Warren Preschool Ltd

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children, including those who are very new to this setting, are extremely settled, happy and safe. They enthusiastically greet their friends and staff with beaming smiles. Children eagerly arrive, ready to start their day. For example, they seek out their friends and engage in cooperative play. Children enjoy the planned activities that staff prepare for them. For example, children practise their fine motor skills as they carefully draw around a stencil to create a butterfly. They engage in meaningful discussions with staff, confidently recalling a familiar story. They demonstrate their developing language skills as they explain how a butterfly emerges from a 'cocoon'.

Children love to chat and share their home-life experiences with staff and each other. Staff treat children fairly and with respect. They have high expectations for children's behaviour. Staff recognise that some children are struggling to share, take turns and form friendships. Therefore, they have adapted their curriculum to support them. For instance, the older children are encouraged to help the younger children when they need support. They help their friends to pull the tops off felt-tip pens and model how to use them correctly. This, in turn, helps older children to develop their self-confidence and self-esteem.

The manager, who is also the provider, is passionate and dedicated about delivering the best possible outcomes for children. Both the manager and deputy manager are very hands-on and involved in the day-to-day running of the pre-school. As a result, self-evaluation is accurate. Long-standing links within the local community and with parents are securely embedded, and these contribute to the positive experiences that children have. One example is how children visit the local dentist to help them prepare for their own dental check-up. Parents describe the setting as a 'home from home' and say the staff are 'first-class' and that 'they are loved and appreciated' for all they do.

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

• Staff use their observations and assessments of children, alongside children's individual interests, to plan a balanced and sequenced curriculum. In the main, this supports children's continued good progress. Staff implement targeted activities to boost children's communication, language, social and physical skills. This means that all children are supported to quickly catch up and develop their skills to be ready for later learning. More can be done to support staff to develop their teaching to the highest standard. This will enable them to quickly adapt planned activities to challenge those children who are ready to have their learning extended even further.
• Children have many opportunities to be physically active and develop both their fine and gross motor skills. Outdoors, children confidently ride tricycles and manoeuvre them around obstacles. Younger children make large-scale marks on the outdoor wall while using water and brushes. Older children use pens, chalks and crayons to bring their ideas to life. For example, they draw self-portraits and attempt to write their names. This helps children develop the skills they need for writing.
• Staff help children develop their mathematical skills as they weave mathematical concepts through children's play and routines. For example, children count each other as they line up, match patterns and shapes and count out how many jumps they have managed when playing hopscotch.
• Staff encourage children to read and gain an appreciation of books. Children enjoy sharing their favourite stories with staff. Staff read expressively and leave pauses in the story for children to predict what might happen next. Children take home books to read with their parents. During circle time, children tell the staff and their friends all about the story and explain which part they liked the most. These experiences help children to develop their listening and attention skills, their speaking skills and their confidence as communicators.
• Children's behaviour is exemplary. They know what is expected of them because staff are good role models who help them to understand the rules in the pre-school. Children are extremely kind and considerate. For example, the older children take the tops off water bottles for the younger children. Children play harmoniously, and they politely invite their friends to join in, share items out and take turns with resources. When children accidentally knock over a pot of dried pasta, all children rally round to help pick it up. Staff give them a high five for their great teamwork.
• Children are supported by the staff to adopt a healthy lifestyle. For example, children receive a very healthy snack of fresh fruits, brown bread, cheese and cucumber. Staff work in partnership with parents to ensure that items in children's packed lunch boxes are healthy and nutritious.
• Children display some independence skills. They help themselves to their water bottles and pour themselves a drink from the water dispenser when they play outdoors. However, staff do not always encourage children to have a go and do more for themselves. For example, when children wash their hands, staff turn on the taps, squirt the hand soap into the children's hands and pass them a paper towel. Furthermore, they often dress the children in their chosen role-play costumes without encouraging them to at least try dressing themselves first. This does not support children to develop and extend their self-help and independence skills.
• The manager works hard to provide staff with consistent access to support and supervision. She spends time overseeing and observing staff practice and offers advice on improvements, where necessary. Staff are aware of the areas for improvement. Staff report they are very happy in their work and feel part of a team. There is a culture of reflective practice. The manager and staff constantly adapt practice to make changes that benefit children the most. For example, a new awning in the outdoor area now provides children with all-weather access to the outdoors.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support staff to develop their teaching to the highest standard, so they are able to quickly adapt planned activities, to challenge those children who are ready to have their learning extended even further
• provide more opportunities for children to develop their self-help and independence skills.