St Bridget's Pre-School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Staff value children and their families and place them at the heart of every decision. They provide a warm welcome and get to know each family well right from the start. Staff use the information that they receive about each child to help to ensure that children's unique needs are met.

Children have access to a variety of activities based on their interests. This helps all children, including those who have recently begun to attend, to settle extremely quickly. Children are helped to develop their friendships as staff support children while they play. Staff talk to children about how they can be a good friend. Children behave well and receive clear guidance on the pre-school rules. They clearly feel safe and secure in the care of the nurturing staff team.

Staff plan a sequenced curriculum that builds on what children already know and can do. All children make good progress from their individual starting points. Staff place priority on supporting children to develop their confidence and independence. For example, children eat lunch in the school hall. They select their own meal and carefully carry their tray to the table. At snack time, children pour their own drinks. Children become increasingly independent in readiness for their eventual transition to school. Staff consistently praise children's achievements. This positive approach contributes effectively to enhancing children's confidence and self-esteem.

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

• Staff observe children as they play. They use assessment to identify what individual children need to learn next. Staff recognise any gaps and, where appropriate, seek the support of outside agencies to ensure that children's needs are consistently met. This approach ensures all children make good progress.
• Children enjoy regular opportunities to share books and stories. When staff read to children they introduce a range of descriptive words to help children broaden their vocabulary. Staff plan enriching activities to help children recognise sounds. They listen for different sounds in the environment, clap out syllables and use loud and quiet voices. These activities help children develop their communication and early literacy skills.
• Staff interact well with children. They encourage children to be curious and to investigate their ideas. Staff model a range of important skills that children need to practise when thinking and attempting to solve problems. However, staff do not always allow children enough time to process questions and give an answer. This means that, on occasion, children are not fully supported to demonstrate what they know and understand so that staff can build even more precisely on their learning.
• Children develop their strength and coordination as they run around the local field. They go on a leaf hunt and collect an array of natural resources for a seasonal display. Children delight as a squirrel runs up a tree. They explain that the squirrel is looking for food. Children develop knowledge of the world around them.
• Staff recognise opportunities to enhance children's mathematical understanding as they play. For example, children play with toy cars. Staff encourage children to create a route for the cars to travel across a mat. Children describe the route and staff introduce language to describe how cars 'go over' bridges and 'around' obstacles. This successfully helps children to build on their mathematical knowledge and skills.
• The incredibly close staff team feels well supported, and the harmonious working atmosphere is evident. Staff are offered supervision and professional development opportunities. However, following staff induction, leaders do not always check that new staff have a good understanding of the pre-school policies and procedures. Consequently, there are some gaps in the knowledge of newer staff.
• Partnerships with parents are effective. Staff discuss children's progress with their parents regularly and inform them of their children's next steps in learning and development. Staff provide parents with ideas of activities to help children develop new skills. Parents feel involved in their children's learning and are very well supported to help their children learn at home.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• enhance strategies for questioning so that children consistently have time to respond and demonstrate what they know and understand
• strengthen the monitoring and support for newer staff so that they fully understand their roles and responsibilities.