South Nutfield Pre-School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children arrive happily and eager to learn. Staff greet children at the door and warmly welcome them into the setting. Children know the routine well. They find the building block with their name on it and wait their turn to add it to the stack of other named blocks. Staff count how many blocks there are with the children to see how many children are present. Parents come into the setting with their children and help them to find their photo and choose where to hang up their coat and bag. Children settle quickly into the activities staff have organised. For example, some children role play with each other while others draw pictures. Children confidently talk to adults and share the pictures they have drawn.

Staff provide children with plenty of opportunities to be physically active. For example, they set up small obstacle courses and support children to balance and negotiate their space. Staff remind children to put their arms out to the side to help them balance as they walk along low-level beams. Staff provide children with praise and encouragement. When children get to the end of the beams, they jump off, and one child says, 'Ta-da, I did it!' Staff encourage children to think about risks. For example, they remind children to put down toys before they walk along the balance beams and to wait for their turn. Children have free-flow access to the outdoor area where they continue practising their physical skills.

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

• The manager has made improvements since the last inspection. She has addressed the actions that were raised and has worked with the local authority to ensure she has made the necessary changes. Staff receive regular supervision sessions and discuss any training they may need or like to do. Staff report they feel well supported.
• Staff know their key children well. They observe children and monitor the progress they make. Children know who their key person is. They look for their photo, which is displayed alongside staff photos. These are displayed on a picture of a bus. Staff ask children to count the number of seats left on each key-person's bus. Children delight as they try to work out how many more children can join their key-person's group.
• Children generally behave well. Staff remind children of the pre-school rules. For instance, they remind children to use 'walking feet' and 'indoor voices' when inside. Children know the routines of the day and wait to be chosen to be the helper at the start of the session. Staff choose children to push the trolley with everyone's lunch boxes, and to carry the fruit bowl with parents' fruit donations, to the kitchen area.
• Staff understand the importance of supporting children's communication and language. They sing to children, read stories and encourage children to share their ideas. For example, they ask children open-ended questions to encourage conversation. However, at times, staff do not adapt their practice to support children's individual levels of development. For example, they do not always adapt how they communicate with children whose language development is not as advanced as others.
• Parents are happy with the care their children receive. They know who their child's key person is and what they are learning about. Parents are given ideas about how they can support their child's learning at home. They feel the communication is very good, and they are regularly updated on activities their children have been involved in. For example, they know what their children have learned about on the weekly outings they go on, including making mud pictures and hanging bird feeders in the woods.
• Staff understand the curriculum intent and the skills they are focusing on helping children achieve. For example, they are encouraging children's social skills, emotional development and communication. However, staff do not consistently use opportunities during children's play to precisely target children's individual learning and enhance their skills further.
• Children are extremely independent. Staff have taught children a technique to help them put their own coats on, and children consistently use this technique when getting ready to go outside. Children manage their own personal care and ask for help when they need it. For example, children know where the tissues are and independently wipe their own noses. Staff encourage children to serve themselves fruit and pour their own drinks at snack time.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• help staff to identify how to adapt the support they give to promote the communication and language of children at different developmental levels
• support staff to identify opportunities during children's play to enhance their learning and development even further.