Ruislip Stars Nurseries And Pre School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The pre-school is a safe, happy and caring place for children. The manager and staff have high expectations of themselves and of the children in their care. Children enjoy and benefit from learning in the pre-school. Staff think carefully about how to make sure each child progresses in all learning areas that are on offer. As a result, most children achieve very well from their individual starting points and leave the nursery ready for their education in school.

Staff form warm and courteous relationships with children. This leads to the respect and kindness the young children learn for each other. They behave exceptionally well and are very friendly to visitors. Any minor differences are sensitively and quickly sorted out. Staff are highly committed to becoming the best practitioners that they can be. Parents are very pleased that their children go to the pre-school. They are grateful for the many ways in which leaders and staff keep them informed and involved in the life of the nursery. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are well cared for and the most able children are challenged well enough to apply and use their early reading, writing and number skills.

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

• Leaders and staff promote an ambitious curriculum for the pre-school. Staff show great pleasure and interactions in their work. They have benefited from regular training. This has helped them to improve their skills in teaching new words and early reading skills through planned topics, both outdoors and indoors. Children learn stories, rhymes and songs in small groups and in cosy dens. They learn how to write their names and can recognise and match letter sounds. Practitioners have prioritised reading through implementing books consistently in activities. Children demonstrate a joy for learning and happily talk about the book from which they are engaging in activities.
• Staff raise children's knowledge of feelings and how to be safe. Children also make very good gains in learning about online safety. Sometimes, practitioners do not extend learning well enough for children with SEND and for children learning to speak English as an additional language, to further encourage their learning. This is partly due to the fact that curriculum plans are not consistently inclusive and do not yet support practitioners to sequence and adapt their teaching sufficiently to meet the needs of these children. However, it is clear that the leaders have already planned for improving achievement for children with specific needs.
• Guidance from leaders to prepare older children for school is exceptionally effective in helping staff to meet the needs of these children. Children achieve well in their independence and social skills under the care and skilful support they are given. Children learn to be healthy as they discuss which fruits are better at snack time. They have good exercise and opportunities to play and explore the environment in fresh air.
• Staff draw on children's interests and abilities to create exciting learning activities and physical spaces which help children to experience all the areas of learning in a practical way. For example, children cook a few times a week in a purpose-built kitchen space, which helps them to achieve well in describing and comparing measures. During the inspection, children spoke about recycling fruit that was remaining from snack time. They are enthusiastic in all the physical and creative activities. For example, they danced enthusiastically to popular children's songs and made shapes using strings.
• Staff ensure that children rapidly learn to be friendly and kind to each other. This is a strength of the pre-school's work. Children's behaviour is extraordinary. They take turns as they cheerfully learn together. At times, children quietly deal with minor disagreements by stating the rules of good behaviour. Children with SEND are keen to show visitors their thinking, using gestures.
• The pre-school's work to involve parents is a significant strength. Staff inform parents of individual children's learning every day. In turn, this encourages children to further benefit through conversations with their parents about what they learn at pre-school. The home-learning activities provide ideas for parents to help them build on the children's learning which has taken place at the pre-school. For example, there are activities relating to stories and themes which have been covered, such as 'making cookies'. Parents and children value the home-reading books.
• The managers and staff work very well together. Leaders encourage staff to develop their knowledge and skills, for example by completing additional courses. Training on children's literacy and mathematical development has motivated staff to review the learning environment. For example, they have created a curriculum based on a story of the week. Staff are currently learning to use signing to support children's communication.
• The teaching of mathematics and technology is strong. The children develop enjoyable ways of learning early number skills.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• develop training for staff to provide more inclusive opportunities for children with SEND and those learning English as an additional language, to engage in purposeful activities that capture their interests and enhance their learning.