Southwater Village Hall Pre-School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are enthusiastic as they arrive at this well-organised pre-school. They demonstrate their excitement and are keen to find out what staff have planned for them. Parents provide a swift handover which enables staff to adapt their care for each child. For example, staff plan children's day more effectively when they have received information about if a child has slept well or eaten breakfast. This approach helps support continuity of care between home and the preschool.

Staff provide a large range of well-planned activities in both the outdoor and indoor environment. Children are curious and motivated to learn through activities that interest them, such as counting the seeds they have taken out of a pumpkin. Staff use children's engagement to introduce new vocabulary and basic mathematics. Children develop well across all areas of the curriculum.

Staff have high expectations for children's behaviour. They model respect and kindness to children which positively impacts children's treatment of others. Staff provide children with clear boundaries and routines. They use visual cues to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) to understand what is happening next which effectively supports their wellbeing. Staff are skilled at identifying and supporting children who need additional help. As a result, all children make sound progress from their starting points.

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

• A key strength of the pre-school is the overall positive attitude and very high focus given to supporting children with SEND. Staff who work with children with SEND are highly passionate about their role. They ensure that children who need extra help are making progress in the preschool. Staff receive training on how to plan for and support children who need a more targeted approach. Additional funding is used accordingly to support individual needs of children.
• Overall staff are skilled at using questioning techniques to gather children's views and thoughts. However, there are some inconsistencies in the quality of teaching. There are some staff who are less skilled than others and do not provide children with the same learning experiences as more experienced staff. Despite this, generally, staff inspire children to remain motivated and effectively extend children's play interests. For example, children pretend that they are 'going on a bear hunt'. Staff quickly respond by providing books and other resources so children can draw a 'scary bear'. Children later demonstrate their understanding of the story as they use actions and words they have remembered in their own self-directed play.
• The newly appointed pre-school managers have a strong vision for delivering high-quality care and education for families and children. They regularly reflect on ways to improve and have developed a programme on how they will action this. The manager liaises with staff from the local authority and has forged links with other professionals. This helps to keep the pre-school up to date with changes and local protocols. Staff comment that managers create a 'wonderful' working environment and that they feel valued and listened to. Parents feedback that the pre-school is well-managed and that their children are prepared for the next stage in their learning, such as moving onto school.
• The pre-school's keyperson system is firmly embedded. This helps children to settle quickly and feel safe and secure. Children approach adults for reassurance or a cuddle when needed. Staff are tactile and loving which helps support children's emotional health. Generally, staff use children's existing knowledge and characters to effectively plan for what they need to learn next. However, on occasions, there are times when some staff fail to notice quieter or less confident children. Consequently, some children do not receive the same level of interactions from staff which does not fully support children's confidence and communication skills.
• Children have a firm understanding of healthy lifestyles. Staff discuss the benefits of healthy eating as children independently prepare their own nutritious snacks. Children benefit from running around outside in the fresh air. They negotiate and climb obstacles and ride on tricycles and scooters. Children explore the natural environment as they dig in the soil. Staff explain how to care for living creatures as children carefully find a place to rehome a snail. They tell the inspector 'I don't want to squash him. I have to be gentle.'

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• improve staff support and supervision to enable staff to deliver a more consistent high-quality level of teaching
• support staff to ensure that those quieter children are more consistently able to join in and benefit from the learning opportunities.