Ambler Children’s Centre and Extended School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is outstanding

Children are evidently happy and show extremely positive attitudes towards learning. Leaders and staff have very high expectations for children, and plan a variety of educational activities that positively enhance children's learning and development. Children make excellent progress and show that they thoroughly enjoy attending the provision.

All children have exceptional opportunities to learn and play outdoors. This was evident when they enjoyed climbing on a climbing frame, which offers good levels of physical challenge. They delighted in digging and mixing in a mud kitchen, in a enchanting forest area.

This ...supports their growing understanding of the natural world and provides excellent opportunities for them to be active. Babies enjoy listening to stories with props, splashing during water play, and joining in with large-scale drawing with crayons. Staff are highly encouraging and frequently boost children's confidence as they play.

As a result, babies display strong emotional attachments and high levels of self-esteem. Toddlers enjoyed recalling the story of 'Goldilocks and the Three Bears', as they explored with play dough and discussed different sizes and parts of the body. They also showed eagerness when scooping and mixing porridge.

During play, staff skilfully introduced new descriptive language such as 'sticky' and 'gloopy', enriching children's knowledge of new language extremely well.

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

Children are extremely inquisitive and motivated learners. They show very high levels of interest as they explore a rich array of activities that staff carefully plan.

This helps children to develop new knowledge, language and awareness of different concepts. Children display a love of learning and trying new things.Settling-in arrangements when children first start at the children's centre are excellent.

Staff seek a wealth of information from parents to help children to settle with ease. For instance, they seek information about children's interests and characters during a home visit. Children settle in extremely well and show that they are secure and content.

Partnership working with parents is exceptional. Staff and parents work very closely together to identify children's personal learning needs. Staff regularly update parents about children's new achievements, and frequently send home books and exchange ideas for home learning.

Children have excellent levels of consistency and continuity in their care and early education. Communication and information-sharing are a real strength.Parents express extremely high levels of satisfaction.

They state that the atmosphere of the setting is very calm and welcoming, and that staff are very friendly and kind. Parents express that their children make excellent progress and have very positive relationships with staff.Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities are supported exceptionally well.

There is a very strong culture of multi-professional working, for instance with speech and language therapists, educational psychologists and family liaison officers, to give children and families excellent levels of support.Overall, teaching is of a high level. However, leaders are extremely motivated to enhance the quality of teaching to the highest possible level across the whole setting.

Staff have excellent levels of support to extend their knowledge and skills. For instance, they engage in regular peer observations and specialist teachers contribute to their planning and feedback meetings.Staff benefit from extremely high-quality and focused training.

For example, all staff have completed 'positive interaction' training, as well as learning how to support children with different types of trauma. The team is extremely experienced and knowledgeable, and this translates well during activities with the children.Staff's well-being is valued highly.

This is evident when staff nominate each other, for example, for help and support, or for inspiring childcare practice. As a result, staff are given rewards to demonstrate how much they are valued and appreciated. Staff express very high levels of enjoyment in their work.

Children have excellent opportunities to understand what makes them unique, and to learn about each other's differences. This is apparent when staff review their books and learning resources to make sure they represent diversity, and do not reinforce stereotypes. This teaches children excellent levels of respect and acceptance from a very early age.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.Leaders have undergone safer recruitment training and carry out very rigorous recruitment procedures to ensure staff are suitable to work with children. Staff have extremely secure and broad safeguarding knowledge.

For example, they can identify a range of possible signs which may raise concerns about children's safety and welfare. Staff are confident in their role to report any concerns to the relevant agencies, and to provide any additional support. Staff carry out thorough risk assessments inside and outdoors to minimise any hazards to children as they learn and play.

Also at this postcode