The Chelsfield Pre-School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children play and learn in a busy but relaxed environment. Staff have to put away all resources at the end of most days but create a warm and welcoming learning environment every morning. All children separate easily from their parents and enjoy exploring a good variety of activities and resources. Some children enjoy playing and laughing together as they climb over soft blocks, while others prefer to settle in quietly. Children know that staff are close by to support them and show through their play and discussions that they feel safe and happy.

Children behave well and show good attitudes towards learning. They share toys with their friends, for instance, as they play with construction resources. They laugh together with excitement as they take part in a music and movement activity. All children join in, follow simple instructions, and move around to warm up, stretch and move in different ways. They know and enjoy familiar routines.

The provider has high expectations of children and what they can achieve socially and educationally. Children are very confident and enjoy telling visitors about their favourite activities. For example, they eagerly explain how they are mixing blue and red paint to make it brown. They talk about their friends and eating fruit at snack time. They are confident, self-motivated and make good progress in their learning.

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

• The provider plans the curriculum based on the team's knowledge of the children and their needs. Leaders have a good overview of the curriculum and what they intend individual and groups of children to learn. They support staff well to continually improve their skills. As a result, they provide good care and learning for children.
• Staff help children with special educational needs and/or disabilities to make the best possible progress. They work hard with other professionals and the children's parents to continually meet their care and learning needs. Children for whom the provider receives additional funding make equally good progress from their starting points to other children.
• Staff implement the curriculum aims well overall, including those focused on children's communication and language development. They ask interesting questions and introduce children to new words, such as 'aluminium' during a recycling activity. However, some staff are not as consistent with linking their practice to the intended aims for learning during other activities. Children do not benefit quite as much at such times but this does not affect their good progress.
• Staff encourage children to solve problems well. For example, during a role-play shopping activity, they ask older children whether the toy food is 15p or £15 and which amount is higher. Staff also ask children questions about size and shape as they explore foam blocks. Although they check what children have remembered well overall, they occasionally miss the chance to offer children more challenge to further extend their learning.
• Staff help all children to develop good levels of well-being and self-confidence. For example, they chat to children who are playing alone and encourage other children to join in. They praise them often and work well together to encourage children's social skills and personal development.
• Staff use children's enjoyment of the outdoor environment to help extend their interests. Children who show interest in construction and large vehicles skilfully manoeuvre the bucket in front of a digger. Others take turns as they pour water into a shoot and catch it in jugs at the bottom. They talk about what they are doing as they coordinate their physical movements well.
• Children behave well, play amicably together and share resources. They enjoy looking at books with staff and their friends and answering questions. They eagerly point to pictures and talk about what is happening, as they develop an early love of books and stories.
• The provider and staff work hard to engage with the parents, and keep them well informed about their children's progress. Parents report that the staff are very supportive, that they know where their children are in their learning and feel involved and included. All children benefit well from good partnership working.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• consider ways to link the implementation of planned activities more securely to curriculum aims, to further develop the good learning opportunities in place overall
• develop a greater understanding of when to offer children more challenge in their play to further extend their learning.