Warton Preschool

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy and confident as they say goodbye to their parents and enter the pre-school. They are keen to see their friends and quickly become engrossed in their play. Staff respond warmly to children's individual needs and they have high expectations for behaviour. Staff model the use of good manners well and children automatically say please and thank you. Children are familiar with daily routines and access resources easily in the well-planned environment. They listen to each other's ideas and work together to solve problems. Children talk about their drawings and paintings proudly. Staff celebrate children's achievements and this helps to develop their self-esteem. Relaxing music is played in the background to provide a calm environment. This helps to soothe younger children when it is time for a nap.

Staff support children to fasten their own coats and put their boots on the correct feet as they get ready to play outside. This helps to develop their independence. Children shriek with excitement as they explore the freshly fallen snow in the large secure outdoor area. Staff introduce words, such as sprinkle, crunchy and thaw, as they play with the children. This helps to expand children's vocabulary and supports communication and language development.

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

• The manager and staff use their knowledge of what children know and can do to structure the curriculum. They incorporate children's interests when planning exciting activities and this inspires children to learn new things. Additional funding is used well to address any gaps in learning. Staff work closely with parents and other professionals to provide additional support for children who need it.
• Overall, activities are well matched to children's abilities and provide appropriate levels of challenge. However, at times, staff do not consider the development levels of younger children during group activities. For example, younger children lose interest during whole-group talking sessions.
• Staff encourage children to hold out their arms to help them to balance as they travel over and under obstacles outside. Older children use scissors to cut paper and younger children use different tools to scoop and pour snow. This helps to support physical development.
• Staff use every opportunity to help children to practise their counting skills. For example, they encourage children to count how many snowballs they make outside. They talk about the size of different objects and use language, such as more and less, to describe different amounts. This helps to develop children's understanding of mathematical language.
• Staff provide interesting resources for children to explore. Older children peel sprouts and chop parsnips. Younger children explore shiny foil, ribbons, glitter, Christmas baubles and bells in a sensory activity. This incites their natural curiosity and creates an eagerness to learn.
• Children listen in awe as staff change the tone of their voice when reading stories. They are familiar with nursery rhymes and sing along enthusiastically. This helps to develop their love of reading and understanding of language.
• Older children attempt to write their names on the pictures they have made. They recognise some of the sounds that letters make. The daily phonics sessions that staff plan help to secure this knowledge, and this prepares children well for the next phase of their education.
• The pre-school operates an effective key-person system and this has helped to reassure parents and children throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite experiencing limited settling-in sessions with parents, children new to the pre-school settle quickly. Strong links with the local school ensure a smooth transition for children as they move on and this supports their emotional well-being.
• Parents are very complimentary about the pre-school. They say it feels like being part of a family. They are happy with the progress their children make and appreciate the information that staff share with them through an online app. They say that this helps them to effectively support their child's learning at home.
• The manager and staff strive to develop the pre-school. They know what areas they want to improve and what they do well. Staff receive regular supervision which supports their ongoing professional development and continuous improvement. However, this does not specifically focus on helping staff to improve their teaching to the highest level.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• strengthen the arrangements for staff supervision to further improve the quality of teaching and learning
• review staff practice to ensure that group activities suit the developmental levels of all children, particularly ensuring the engagement of younger children.