South Hill Park Pre-School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision is good

Children arrive happily and know the routines well.

They self-register using their name cards with their photograph and quickly settle. Children make their own choices about what to do, including whether to play outdoors. Staff show a strong commitment to helping children to reach their potential and to achieve and gain skills for their future learning.

Children develop understanding about respectful behaviours towards each other, including learning how to take turns and share. At times, they do not receive timely reminders to help them remember the rules and expectations, such as to walk indoors. Children with special... educational needs and/or disabilities receive very good support.

For example, the use of consistent signing and visual picture cards helps these children successfully learn and make progress. There is a strong focus on all children developing effective communication and language skills. Children take part in small-group activities with staff who engage them skilfully.

Children learn new words, recall information and have time to think and respond to simple questions during these sessions. Children develop their concentration effectively. They learn how to find out information.

For example, during a cooking activity, children looked at a recipe book to find out about the ingredients to use. Children use counting in everyday play and activities, including enthusiastically taking part in energetic games, such as 'What's the time Mr Wolf?'. Children maintain their interest and focus in their play and activities effectively and are motivated to learn.

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

Staff are committed and enthusiastic about their work. They feel well supported by the manager. Staff have regular supervision meetings and access to an online training system to help support their professional development.

In addition, the manager has begun to introduce staff observations to help review and develop practice further. Staff report their well-being is supported effectively and that they feel comfortable asking for help.The new manager and deputy manager have been given effective support while settling in to their roles.

For example, the previous manager and current nominated person has provided a detailed handover to them over an extended period of time. This has helped to promote the continued smooth operation of the pre-school for children and families. The committee members are actively involved in the running of the pre-school.

They complete some relevant training, including safeguarding, to help them understand their roles and responsibilities.Staff understand how to keep children safe. For instance, they keep children away from the gate when visitors are entering the premises.

They supervise children closely and keep them within their sight and hearing. The provider has taken prompt and effective action to review risk assessments and implement new processes to improve the safety and supervision of children. All staff were quickly made aware of these changes.

This was following an incident where a child left the setting unsupervised.All staff form positive and caring relationships with children, which help children feel safe and secure. Staff help children learn about good hygiene, including supporting their independence in caring for themselves, such as using tissues and disposing of these in the bin.

Staff help children understand about caring for the environment, including recycling materials. They encourage children to identify possible hazards to them, such as suggesting they pick up the hoops on the ground when running around outside. Staff teach children about online safety, for example, through discussions when they use the internet to search for information together.

However, sometimes staff do not consistently raise children's awareness about ways to stay safe.Staff provide effective interactions with children. They get down to the children's level to hold discussions and to interact with them.

Staff encourage children to experiment and test out their ideas, such as when looking at the effects from mixing paint colours together. Sometimes, older and most-able children are not challenged as effectively as possible to extend their learning even further. In addition, some staff do not provide sustained interactions with children who are quieter and play happily.

Strong and effective partnerships are formed with parents, carers and professionals. This promotes a consistent approach to supporting and meeting children's individual needs. The special educational needs coordinator at the pre-school teaches other staff about strategies to use with children who may need extra support.

For example, she teaches staff how to use signing to support communication with all children. This promotes an inclusive environment to help meet all children's needs successfully.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

Staff understand their responsibilities to safeguard children's welfare. They know how to recognise indicators that may mean a child's well-being and safety are at risk. Staff demonstrate they have a current knowledge of wider safeguarding matters.

They understand what may raise their concerns about families in relation to extreme beliefs and views. Staff know how to manage any concerns about other adults, children and their families. For example, they know to make records of any concerns and report these to the lead safeguarding member of staff.

Staff have immediate access to information about the local multi-agency safeguarding arrangements. This enables them to directly refer any concerns to external agencies.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: provide more challenge to older and most-able children and ensure quieter children who play happily are given more consistent support, such as through sustained interactions, to help all children extend their learning even further nextend children's understanding of the rules and boundaries, such as walking indoors, to help them develop more awareness of how to keep themselves and others safe.

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