Upwood Small to Tall

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children thoroughly enjoy their time in the pre-school. They explore their environment, freely moving between indoors and outside, as they follow their interests. Children learn about the importance of keeping safe. They wear safety goggles as they use small hammers to break up small blocks of ice. Children are delighted to find objects hidden in the ice when it comes apart.

Staff promote children's good health, encouraging them to be physically active. Children develop their physical skills and gain a good understanding of healthy lifestyles. They learn to balance, control their muscles, and allow space for one another as they use equipment, such as ride-on toys. Children manage their personal care well. They competently wash their hands and sit at the table ready for lunch.

Children behave well. Staff help children to learn about sharing and taking turns, who gently remind them of the rules. Older children manage their feelings well and are beginning to understand how their behaviour affects others. Staff praise children when they have tried hard, which develops their self-esteem. Staff understand the importance of helping children to be ready for school. Children are gaining the key skills that support their future learning.

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

• Children benefit from a well-designed curriculum that builds securely on what they know, so that they experience consistently good learning opportunities. Staff generally present the information effectively to children in a way that offers the appropriate level of challenge to help children make good progress.
• Staff understood the potential effects that the COVID-19 pandemic has had on children and kept in regular contact with them and their families during periods of national lockdown. Staff helped parents to guide their child's learning at home, providing resources and activities to support them during this time.
• Children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, make good progress. Additional funding, such as early years pupil premium, is used well to support children's needs and reduce any differences in their learning. Staff have a good understanding of what children already know and what they need to learn next. They work closely with parents and other agencies to review children's next steps, which helps them to decide what to teach children.
• Staff have a good knowledge of their key children. They understand what children already know and what they need to learn next. In addition, they liaise with other professionals, where appropriate, and this helps them to decide what to teach children.
• Children enjoy practical activities. They work together to make play dough, carefully adding the ingredients and mixing it to the required consistency. Staff talk to children about what they are doing, encouraging them to persevere as they mix the dough. Children add glitter and are excited to observe that the dough is 'sparkly'.
• Partnerships with parents are well established and valued. Parents provide very positive comments about their children's experiences at the pre-school. They say that staff are approachable and share good information about their children. Parents say that their children enjoy an interesting range of activities and have flourished in staff's care.
• Children demonstrate their growing vocabulary as they practise new words and confidently share their ideas. Staff ask questions to encourage children to think and engage them in conversation.
• Staff work well together as a team. The manager values the staff team and provides effective support, ensuring staff have regular opportunities for training. However, the leadership team have not sought further ways to help all staff develop a deep knowledge of teaching and learning that consistently supports children in purposeful play.
• Children have good opportunities to develop their early literacy skills. They write, make marks on paper, and show an interest in books. Children enjoy listening to stories. They enthusiastically join in, saying the familiar words. Staff support the younger children as they sit together to ensure all children are included in the activity.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• build on the already good practice and seek further ways to help all staff provide high-quality teaching to consistently support the play and learning experiences for children.