Woldingham Nursery Class

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children arrive happily and eagerly to the pre-school. They leave their parents at the door and are welcomed by warm and friendly staff. Children develop good, close relationships with the staff, who are attentive and caring. They feel confident to approach them for support, comfort and cuddles. Children are praised for their efforts, even when they face difficulties. They demonstrate that they feel safe and secure.

Children engage and immerse themselves in the exciting activities set for them. Staff provide a well-thought-out curriculum to support and embed children's learning. They revisit past learning with children while introducing new concepts. For example, during an ice activity, staff encourage children to use salt to get the object out of the ice together with other resources. As a result, children are motivated and develop a keen interest in their learning.

Children's self-care, health and well-being are promoted well. They learn the importance of washing their hands before eating. Children serve their food, pour their drinks and wash their plates when finished. Staff talk to children about the importance of brushing their teeth. Children learn about different foods and where they come from. For example, in a baking activity, staff and children discuss how grapes are turned into raisins.

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

• Children's communication and language development is supported well. Staff recognise the importance of building children's communication and language skills. They use age-appropriate language when communicating with children. Staff introduce new words to widen children's vocabulary and learning. For example, while discussing how to release the toys out of the ice, staff introduce the word 'excavate' and explain its meaning. Staff read stories and sing songs as part of everyday activities.
• Staff use observation and assessment well. This helps staff to identify gaps in children's learning and development quickly. Staff work closely with outside agencies to provide effective targeted support to children. As a result, all children, including children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, make good progress from their starting points.
• Staff have high expectations of children, especially with regards to behaviour. Children benefit from a good and consistent routine. They listen and follow simple instructions. Children know they need to help tidy up before sitting down for circle time. Staff support children to share and take turns in an age-appropriate way. Children are respectful of one another. They play well alongside others, sharing resources and learning to take turns.
• On occasions, such as during group activities, staff do not consistently ensure that all children have equal opportunities to be involved. Sometimes, staff focus their teaching on more-confident children and overlook the quieter children. For instance, at a cooking activity, children are given a hands-on opportunity to learn about how butter is made. Staff encourage the more-confident children to shake the milk bottle, while the quieter children are missed. As a result, children do not equally benefit from staff interactions and teaching.
• Staff build and extend on children's interests, especially those who are new to the pre-school. They add different resources to children's play. For example, young children, who are interested in cars, enjoy exploring the trains. Staff sit with children and support them with building and pushing trains along the tracks. This helps children settle in and develop their self-confidence.
• Partnerships with parents are a strength of the pre-school. Parents highly praise the pre-school. Parents comment that they are happy with the good progress their children make in their development and learning. They describe the staff as 'amazing'. Staff work closely with the parents. They share information, strategies and practice with parents to support children's learning at the pre-school and at home.
• Leaders have a clear vision for the pre-school and the high quality of service they offer. They are motivated, passionate and committed to the continuous development of practice. Leaders carry out regular staff supervision, appraisals and peer observations to assess the effectiveness of teaching and learning. Following a recent change to the leadership team, staff report that they feel well supported.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• support staff to ensure that all children have equal opportunity to participate and share their ideas, allowing them to fully benefit from staff interaction and teaching.