Ulceby Pre-School Playgroup & Out of School Club

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children engage well in activities in this welcoming pre-school. They build strong bonds with their key workers through a structured settling-in process. All children are warmly welcomed into the setting by the staff on their arrival and the caring and friendly staff help children to feel safe and secure. Children are settled and confident and build good relationships with their peers. Those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) flourish in this setting. This is because staff work closely with outside agencies and parents to ensure they receive the additional support required to meet their specific needs.

Children enjoy a rich variety of experiences. For example, they are often taken on outings in the local area and staff arrange for pets to be brought into the setting so that children without pets get experience caring for animals. Children are also developing a love of reading. As well as fun, interactive story sessions, there are a wide variety of books available for children to look at at their leisure. Books have also been created using pictures of the children, which they thoroughly enjoy looking at. The children have access to wide variety of resources inside and out, which keep them engaged and enhance their learning. Children benefit from the embedded structure of the day and respond well to routine. As a result, children are well behaved and are aware of boundaries. These clear expectations and routines also ensure that children are becoming increasingly independent and demonstrate good self-care skills such toileting, hand washing and brushing their teeth.

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

• Staff plan and provide a broad range of activities for the children to enjoy based on their interests. Children thoroughly enjoy dressing up as fire people and putting out the pretend fire. Experienced staff are on hand to support and enhance the children's learning, introducing new language and repeating phrases back to children to embed their learning. At times children's progress in mathematics is not as rapid as in other areas. This is because the curriculum for maths is not always sequenced effectively throughout the setting, in order to meet the individual next steps of each child.
• Staff place a high-priority on developing children's communication and language. High-quality interactions between staff and children ensure children have many opportunities to hear new words and increase their vocabulary. Staff play alongside children asking questions and engaging them in meaningful conversations. The progress of many individual children in this area of the curriculum has been remarkable, due to the support and intervention of staff, working in partnership with parents. As a result children are able to move onto school with the key skills they need to succeed.
• Partnerships with parents are strong. Parents talk positively about the caring staff and the progress that their children make. They value the effective communication and state that they are regularly kept up to date with their children's learning. Parents share that staff are supportive and offer advice when needed.
• Staff encourage children to be physically active and the children make good use of the outdoor area to develop their gross motor skills using the climbing equipment and ride-ons. Small hand muscles are developed through mark making and using squirty bottles, while hand eye co-ordination is developed as children use magnetic fishing rods to catch fish in the water filled tray. The pre-school runs a tooth brushing scheme and children are encouraged to brush their teeth daily in order to promote good oral hygiene.
• The manager and staff are committed to supporting children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. They work with a range of external professionals to ensure that plans are in place to support children's individual needs. As a result they make good progress within the setting. Staff use a variety of activities and resources to teach children about diversity and other cultures. They help children to learn about being kind and what makes them unique.
• The management team are very supportive and understand the needs of their service users and staff members. Regular observations and supervisions ensure the quality of care and education is good. Staff attend regular training to ensure their knowledge remains up-to-date. Some additional training is required to ensure that all staff members feel confident in the delivery of all aspects of the curriculum, particularly maths.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• ensure a clear intent for the sequenced teaching of mathematics across the pre- school, based on the identified, individual needs of children
• ensure staff are confident in the teaching of the maths curriculum, ensuring good progress for all children.