Acorns Preschool Roughton

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision requires improvement Staff provide a safe and secure environment for children. Leaders have carefully considered the layout of the room. For example, they have created a cosy reading 'nook' to support children's literacy skills by engaging in purposeful one-to-one reading time with an adult.

However, children do not make the best possible progress in their learning and development because the quality of teaching at the nursery is not yet consistently good. While staff are caring, they lack the knowledge and skills to deliver a well-sequenced and ambitious curriculum that meets children's individual needs.Staff know the children well.

They und...erstand what children like to do and readily find their favourite resources to help them settle in. For instance, they set up play dinosaur trays, water play with guttering, and a farmyard. Children are soon engaged in play and show that they enjoy the company of the staff.

Staff join in role-play games and children giggle with joy as they role play in Santa's grotto. Although staff focus on providing activities that children enjoy, such as small-world play, they miss opportunities for deeper, more purposeful learning that is aligned with children's developmental stages.Children's behaviour is generally good.

However, staff are inconsistent in how they manage behaviour. Some staff show a good understanding by getting down to the children's level, offering choices and redirecting play. Other staff members repeatedly ask children to stop certain behaviours without giving them alternatives or checking that children understand what is being asked of them.

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

Leaders have not yet embedded a well-thought-out curriculum for children. Although staff plan activities for children that are enjoyable, they are not finely tuned to support or build on what children already know and can do. Much of the children's learning is incidental.

For example, leaders aim for children to develop their independence but do not ensure that staff embed this. Staff complete tasks for children rather than encouraging them to try themselves. The effectiveness of the curriculum is not consistently good.

Management has put in place strategies to support children's communication and language skills, such as visual cards, vocabulary flowers and a sign of the week. However, these are not being used consistently by staff. This means that this aspect of children's learning is not extended effectively.

The staff wants the best for children. They know children well and identify where their gaps in learning are. Management has implemented an effective planning system that highlights children's specific needs.

However, there are variations in the effectiveness of staff practice in helping children to close any gaps in their learning. This has an impact on the children's ability to progress.Leaders have worked hard to make improvements.

They model effective teaching and provide support with behaviour management in their daily interactions with children. However, they have not yet been fully successful in ensuring staff provide a consistent approach that supports all children's learning effectively. Moreover, they have not provided the focused support and training some staff need to deliver consistently strong teaching.

Leaders have a clear oversight of the day-to-day running of the pre-school and put support in place for management and staff. However, they do not have a clear knowledge of their full roles and responsibilities. For instance, they have failed to notify Ofsted about changes to trustees.

To date, however, this has had no impact on children and this information has now been provided.Staff provide ample opportunities for children to access and exercise in the large garden. Children develop strength and coordination in their bodies as they ride on balance and pedalled bikes.

Children have plenty of opportunities for physical development. For example, children practise using their fine motor skills by carefully using teaspoons to scoop oats and broken wheat biscuits into round tubes. They practise their early mark-making skills on mark-making tablets and use their coordination skills when pouring water down tubes in the garden.

Staff successfully develop warm, professional and effective partnerships with parents. Children are assigned a key person when they first begin to attend. These key persons develop secure relationships with children and their families from the outset.

They share information with parents about children's time at the pre-school, such as through daily discussions and online learning records. Parents report that they are happy with the pre-school and feel well informed about their child.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

There is an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts children's interests first.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To meet the requirements of the early years foundation stage, the provider must: Due date devise and implement an effective curriculum that is ambitious for all children 28/02/2025 provide staff with effective support and training to understand the curriculum intent and how this needs to be delivered in practice, including through skilful interactions with children 28/02/2025 ensure an effective approach to managing children's behaviour in a consistently supportive and appropriate way.28/02/2025 To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: nenhance staff's understanding and practice to help children to develop their independence and self-help skills.

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