Cadeby Lane Stepping Stones

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Children enter the safe and secure pre-school with enthusiasm. They quickly settle and become involved in their play. They choose whether to play inside or outside and move around the room with confidence.

Children have a positive attitude to their learning and are eager to take part in activities, such as singing. They thoroughly enjoy joining in with the songs and actions. They excitingly jump up and down and move their arms around, demonstrating that they are having fun.

Staff are kind and considerate. They respond well to children's individual needs, offering younger children frequent cuddles, comfort and reassuran...ce. This helps children to build bonds with staff and ensures they feel emotionally secure in their care.

Staff have high expectations for the children and know them well. They observe the children and use the information they gather effectively. Staff plan opportunities and experiences which reflect children's individual interests and needs.

As a result, children are motivated in their learning and enjoy their time at the pre-school.Children enjoy the outdoors and benefit from exploring the nature area behind the pre-school building. They collect leaves and twigs, make dens and learn to climb trees safely.

This helps their curiosity and physical development. Children are well behaved. They take turns with others during play and are well mannered.

Staff are positive role models for children. They set good examples and provide clear explanations to support children's understanding of positive behaviour.

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

Managers are focused on improving the quality of the pre-school.

They have addressed the recommendations from the previous inspection. They now carry out effective monitoring of staff's performance. However, the managers do not focus sharply enough on staff's professional development to help raise the quality of the teaching to an even higher level.

Managers and staff provide a safe and secure pre-school. They make good use of risk assessment to help identify and minimise any hazards within the environment. Managers also ensure that the procedures for collecting children are robust and safe.

For example, they gather information from parents as to who can collect their children and follow these instructions rigorously.Staff provide children with a broad and balanced curriculum. They provide activities that follow children's individual interests and next steps.

Staff plan adult-led activities such as making dinosaur prints out of clay. This helps children to develop their handling skills and to learn how to use tools. Staff interact well with children and motivate them to learn.

However, at times, they miss opportunities to extend and challenge younger children's learning, to help them become fully engaged in their play.Children enjoy making marks from an early age. Older children talk about the drawings they make with excitement.

Children enjoy books. They concentrate and listen to well-read stories. They giggle and laugh as they look at pictures and repeat rhymes and phrases.

However, staff do not consistently make good use of opportunities to help older children develop their early reading skills further. For example, learning about letter sounds.Managers and staff have established good partnerships with parents and others.

They talk to parents about their children's current experiences from home and develop these to aid children's future learning. For example, children experience growing fruit and vegetables. This helps those who do not have access to digging and growing in their own gardens to learn where food comes from.

Staff have created gardening activity packs which children take home to extend this learning even further.Staff praise children regularly. This boosts their self-esteem and confidence.

Children know what is expected of them and have clear boundaries, such as not running inside. Older children seek out friends to share their play and are learning how to negotiate. Relationships among children and staff reflect a positive and respectful culture and show that children feel safe and secure.

Staff support children to develop an understanding of healthy lifestyles. For example, they remind children of the importance of washing their hands before meals and after playing in the garden. Staff guide children to make their own sandwiches for snack and encourage them to drink water throughout the day.

This also helps to build on their personal skills and independence.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.Staff are confident in their knowledge and understanding of their role in identifying and addressing any concerns relating to safeguarding or wider child protection issues.

They attend ongoing training to keep up to date with current legislation about safeguarding children. Staff also know the procedures to follow if an allegation is made against a member of staff. The managers have robust recruitment and induction procedures.

They complete rigorous checks to ensure that only those suitable to work with children are able do so. This helps to keep children safe.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: make the most of all opportunities and experiences that arise to extend and challenge younger children's learning, to help them engage even more in their play build on the existing opportunities to help older children develop their early reading skills focus professional development opportunities to raise the already good quality of teaching to a higher level.

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