriculum.

Younger children show a love of books and story times as they confidently approach staff to read to them. They focus well as staff share stories, and children point out objects of interest in each picture. Children have daily opportunity to play and learn outside and develop physical skills as they practise scooping sand, playing dress-up and creating cakes in the play kitchen as they mix and stir their ingredients. Older children use language confidently and in a range of ways. For example, they encourage each other to walk on balance beams and praise their friends' efforts, they ask friends if they wish to play football with them and focus as they kick the ball back-and-forth, and they confidently ask staff for help or support as needed.

Pre-school children show confidence and independence as they enjoy building with bricks. Staff speak with them about their buildings and extend the activity as they encourage children to build gardens. Children help each other as they build and confidently compare how many people live in their houses.

Teaching is inclusive. Staff encourage all children to participate in activities. However, as children play and learn, staff's interactions do not consistently support children's next steps in learning and sometimes lack purpose.

Achievement: Needs attention

Children generally progress from their starting points. Pre-schoolers grow in confidence and independence and develop some skills that prepare them for starting school, such as dressing for outdoor play and toileting independently. Older children show visitors how beautifully they can write their name as they label their paintings and hang them to dry. Pre-schoolers enjoy speaking with others and show pride as they show staff how much their plants they planted have grown. They describe how tall the plants are and how big the leaves are now.

Younger children do progress, but progress is not best supported by leaders and staff. Children's communication and language skills are developing, but progress varies. Children all experience some interactions from staff, but staff do not consistently target these well. This means that children who are disadvantaged, those with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those that face other barriers to learning and/or wellbeing do not always receive purposeful, frequent interactions that build on what they already know and can do. This does not best promote their learning and development.

Behaviour, attitudes and establishing routines: Expected standard

Leaders create a calm environment where children clearly feel safe, secure and happy. Staff create a routine that helps build children's confidence, as they know what will happen when, throughout their day. For example, children become excited for song time before lunch. They sit well, making space for their friends and sing together, smiling as they do so. They then wash their hands independently and select somewhere to sit for lunch where they chat happily and help each other open drinks and sandwich boxes. The curriculum is not always sharply focused to best support children's interests and/or next steps in learning. Children sometimes engage less when staff ask them to transition to activities that they have no curiosity about or interest in.

Staff promote good manners and respectful relationships. Children demonstrate genuine kindness towards other children. They share and take turns well. Children show a good understanding of staff expectations and respond with enthusiasm to the praise and encouragement staff provide. Staff know children's characters well and build positive relationships with them. For example, children with a love for football, excite when staff ask them if their team won their match at the weekend. The interest shown further develops children's sense of belonging. Leaders fully understand the importance of regular attendance and work closely with families to ensure that all children attend regularly.

Children's welfare and wellbeing: Expected standard

There are some inconsistencies in the quality of education; however, children are happy and settled. Leaders prioritise the safety and wellbeing of all children and create a welcoming environment that promotes children's emotional wellbeing. When children arrive and are quieter than usual, staff ask them if they are feeling a little sad and provide cuddles and reassurance as they tell them how much fun they are going to have. Leaders prioritise building relationships with families they serve, and this helps build a sense of community. Staff build strong, positive relationships with their key children, helping children to settle quickly when they start at the setting. Staff's interactions with children vary in quality to best promote learning and development, but staff are all consistently warm and caring towards children.

Leaders and staff provide parents with guidance around healthy eating. They provide healthy snacks for children during the day and encourage them to develop daily healthy habits, such as regularly drinking water and spending time outdoors each day. Children experience lunchtimes that are calm and social. Staff promote good manners and chat with children as they eat. Staff monitor children well as they eat and remind them to finish the food in their mouths before taking more bites. This supports children to learn safe eating habits.

Leadership and governance: Needs attention

Leaders maintain an overview of the setting and are passionate about providing children with a quality education. However, quality teaching is not yet embedded across the staff team. Staff's effectiveness is rigorously monitored by leaders, and development areas are identified and supported. Staff access both internal and external training, but this is having variable success and the impact, and as yet, is not consistent in supporting children to achieve the best possible outcomes. Leaders do recognise this and have plans in place for further training to further impact and increase consistency in teaching. Leaders recognise the importance of providing children of differing ages and stages with a curriculum that meets their developmental needs. However, the organisation of groupings and routines does not support children to consistently engage in high-quality learning experiences that best support them with next steps in learning.

Leaders are capable and ambitious, and they know the needs of their setting. They recognise the importance of recruiting and retaining high-quality staff and are proactive in this. Staff feel well supported and leaders are mindful of staff's wellbeing and workload. This can lead to leaders attempting to always support all children by themselves. This means that when they are not in ratio, the quality of teaching is variable. The depth of expertise across the staff team is still developing. Leaders can identify staff members' strengths and are developing their deployment, so the team's skills best support all children to thrive.