Wheatcroft Preschool Playgroup

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children excitedly arrive at pre-school and happily separate from their parents and carers. They are eager to explore the environment and greet their friends. Staff welcome children with warmth and care. Children develop secure attachments with staff who know them well. This supports children to develop an understanding that the pre-school is a safe and stimulating place to play and learn.

Children are supported to develop a love of learning. The management team and staff place children and families at the heart of everything they do. Staff provide children with a range of experiences that cover a broad and balanced curriculum. For example, children use their imaginations outdoors when making superhero potions with coloured water and different textured materials. All children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), make good progress in preparation for their eventual move to school.

Children behave well and demonstrate high levels of confidence and self-esteem. Staff are good role models and have high expectations for children's behaviour. They support even the youngest children to share, take turns and cooperate with each other. Staff encourage children to help with tasks and offer them praise for their efforts. For instance, children enjoy the responsibility of helping to tidy up before group time each day.

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

• The knowledgeable staff are passionate about their work and plan spontaneously so they can respond to children's interests. For example, when children are playing with cars, staff add tracks to extend learning. They encourage children to talk about which car is going the fastest. Staff assess what children can do and identify appropriate next steps for learning. However, specific learning intents for planned activities are, at times, less clear. This makes it difficult for staff to plan with focus and purpose for children's individual learning and next steps.
• Partnership with parents is good. Parents are very complimentary about the pre-school. They feel the main strength is the friendly staff team that knows their children well and supports them to feel happy, settled and eager to learn. Staff provide parents with daily feedback about their child's day and share photos online. Parents know what children are learning and what they can do at home to support this.
• Children develop a strong understanding of healthy lifestyles. The pre-school has recently been awarded gold level in their 'Healthy Early Years Award' through their local authority. Staff teach children about healthy foods, the value of being active and good dental care. Children have daily access to outside play opportunities where they can run around in the fresh air with their friends. Staff share information and photos of healthy packed lunches with parents.
• Staff place high priority on developing children's motivation and independence. Children complete self-registration when they arrive and independently hang up their coats. At snack time, children wash their hands, choose their own snack and use cutlery appropriately. Children freely choose what they want to play with and happily play with their friends or alone. This supports children to learn key life skills.
• Staff place a good focus on supporting all children's early communication and language skills. They engage children in rich conversations that build on their knowledge and vocabulary. Children are given the time they need to process their thoughts and answer the questions asked. Staff use repetition and model the correct pronunciation of words. Children are highly communicative. They sit talking to their friends, visitors and staff and interact well.
• Leaders support staff to complete training as part of their continuous professional development. For instance, staff attend developmental movement play training. They incorporate what they have learned to support children's behaviour and physical skills. Staff attend regular staff meetings and supervision sessions to discuss key children and any concerns. However, not all staff are made aware of the precise knowledge and skills they need to develop their practice further.
• The provision for children with SEND is strong. Staff work closely with other professionals, such as speech and language therapists and teachers, to support children with SEND. Staff ensure that they make swift referrals to outside agencies. This helps children get the support they need to make good progress in their learning.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• extend the support for staff to understand the intent of activities and guide children's learning to build on what they know already
• strengthen the monitoring of staff practice to raise the quality of teaching to a consistently higher level.