Noah’s Ark Community Preschool

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

The manager and staff provide children with a stimulating and well-thought-out learning environment, both indoors and outdoors. Staff gather detailed information about children's previous experiences to help them plan a rich and meaningful curriculum across all areas of learning. This motivates children well to play, explore and make new discoveries.

For example, children enjoy using scoops and long containers to channel water to different places. Younger children explore confidently. They make up games with staff who throw collected leaves from bags into the air and watch them excitedly jump up and try and grab as many as they... can.

Overall, staff listen to children, introduce new words and help them to test out their ideas as they play. However, new staff do not always provide sufficient time for older children to think and work things out for themselves, to help them to further develop their problem-solving skills. Children feel safe and form close bonds with the friendly and nurturing staff.

Staff have high expectations of children. They encourage all children to develop a 'can-do' attitude and persevere in their chosen tasks. Continuous praise and encouragement help children to have high levels of confidence and self-esteem.

Children are happy and well behaved. Staff support children's health and welfare successfully.

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

Children benefit from varied visits in the local community and become exposed to opportunities that they may not otherwise experience.

For instance, they visit a nearby Hindu temple where they make clay diva lamps and light candles to celebrate Diwali. This helps them gain an understanding of the wider world.Staff assess what children can do and look for their next steps in learning.

They provide a personalised learning and development experience for each child. This provides good opportunities for children to learn across the curriculum.The manager monitors staff well and provides opportunities for them to continue their professional development to enhance the quality of their teaching.

The management team regularly evaluates the quality of the provision and makes positive improvements. High priority is given to children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). In addition, the manager uses additional funding effectively to help those children that receive funding to progress well.

All children make good progress towards their early learning goals.Staff engage and motivate children to learn. Toddlers demonstrate good listening and attention and literacy skills.

Children become thoroughly engaged in a storytelling session as staff skilfully capture their imagination when they use props and puppets that relate to the story. This helps to nurture an early love of books and reading.The key-person system is very secure.

Children have strong emotional attachments with all staff, not only their key person. This contributes to the children feeling settled and secure. Children's behaviour is good, and staff help them to understand how to take turns and share with their friends, which supports children to become confident learners.

Staff attend specialised training and planning is particularly effective at supporting children with SEND. Staff work closely with other agencies and share detailed information with parents. Parents comment how delighted they are with the progress that their children are making.

Partnerships with others agencies and parents are strong.Staff use activities, such as daily routines, to help children adopt an understanding of healthy living. Children confidently explain to visitors that they need to reduce the spread of germs and wash their hands before eating.

Children have regular opportunities to exercise and be active. For instance, children learn new skills, such as climbing grass hills in the garden, and collect leaves and sticks in the local forest on nature walks. At the pre-school, staff invent physical games.

For instance, they throw leaves into the air and encourage children to jump and catch as many as they can.Overall, staff skilfully promote all children's communication and language skills. For example, staff introduce new vocabulary, concepts and ideas during activities, and they engage children well during imaginary play.

For instance, when toddlers serve mud cakes to staff, they remind them to be careful before eating it, as it may be 'too hot'. However, some new staff prompt older children too quickly, providing answers to questions, and miss opportunities to challenge and extend children's learning and thinking skills further.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Managers and staff place a high priority on making sure that children feel safe and are cared for in a safe environment. Staff attend appropriate safeguarding training. Their knowledge of child protection is refreshed regularly in staff meetings.

Staff know the signs and symptoms to look for and the procedures to follow should they have any concerns about a child's welfare. Managers conduct safer recruitment procedures and check that staff remain suitable in their roles.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: consider ways new staff recognise when children need more time to respond to questions, test out their ideas and work things out for themselves, to help them to further develop their problem-solving skills.

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