Malborough with South Huish Pre-School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Children are confident learners and feel highly secure in the setting. They receive reassurance and comfort from staff and are very happy. Children are exceptionally considerate and thoughtful to one another.

Older children choose to sit next to younger children 'to be kind'. All children feel included. Staff teach children that everyone's voice is important.

They ask quieter children to pick a song to sing and all the other children wait patiently for them to pick one and then encourage them to join in.Staff teach children how to be independent at the setting, and children are proud to demonstrate these skills. Staff ...show them how to take their coats off and how to put them on and zip them up.

Children blow their noses, put the tissues in the bin and wash their hands independently. Staff support children with self-care well. Where possible, staff replicate strategies used at home to support potty training by using identical potties.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the manager delivered activities and books to every family to help support children's learning at home. Parents praise the quality, daily feedback from staff and receive regular updates on children's progress via an online platform. Parents welcome the advice on strategies to help with children's development and comment on the positive relationships the children enjoy with all the staff.

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

Staff plan an engaging curriculum based around the children's interests. Children investigate sinking and floating, and staff use this to embed number knowledge. Children fill small cups of water and pour them into large tubes.

Staff help children count the cups in one by one. Children drop shells into the tubes and comment on the water rising. Staff encourage the children's curiosity by asking 'what will happen next?' and 'why is the water rising?' Children continue to find different size shells to see what happens next.

Children's love of information books and storybooks support their communication and language skills. They read well known stories, repeat phrases from the story and pre-empt what will happen next. Overall, staff encourage children to identify written letters in the story and find the letter of their name around the setting, but they do not always support the children in identifying sounds of letters.

Staff do not effectively sequence the children's learning of these sounds to prepare them for future reading.Children are especially imaginative and creative. They make 'seasoning' and flower potions using a pestle and mortar.

They gather ingredients from the garden such as petals, twigs and bay leaves. Children rub the leaves on their hands and ask each other to smell the aroma.Staff support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities well at the setting.

Staff adapt daily routines to help children settle on arrival. For example, toys that are of particular interest to children are readily available when they arrive, and children know what is coming next during the day to ease transitions between activities.Children learn how to keep their teeth healthy and recall trips to the dentist.

They practise brushing a large set of teeth with toothbrushes and remember to brush them for two minutes. Staff use this opportunity to demonstrate how long two minutes is and add a sand timer to the play. The children further their understanding of time and measure.

They discuss if two minutes is a long or a short time and watch until the timer runs out to help them decide.The children go on outings in the local community and learn about where they live and the people around them. They visit a local farm to learn about farm animals and collect sticks to make birds' nests.

The children occasionally access digital devices with an adult in the setting to look at topics online, and children talk to their friends about going online at home. However, staff do not effectively teach children about digital technology and how to keep safe online to protect their welfare.Children develop their physical strength as they clamber up the ramp to the climbing frame and pretend to be crocodiles as they run around the garden.

Their physical and imagination skills are good.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.The manager and staff are alert to indicators of abuse and report all concerns to the settings safeguarding lead.

Staff know how to escalate concerns within the committee and local authority if needed. This ensures action to protect children's welfare is rapid. The majority of staff have a current paediatric first-aid certificate which allows staff to effectively treat minor injuries where appropriate.

The setting is risk assessed daily, and trips around the local area are risk assessed to always ensure the safety of children. Staff and children practise regular fire drills so children know what to do in the event of a fire.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: plan and organise ways to sequence children's knowledge of letter sounds to better prepare them for future reading nexplore ways to broaden children's experience of digital technology and to help them to understand ways of keeping safe online.

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