Shenley Lodge Pre-Shool

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Children are happy and safe at this welcoming pre-school. They have warm and affectionate relationships with consistent staff who know them well.

Children develop friendships with each other from a young age.Children develop good independence skills. Staff encourage them from a young age to put on their shoes and coats, and children prepare their own snacks and tidy away their cups and plates.

This supports children to build their self-care skills effectively. Children have regular opportunities for outdoor play and physical exercise, including music and movement sessions and yoga. Staff use these opportunities to talk... to children about the benefits of healthy eating and the importance of exercise as part of a healthy lifestyle.

Children enjoy a good range of toys, resources and activities that support their learning and development. They make choices about their play and activities. For instance, children enjoy a range of stories and actively seek out books to be read to them either alone or in small groups.

They enjoy the cosy book corner where they listen to their favourite stories and add props to bring the stories alive. Children move freely around the setting and children develop their imagination successfully. For example, they engage with small-world figures and sing to themselves as they play.

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

The experienced manager knows her staff well. She efficiently evaluates the quality of teaching and the impact on children's achievements. The manager is committed to improving the pre-school.

She is ambitious and uses self-evaluation successfully to identify the strengths and areas of development.Partnerships with parents are effective. Parents are happy with the regular communication they receive from staff.

They praise staff for how well they have helped children settle back into the pre-school after periods of national lockdown.Arrangements are in place to support children who are learning English as an additional language. Staff find out about children's home languages well.

They use visual picture prompts and some sign language to support young children's emerging speaking skills Children behave well and they show kindness to their friends. Staff encourage them to share and take turns. For example, staff encourage children to use 'kind hands' and their 'golden rules', to teach children what is expected of them in pre-school.

Children develop good relationships with others, regardless of their backgrounds and individual abilities.Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, parents have not been allowed into the building and this remains in place. However, this has had an unexpected positive benefit, in that sessions start promptly, and more time is available for learning.

Parents say that they do not mind because they receive dedicated, quality feedback from staff through use of the new online platform and when they collect their children.Staff provide a good range of activities which support children's interest and enhance learning. For example, young children explore the pumpkin and the seeds inside of it, using words such as 'gooey', 'slimy' and 'slippery', to describe the pumpkin flesh.

They refine their physical skills as they plant the seeds, using tweezers and spades, understanding that they need to water the seeds and give them sunshine, to see the pumpkins eventually grow. However, staff are not yet able to confidently explain how children's learning is sequenced as part of a coherent approach to planning.Professional development is strong.

Staff are encouraged to further their own qualifications and careers. They speak very highly of the support that they receive from the manager and the chair of the committee. Leaders implement systems to ensure that staff's workload is managed effectively and their well-being is consistently supported.

This means that staff feel valued and enjoy their roles.Overall, staff provide good interactions with children to support their learning. However, at times, although quieter children are happy, staff do not fully engage them during some activities, such as group discussions and during periods when then are outside.

This means there are missed opportunities to ensure that all children make the best possible progress in their learning and development.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.All staff know and understand their safeguarding roles and responsibilities effectively.

Staff know how to report any concerns they may have about children or adults. The manager regularly checks staff's understanding of child protection issues, referral processes and wider safeguarding matters. In addition, relevant information, including referral and support agencies, is displayed in different areas of the pre-school for staff to easily access.

The manager and the chair of the committee have robust vetting and recruitment systems in place. This helps to ensure that staff are suitable for their roles and responsibilities.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: nenhance practice further to support staff to plan the sequencing of children's learning, to offer the highest levels of challenge support staff to develop further awareness of their responses to children, such as engaging with children who may be quieter.