Egerton Pre School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Children come into the setting enthusiastically and settle quickly. Staff have high expectations for every child, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

Children respond wonderfully to staff interactions, encouragement and praise. The strong sense of community spirit permeates throughout this vibrant setting. Staff work closely in partnership with the host school.

They use school facilities, such as the hall. This supports children to become familiar with the environment and provides continuity in their experiences. Staff know children well.

However, more information is required pr...ior to children starting to identify accurate starting points in their learning.Children enjoy being imaginative. They pretend to be doctors and nurses and are eager to listen to each other's heartbeats with the stethoscope.

Staff extend this learning by offering new vocabulary. Children are motivated and eager to join in as this builds on their unique interests and experiences. Children benefit from the vast and exciting outdoor area.

For example, they climb into the tree house, explore the sensory areas, hide in cardboard boxes and a have access to a pond for pond dipping. Children feel emotionally safe and secure. Staff are good role models and children understand behaviour expectations well.

Children's behaviour is admirable and they show genuine care, respect and tolerance towards one another.

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

The manager and her team demonstrate a clear and ambitious vision for providing a high-quality and inclusive setting for all children. They regularly evaluate the setting and identify areas for improvement.

For example, home learning strategies have been introduced, such as the 'rhyme time challenge'. This has encouraged parents to further extend children's learning at home.Children learn to be independent.

They select what they would like for snack, spread butter on crackers and chop their own fruit. Staff support children well and encourage them to try different foods. Children's physical dexterity is promoted as they use safety knives with success.

Overall, the leadership team is strong. However, leaders have not informed Ofsted of recent changes to the committee in a timely manner. This oversight has minimal impact on children's safety.

Committee members do not have unsupervised access to children and they are not involved in reviewing sensitive information.All children make good progress. Supporting children with their communication and language development is a particular strength at the provision.

Staff have attended many training courses on developing communication and language, and have put what they have learned into practice well. For example, staff lead small intervention groups to provide targeted support in order to maximise children's learning. Children listen well and follow instructions.

This was evident in the body percussion activity. Children copy movements and offer ideas of movement patterns to accompany their favourite songs.Children particularly enjoy 'dough disco'.

They develop the small muscles in their hands and fingers in preparation for early writing. Children use the dough to splat, roll and pinch, and move the dough around their bodies from one hand to another, all to the rhythm of music.Staff are strong teachers of mathematics.

They provide good opportunities to develop children's mathematical knowledge. For example, children confidently name a wide range of two- and three-dimensional shapes in a 'magic maths' activity. They confidently count and recognise numbers.

Children are taught about similarities and differences between their lives and those of others. They take part in meaningful activities to support children's further knowledge. For example, children explore the traditions of other countries, such as Henna patterns and the Hindu festival of light.

The staff have positive relationships with parents. Parents compliment the setting, stating that 'the staff are wonderful' and 'children love coming and never want to leave'. Staff share information with parents in a variety of ways and keep them updated on their children's learning and development.

However, they do not gather enough information about what children already know and can do, to plan more precisely when they first start at the setting.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.Staff are knowledgeable about their responsibilities to keep children safe from harm.

They are astute about signs and symptoms of abuse and neglect. They know the referral procedure well and what to do if an allegation is made against a member of staff. Staff are fully aware of wider safeguarding concerns and the correct steps to follow to report such concerns.

For example, they have practised procedures for the lock-down of the setting if they were aware of an intruder outside of the setting. The manager keeps the team's knowledge up to date by attending regular cluster meetings about safeguarding.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: nobtain further information from parents about what their children already know and can do, to support their individual learning needs right from the start.

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