St. Edwin's Pre-School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Staff are dedicated to providing a high-quality pre-school. They have gone above and beyond to make the pre-school what it is today. Many children have moved to the pre-school from other providers. Parents and carers comment on how happy their children are. The pre-school is at the heart of the village community. Children have a very good relationship with staff. They demonstrate this as they go to staff for cuddles. Younger children enjoy sitting on staff's knees as they listen to stories. Older children seek out staff for cuddles. Children learn how to keep themselves safe. They use knives safely to chop up their snack. Staff teach children how to keep themselves safe when crossing the road. They use books and games to reinforce messages about stopping and waiting until it is safe to cross.

Overall, staff are focused on the skills that they want children to learn over time. They consider the stages that children go through as they learn new skills. For example, staff plan opportunities for children to develop their self-help skills in the play dough as they learn to use cutlery. Children behave well. They listen carefully and follow instructions, such as tidying up. Children wait patiently to wash their hands. Older children behave well. For example, they are keen to remind others that they need to sit on the carpet to look at books.

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

• Staff provide a range of activities to extend children's learning. For example, they have a music group visiting weekly to support children's communication and language. Staff provide additional experiences to build on children's life experiences. For example, they organise French classes to support children's interest in this area, following their holidays in France.
• Staff have a clear curriculum focus. They use a range of activities to strengthen children's learning. For example, they use group activities and free play to help teach children about road safety. However, staff do not consistently consider how they can adapt the curriculum and routines to extend the youngest children's learning. Consequently, some group activities do not support children's stage of development.
• Staff plan an ambitious curriculum. Children learn to recognise their names and numbers through everyday activities. For example, they identify their name and put it on the self-registration board.
• Children generally know the routines and expectations in the pre-school. This is evident as they pick a book to look at after snack. However, on some occasions, such as when children move from the carpet to outside, staff do not make their expectations clear. On these occasions, some children lack engagement and focus.
• Staff plan a range of opportunities to support children's language and communication. They use stories and songs throughout the day to support children's language skills further. Staff encourage children to talk about things in their own experience. They plan new vocabulary to introduce to children. This helps children to make very good progress in this area.
• Children learn how to keep themselves healthy. Staff actively teach children good hygiene practices. For example, they take time to reinforce how to wash their hands or brush their teeth properly. Children learn how to brush their teeth for two minutes. Staff demonstrate how to brush teeth using a large brush and model of teeth.
• Staff support children to develop their independence. They give children time to put on their own shoes and coat before going outside. Staff encourage children to serve themselves their snack and drinks. They demonstrate how to hold the cup with one hand as they pour the jug with the other. This gives children the confidence to try things for themselves.
• Managers support staff well to develop their knowledge and skills. They attend a range of training to strengthen their practice further. For example, staff have recently attended training on communication and language and confidently adapt their language effectively when talking to children. They are now more confident to identify children who would benefit from additional support.
• Staff work well with parents. They share a range of detailed information about their curriculum and activities they offer. They use a range of strategies to share information with parents about their children's progress, including sharing newsletters and inviting them in for afternoon tea. This helps parents to feel well informed about their children's learning.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• plan more effective ways to support younger children's learning
• make expectations clearer at all transition times to support children's engagement and concentration.