Aughton Early Years Centre

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this school?

Many parents and carers and staff describe Aughton Early Years Centre as 'a lovely place to be' and we agree.

Leaders and staff take the greatest care to welcome, value and support every child and family. Parents and carers are keen to share the positive difference the staff make for their children and families.

The whole staff team has created a purposeful, enticing and safe place for children to learn about the world around them.

Skilled, well-trained staff members give children opportunities to explore and learn new things across a wide, knowledge-based curriculum. Books, stories and rhymes are treasured every step of the way.

Children quickly mak...e friends.

They feel safe. They happily and busily go about their work and play. They trust the staff to look after them.

Children respond well to staff's clear expectations of their behaviour. The staff team has a strong understanding of the needs of children of different ages. Very positive relationships mean that children are confident to ask questions and talk about their learning.

What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

Since the last inspection, leaders have improved the quality of education for children. Leaders have been receptive to advice and support to bring about the changes needed. The local authority and their designated early years adviser have supported school leaders in this work.

Staff are fully committed to the school's journey of improvement. Staff morale is high. Good teamwork shines out and sets a great example for children to follow.

Stories, songs and rhymes are loved and learned by children of all ages. Children keenly talk about their favourite books, reciting phrases and using different voices as they go. Adults are highly effective story-tellers.

During the inspection, children hung on every word of their teacher's improvised story. The adult's skilled questioning helped children test out what they had remembered in other areas of the curriculum. The kind warmth of the relationships made this a special time of the day.

Younger children joined in their story with delight. They used telescopes they had made, like the ones in the story, as they chorused, 'There's a shark in the park.' They were enthralled when the adult showed them a real telescope and let them explore how it worked.

Children are supported to develop a good awareness of phonics so that they are ready to learn to read at primary school.

Staff take opportunities to widen children's vocabulary in every activity. They use real and meaningful examples so that children remember and use this vocabulary themselves.

The curriculum helps children to build on what they know in all areas of learning in each age phase. They demonstrate their growing knowledge across a wide curriculum as they go about their work and answer adults' questions. Each child's needs are well understood by staff.

This includes children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Staff work closely with specialists in the school and other agencies to support children well. Outdoor learning helps children develop an understanding of the world and improve their physical development.

Children are taught to understand risks and to think about how they can stay safe.

Leaders make checks on how well children are achieving in all areas of the curriculum. Staff are expert practitioners and build well on individual children's knowledge.

Leaders have carefully defined the end points of the curriculum that they expect children to achieve in each area of learning. However, there is less clarity about the small steps of knowledge and skills that children are expected to acquire at each age and stage. This makes it more difficult for curriculum leaders and governors to fully check that the curriculum is ambitious for all children.

Governors are very much part of the school and passionate about how it supports the local community. Leaders have improved some of the information they provide to governors. This has given governors a better understanding of children's achievement.

However, governors have not kept a careful enough check on how well additional funding for disadvantaged children and those with SEND helps them to achieve more.

Work with families is a strength of the school. Families value the wide range of support and information on offer.

This includes: curriculum workshops; stay and play sessions; parenting support, such as establishing good sleep patterns and toilet training; and regular sharing of what children are doing well. Children's moral and social development is well supported each day.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Staff have a good understanding of the potential risks children and their families may face. Regular training, quizzes and information-sharing build on staff's knowledge. Everyone knows how to spot and report a concern where they think a child may be at risk of harm.

Procedures to check that staff are suitable to work with children are thorough. Leaders work with a wide range of other agencies, some of which can be accessed through the centre itself, to ensure that children and families are appropriately supported. When a concern arises, leaders respond swiftly to secure the right support for children.

What does the school need to do to improve?

(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

Leaders have not formally outlined the small steps that they expect children to know and learn in each area of the curriculum at the end of each phase of their journey through Nursery. This makes it hard for leaders to be certain that each child is achieving as well as they can across the full curriculum. Curriculum leaders should more precisely record their expectations at each stage so that leaders can carefully check on the progress children make across the curriculum over their time in Nursery.

. Governors do not have a clear enough view of whether additional funding is supporting disadvantaged children and those with SEND in achieving well. Governors should use the information provided by leaders to check that this funding is effective in helping these children to know and remember more.

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