Sowood Pre-School And Community Association

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children's smiles and laughter are contagious in this welcoming pre-school. They enjoy their time here and show that they are happy, content and feel safe.

Children use their hands and a range of tools to flatten play dough. They show their concentration skills and small muscle development as they stick birthday candles into holders. Children make pretend cakes. They hold conversations with each other and staff about the recent Jubilee celebrations. Children explain that the 'Queen's name is Elizabeth', that she has 'curly hair' and 'wears a purple hat'. They decide to make pizza for the Queen and discuss that she would like 'pepperoni, sweetcorn, ham, and mushroom' toppings. Children put their pretend food in the oven and make cups of tea. They engage in imaginative role play based on their own first-hand experiences. Staff have high expectations for children and place a great emphasis on back-and-forth conversations with them. Children are confident communicators. They develop the skills they will need for their move on to school.

Children's behaviour is good. They show kindness and respect to their friends and adults. For example, children praise their friends for their good counting as they stick 17 candles in their pretend cake. They show a positive attitude to their play and learning.

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

• Managers and staff have worked hard to meet the actions raised at the last inspection. They use assessment well to check what children already know and can do. Children make good progress from their starting points.
• Staff model language well. They use signs and actions when speaking so that all children understand their words. Staff show children how to clap their hands and count the number of syllables in their name. They help children to learn about the structure of words. Staff teach children vital skills for their language and literacy development.
• Children learn about similarities and differences between themselves and others. For instance, as they make pretend birthday cakes, they discuss that not everyone celebrates birthdays. Staff help children to learn that it is ok to be different. They prepare children well for the wider world.
• Staff have good links with local schools. They provide a transition document to teachers with details of each child's current learning and development skills, health and medical needs. Staff also use a communication book to share information with other settings that children attend. They support children's continuity of learning well.
• Staff prepare children well for their move on to school. Children try on school uniforms and talk about the school day. Teachers visit children in the pre-school and invite them to the school with their parents. This helps children to prepare emotionally for the wider social network of school.
• Managers encourage staff to complete training to enhance their professional development. They hold discussions through team meetings, training days and supervision meetings to check on staff's well-being. Managers support staff to undertake peer observations to help improve their individual practice. However, this procedure is not yet fully embedded to ensure a consistently high standard in the teaching of the curriculum.
• A strength of the pre-school is the support it has in place for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Staff work with children on a one- to-one basis to help them achieve the best possible outcomes. Managers use funding effectively to provide children with additional learning opportunities.
• Parents speak highly about their children's care and learning experiences at the nursery. They explain how they have seen their children grow in confidence in social situations, such as when they take them out to restaurants. There is an effective key-person system in place that supports good relationships with parents.
• Children have lots of opportunities to develop their physical skills. They hop, slither like snakes and crawl like turtles when they take part in group activities. Children shout 'watch how I can balance' as they ride wheeled toys. They confidently invite visitors to a tour of the outdoor area and show how proud they are of all the resources available to them.
• Staff support children's mathematical development well. They encourage counting as children take part in a range of activities. However, staff do not always challenge children's counting skills to help extend their knowledge of numbers further.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• embed the system for monitoring staff's practice to ensure teaching is consistently of a high standard
• support staff to challenge children's already good understanding of mathematical concepts, such as counting.