Tewin Under Fives Pre-School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children show that they feel safe and happy as they arrive. They are warmly welcomed by staff and eager to engage with the varied activities on offer that reflect their interests. Children show that they feel relaxed and have a strong sense of belonging at this setting. They enjoy sharing and talking about photos of their family with staff and delight in carrying out age-appropriate responsibilities, such as ringing the bell to let their friends know it is time to tidy up. Staff use the information they receive from parents to plan a curriculum that meets the individual needs of children. Staff understand the importance of repetition to embed knowledge and skilfully interweave overarching themes within activities, such as 'colour week'.

Staff are positive role models. They consistently use good manners when speaking to each other and children. This motivates children to do the same. Daily mindfulness activities before lunch help children regulate their emotions, creating a calm and positive social environment. Staff place a strong emphasis on supporting children's communication and language skills. Children are confident communicators. They thoroughly enjoy joining in with words and actions to songs that staff sing with enthusiasm. Staff make focused small group-time fun for children who find communication more difficult. Children develop good physical skills and swiftly learn to assess their own risks. They develop the small muscles in their hands in preparation for writing as they use pipettes to suck up different-coloured foam and mix it together to create new colours.

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

• Leaders and staff implement a well-sequenced curriculum that prioritises children's emotional well-being in everything they do. The reflective team offers a rich learning environment to support children to achieve what they need help with. However, staff do not consistently identify and adapt their teaching to provide the most able children with a greater level of challenge. For example, they miss opportunities to extend on children's awareness of shapes and mathematical concepts as they use building blocks to construct models.
• Children benefit from many experiences that put them at the heart of the local community and broaden their understanding of the wider world. They make a scarecrow from recycled materials and participate in the village scarecrow competition and visit the local church and farm. Children learn about various occupations, how to remain safe while riding in a trailer pulled by a tractor, and develop a strong respect for living things and the environment. They gently handle chicks and collect litter around the village.
• Children make independent choices of where they prefer to play. They show high levels of curiosity and a positive attitude to learning. For instance, they explore how the sand disperses when they tread on it and experiment compacting it into different containers. Staff interactions support children to build positive relationships with each other; any minor disagreements are calmly diffused. Staff use these moments to talk to children about the importance of sharing and working together as a team.
• Leaders work in close partnership with parents and external agencies to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Support plans and specific interventions are in place, such as a visual timetable to help children understand the routine of the day. However, on occasions, these are not consistently implemented. This means that these children do not always receive clear messages about what is expected of them. Despite this, all children make good progress in relation to their starting points. Any additional funding the setting receives is used to support children's individual needs.
• Staff develop strong, secure relationships with parents. They ensure that parents are involved in every aspect of their child's life at the setting. The garden room serves as a valuable hub. Parents have the opportunity to select from a varied range of books or home learning packs with their child to share at home. Staff frequently invite parents into the setting to enhance children's understanding of different cultures or share home experiences, such as the arrival of new siblings. Parents speak highly about the setting. They appreciate the high level of communication and how staff also recognise and provide support to alleviate any worries they may have. Parents describe staff as 'an extension of their own family' who have 'kind, nurturing natures'.
• Leaders are very reflective. They have a clear vision of what they want to achieve for the children and their families and continuously strive for improvement. Leaders regularly observe staff practice, and staff supervision is appropriately used to identify ongoing professional development opportunities. Following training, staff share what they have learned with the whole team to support a consistent approach.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen the quality of practice to provide more challenge for the most able children to maximise readiness for future learning
• make the best possible use of interventions to fully support children with SEND.