Jumpstart Pre-School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Inviting and motivating activities await children when they arrive at this welcoming pre-school. Staff greet children warmly, and they settle quickly. Children are eager to begin their day and excitedly seek out their friends.

Younger children play alongside each other amicably. Older children work cooperatively, confidently talking to each other about what they are doing. They swiftly become absorbed in the learning opportunities provided.

Staff have high expectations for children and provide activities that build on what they can already do. Children use their hand-to-eye coordination and small muscles well. This is ...evident as they use brushes to paint, or create cakes with play dough.

Children enjoy pretend play in the imaginative kitchen role-play area. The well-planned range of enjoyable activities and experiences captures children's interests and keeps them engaged.Staff are good role models.

They use a consistent approach to managing behaviour, which ensures children feel safe, secure and listened to. Children behave well and have good attitudes to learning. For example, they listen attentively to instructions when they enthusiastically join clearing-up sessions before snack time.

Staff help children to understand about taking turns and to share resources. Children learn to be independent from an early age.

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

The pre-school manager is a committed and thoughtful leader and understands how children learn and develop.

She encourages staff to use children's interests as a guide when planning experiences that are motivating and support children's individual needs. Staff assess children's abilities and use the information to provide activities and opportunities to enhance their learning. They comment that leaders are always accessible and are on hand to offer professional advice as needed.

Parents are highly valued as partners and speak very positively about the pre-school. They warmly describe the friendliness of the staff team and highlight how happy their children are to attend. Staff provide parents with regular updates about their child's progress.

For example, they hold parents' meetings, provide daily discussions and use emails to share information. This approach also affords parents opportunities to contribute to what their child is learning at home.Staff provide good opportunities for children to develop their literacy skills.

For instance, children listen to stories regularly. They talk about the characters they see in the books and older children can predict what might happen next. They use songs and rhymes to develop children's understanding of common words and language patterns.

However, staff do not always make the most of opportunities to further extend children's learning in mathematics.Children develop their physical skills as they run and play outside. For instance, they have access to wheeled toys, which they manoeuvre skilfully around the playground.

Parents provide packed lunches for their children, snacks are provided by the pre-school. The snacks provided are well balanced and meet their special dietary needs. However, staff do not consistently extend children's understanding about the value of eating a healthy diet.

Staff working with younger children use repetition to help support children's growing vocabulary. They use descriptive language and narrate children's play. This helps to give meaning to what children are doing and ensures they hear a wide variety of words.

Staff read enthusiastically to children and encourage them to consider what might happen next. There are a range of opportunities for children to access mark making independently and this enhances children's ability to practise their emerging writing skills.Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities are supported effectively.

The pre-school works effectively with parents and professionals involved in the children's care and learning to fully support them to make good progress from their starting points.Leaders have a clear vision for the pre-school and regularly reflect upon the quality of the provision. They make changes to the environment to suit children's learning needs.

For instance, the outside area has been reorganised to ensure children have clear areas to use ride-on toys. The leadership team gather the views of parents, committee members, staff and children about the setting. They use this information effectively to drive improvements and enrich outcomes for children.

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 further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: strengthen teaching strategies to consistently promote children's early number and mathematical skills even more effectively provide more consistent support for children to learn and understand the benefits of a healthy diet.