YMCA Kingfisher Preschool

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

Children are happy and settled at this warm and welcoming pre-school. They have a strong and secure bond with staff, who are nurturing and value each child as unique. Staff are sensitive to the needs of children and support children well who are reluctant to separate from their parent on arrival at pre-school. Children benefit from a wide and varied curriculum. They thoroughly enjoy the activities on offer; these are planned by staff based on children's interests and their next steps in learning.

Staff place a strong emphasis on supporting children's communication and language skills. For example, children eagerly join in small-group games where they demonstrate their knowledge of initial letter sounds. Staff introduce new words, such as 'crunchy', as children explore the frosty grass outdoors. This helps to widen children's vocabulary.

Children show high levels of independence, for example blowing their own noses and washing their hands with no adult prompting. Children behave very well and show positive attitudes towards learning, as staff have high expectations of them. Children have learned the importance of sharing, taking turns and being patient. They are quickly developing skills needed for the next stage in their education.

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

• The manager has clear aims for the curriculum and what she wants children to learn. Staff place a focus on children's personal, social and emotional development. This is evident throughout the pre-school. For example, children are kind and considerate to others, offer compliments to each other and show good manners. Staff support children well to resolve conflicts and discuss with children how they are feeling and how to speak kindly to others to overcome differences.
• Parents speak highly of the pre-school. They feel well supported by staff and receive regular feedback about what their child is learning. Parents comment on how well their children have progressed, particularly in speech and language development, since starting at the pre-school.
• Staff use effective teaching strategies; they link previous learning and adapt their teaching, depending on the needs of the children. For example, during a mathematics activity, staff offer extension to allow children to recognise and match quantities up with the correct numerals, up to 20.
• The manager builds strong relationships with the other staff members, and they work well together as a team. Staff comment that they feel well supported. The manager has regular discussions with the staff. However, supervision sessions for staff are not always targeted enough to help raise the standard of teaching to an even higher level.
• The manager is aware of the local community and how she can support families in the setting. She works closely with the on-site school to support children with their transition and to ensure they are ready for the next stage in learning. Teachers at the school speak positively of the relationship between the school and the pre-school. They comment that children are well prepared and show good personal and social skills.
• Children have lots of good opportunities to develop their physical skills. There are opportunities for children to exercise their large muscles when learning how to pull themselves up on climbing equipment. Children also strengthen their arm muscles when cutting, scooping and mixing during sensory experiences. This improves children's hand dexterity and prepares them for early writing. As a result, children demonstrate good pencil control and are beginning to write their names, forming recognisable letters.
• The manager has a good overview of the pre-school. She gathers feedback from parents to support the evaluation process. However, priorities for improvement are not sharply focused on improving learning opportunities for children. For example, the manager has observed that children do not use certain areas of the garden, but has not yet decided on how she will change this to continually support the children's needs.

What the setting must and should do next

The provider should:

• enhance the supervision process and identify appropriate targets for staff to help them strengthen their already good interactions with children further
• make better use of self-evaluation processes to improve learning opportunities for children, especially in the outdoor environment.