The Garden Pre-School

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children arrive happily and leave their parents and carers with ease. They demonstrate that they feel safe in the setting's welcoming environment. Children have strong attachments to staff, and for children who have just started, it is clear to see how secure they are. Children approach staff with spontaneous cuddles and go to them for reassurance if needed. Staff focus on the individual needs of the children and their family. This has a positive impact on children's personal, social and emotional development.

Children behave well. They use their 'listening ears' and 'kind hands'. Children have a good knowledge of expected behaviours. For example, when staff read a story, children remind their peers to be quiet. Staff are consistent in their approach to behaviour management. Children understand the importance of walking inside and not running. They demonstrate a positive attitude to learning.

The manager and her team are very clear about their curriculum intent. They listen to children and pay attention to what they are interested in. Staff demonstrate a good knowledge of their key children. They plan ambitiously for what children need to learn next. This helps children to make good progress.

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

• Recruitment and induction procedures are robust. Appropriate changes have been implemented to ensure that all new committee personnel are suitability checked before taking up new roles within the committee. This helps to keep children safe.
• The well-established staff team understands that children have different starting points when they first attend. They focus on what children can do and adapt their curriculum to ensure that it is effective in building on children's starting points. Staff sequence learning alongside effective planning and assessment to ensure that children have exposure to a range of learning opportunities. This helps to develop children's knowledge and skills for their future learning.
• Parents speak positively about the staff team. They comment that staff are approachable and that they appreciate the ongoing communication and support, which they have received. Staff encourage parents to be involved in their children's learning. For example, using the online system, parents can see what their children are learning and how they can support and extend this at home. In addition to this, parents are strongly encouraged to take books from the setting to enjoy at home with their children. This helps to support children's interest in reading.
• Staff provide good opportunities for children to develop strong communication and language skills. They give children time to speak, listening carefully to what children say and respond appropriately. Sufficient value is placed on the importance of singing and story time. Staff respond positively to children's spontaneous requests for both, and they use effective questioning techniques to extend children's language. This helps to promote children's speech.
• Staff supervision meetings, training and a focus on staff well-being are promoted positively. The manager ensures that all staff have regular opportunities to discuss their role and responsibilities. Staff share that they feel supported and enjoy working as a team. The positive relationships staff have with each other and with the children reflect the warm and friendly atmosphere felt throughout the setting.
• Children have good opportunities for building on their physical skills. Recognising that children learn in different ways, staff ensure that children have the same opportunities outdoors as they do indoors. Children are independent. They make choices about their play and are confident to share their ideas with staff.
• Staff consider mealtimes as social times where children and staff sit together to eat. Children wash their hands beforehand and organise their food independently. However, staff do not consistently help children to develop a thorough understanding of how appropriate handwashing and oral care supports their good health and hygiene.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• develop ways to support staff to help children build a secure knowledge and use of vocabulary across all areas of mathematics
• identify ways to support staff to help children improve their understanding of good health and hygiene.