St.Teresa's Pre-School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children settle quickly at this homely and supportive setting. They are greeted by warm and attentive staff who make them feel valued and secure. Children form friendships and seek out others for play experiences. They develop narratives when playing in the mud kitchen and at the water tray. Children search for ladybirds with magnifying glasses, then make potions to scare away the 'big bad wolf'. Once successful, they make chocolate bars in the mud kitchen to celebrate. During this extension of play, staff support children to problem-solve and take on challenges by adding mark-making aspects.

Leaders have created an ambitious curriculum for all children. They share a passion for supporting healthy living, self-care and independence skills in children. This shines through in the planned activities and environments for children. Staff teach children how to grow fruits and vegetables. They support children to recycle waste. Children take on challenges to peel and cut fruit and pour drinks independently, during sociable snack and mealtimes with adults.

Children behave well. Staff act as strong role models for sharing and taking turns. They support children to problem-solve when they come into conflict by talking through situations. Children know what is expected of them throughout the day and as a result, transitions between activities run smoothly and environments remain calm.

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

• Staff create stimulating environments. They get to know children well and plan activities that they know children will enjoy and learn from. Leaders deploy staff so that support is given to all children. This results in strong levels of engagement. Children create body parts for monsters out of play dough. They mix coloured water by pouring it into containers. Children navigate games on the computer, celebrating with staff when they complete levels.
• Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), those with care needs, and looked after children, are well supported. Leaders quickly recognise when children require additional support. They work closely with families and professionals to assess children's needs and create support plans. Children make pleasing progress in their rates of development and have successful transitions to school.
• Staff encourage children's development of imagination and self-confidence. They celebrate children's cultures and faiths, giving them a sense of self-worth and respect for others. Children become confident in expressing themselves in a variety of ways. They act out narratives and create characters during arts and crafts activities. Children role play being dentists. They sing when playing and join in with group stories and songs with actions.
• Staff are highly supported and trained by leaders. Staff report feeling secure in their roles. They state that leaders know their strengths and areas for support. Staff appreciate the regular training opportunities and support with completing qualifications. They feel that their voices are heard and that leaders support their well-being. As a result, staff work well as a team together, as they give each other feedback and guidance each day.
• Staff teach to good standards. They know how children learn and have clear processes for observing, assessing and tracking children's development. Staff set individualised targets for children. During activities, staff are receptive to children. They listen and introduce new ideas and challenges. Sometimes staff do not extend children's learning to the highest levels in the area of mathematical development.
• Staff create environments that are rich in language. They model and repeat new words for children to learn. Staff create opportunities to explore books and narratives, or play around with words by mark-making and reading. Due to this, children make pleasing progress with their talking and understanding of words. During interactions with children, staff do not always use techniques that will open up conversations and allow children to respond using more words.
• Leaders build strong partnerships with parents, carers and local professionals. Parents praise the setting for being an extension of home. They feel confident that their children are safe and thriving. Parents appreciate the updates on how their children are developing. The local school states that staff are professional and excellent communicators. They appreciate being invited to special visits from the local fire department and professionals praise the staff for being welcoming and nurturing. These links support children's transitions into the setting and on to other settings.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• further develop the teaching of mathematical concepts and language to take children's learning to the highest levels
• extend staff's interaction techniques with children to provide even more opportunities for language development.