Play B C Preschool

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

The experienced manager shows an ambition to provide good-quality education and has a clear ethos and vision for the future. The children have a good sense of belonging in the pre-school and quickly settle into their well-established routine.

The manager and her team create a fun and stimulating environment, indoors and outdoors. The teaching is good, and staff have high expectations of every child. Occasionally, adult-led activities are too lengthy and complex.

As a result, younger children become restless and lose focus. Children enjoy free-flowing access to the outdoor area, which helps to promote their decision mak...ing, physical health and well-being. Older children learn how to use hammers and nails outside, closely supported by attentive and engaging staff.

This helps to develop children's understanding of taking risks and the importance of being careful. Children demonstrate high levels of involvement and display a can-do attitude. They learn new vocabulary, such as 'triceratops', and staff improve their pronunciation by repeating words back to them.

Children have a wide range of experiences to learn about their local and wider community. For example, they regularly visit a local residential care home for the elderly and are visited by professionals, such as a local police officer. Children are confident, self-assured and enjoy their time at the pre-school.

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

Staff offer a welcoming and inclusive environment where children feel safe and secure. All staff have completed sign-language training and use this to support communication and language skills of differing children. These include those who speak English as an additional language, children in receipt of additional funding and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

All children make good progress from their individual starting points.Children benefit from daily opportunities to be outdoors in the fresh air and use a range of equipment that challenges them and extends their physical development. For example, children develop their coordination, stamina, balance and leg muscles as they run, climb and cycle.

Staff have clear and consistent behavioural expectations and children respond to these well. Staff use timers to support children in understanding that they need to wait their turn. Children play harmoniously and share the resources.

Staff have good partnerships with parents and other external agencies involved with children. They use information, from speech and language therapists and parents, to plan targeted activities. The manager uses early years pupil premium funding to employ additional staff to provide one-to-one focused activities for children with additional needs.

This helps to narrow identified gaps in children's learning and development to help them achieve their potential.Staff provide learning opportunities across the curriculum. Children learn about letters and sounds through planned activities, such as daily phonics sessions.

Additionally, staff skilfully talk to children as they play, asking them questions, introducing new vocabulary and using descriptive language. The impact of this was obvious when children showed that they were aware of the difference between a carnivore and a herbivore. Children are good communicators and have a wide range of vocabulary.

The manager and staff have been proactive in taking on opportunities to become involved in local authority initiatives. For example, they are taking part in the Healthy Early Years programme and are currently working towards achieving the Bronze award. Children enjoy healthy, nutritious meals and have access to clean drinking water throughout the day.

However, staff do not always support children in fully understanding about practices, such as eating healthy food and how this contributes to their health and well-being.Staff act as good role models and promote good hygiene routines. Children listen and respond to instructions promptly.

They have opportunities to take responsibility for their own care needs. For instance, children develop independence in using the toilet and wash their hands before snacks and meals. Children are well behaved and demonstrate a positive sense of self-esteem.

Parents have a warm and secure relationship with the staff. They praise the staff for providing flexible settling-in procedures that support their children's needs and routines. This helps children to feel emotionally settled.

Parents are kept up to date with their children's progress and speak highly of the pre-school and the staff.Children have several opportunities to engage in adult-led activities. However, at times, younger children lose interest and do not engage with the activity or learn as much as possible.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.The manager has a good knowledge of safer recruitment and ensures that staff are aware of their responsibilities to protect children from harm. Staff have a good understanding of the signs and symptoms of abuse, and wider safeguarding issues such as radical and extreme views.

They know how to report concerns about children's welfare. Daily risk assessments are carried out to minimize any hazards or accidents, to ensure the pre-school is safe and secure. Staff are deployed effectively and children are supervised well.

Children's safety is paramount to the staff. They have appropriate fire procedures in place and regularly practise fire drills.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: reflect on and review adult-led activities to include younger children's interests and abilities, to maintain their attention and promote their engagement at the highest level support children further to help them fully understand the importance of eating healthy food and how this contributes to their health and well-being.