Jack & Jill Pre-School (Stannington)

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

The provision requires improvement The quality of education is not yet consistently good. Overall, staff plan a varied early years curriculum which helps to give children a wide range of experiences in all areas of their learning.

However, the implementation of the curriculum is not consistent. Children do not always receive encouragement to independently attempt tasks that they are capable of, as some staff step in and do these for them. This does not help children to develop their independence.

Furthermore, staff are not always clear about how to extend children's learning. During some planned activities, they do not effectively challenge children and bu...ild on what they already know. For example, children taste new fruits as part of a healthy eating topic, but staff do not build on what 'healthy' means.

This hinders the progress that children make in their learning.However, children demonstrate that they are happy and enjoy their time here. They have formed strong bonds with staff who place a focus on supporting children's emotional well-being.

Staff take the time to find out about children's interests, likes and dislikes. This helps children to settle when they first start at the setting. Children form positive friendships and tell the inspector about their 'best friends' who they enjoy playing with.

Older children display confidence and ask the inspector to watch as they showcase how high they can jump. Parents comment positively about the staff who they describe as 'friendly and approachable'.

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

Those with responsibility for the governance of the pre-school have not notified Ofsted of changes to the members of the committee.

This prevents the necessary suitability checks from being completed. While these individuals are not left unsupervised with children and are primarily involved with wider aspects such as fundraising, this is a breach of legal requirements.Staff do not always plan daily routines and activities so that children benefit from purposeful learning.

For example, on arrival, children spend prolonged periods in a separate room where they have access to limited resources while waiting for staff to set up the main room and other children to arrive. They quickly become bored and distracted. This impacts negatively on children's behaviour and attitudes towards learning.

That said, the main room is well planned and tailored to children's interests. Children develop their imagination as they dress up in costumes and pretend to buy hot chocolate and ice cream from the cafe outdoors. Older children are supported to develop their mathematical understanding as they make patterns with magnetic shapes.

Children develop their physical skills as they play outdoors and ride tricycles around roundabouts.Staff place an emphasis on promoting children's literacy skills. Children have varied opportunities to make marks in creative ways and develop their small-muscle skills as they thread laces and play with dough.

When children draw pictures, staff ask them to describe what these are and add meaning to their marks. This helps to give children some of the early writing skills they need ahead of moving on to school.Staff work in partnership with other settings which children attend to share information about their development.

When children need extra help with their learning, such as children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), staff provide tailored activities to support them. For example, a sand timer is used effectively to develop children's ability to focus and pay attention. However, weaknesses in how the planned curriculum is delivered, mean that these children do not always make the progress of which they are capable.

Parent feedback about the pre-school is positive. They say that their children are happy here. Mostly, parents are aware of what their children are learning while at pre-school through the setting's online system.

However, they are not yet consistently provided with information to help them further support children's learning at home.The manager has introduced systems to support staff's professional development, although these are still in their infancy. Some staff attend mandatory training, such as first aid, food hygiene and safeguarding.

However, arrangements for the supervision and coaching of staff are not robust. While some staff demonstrate effective teaching skills, others lack a secure understanding of how to help challenge children and build on what they already know. They do not have the knowledge and skills to consistently teach the curriculum well.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.The pre-school provides a safe and secure environment for children. Staff are aware of the different types of abuse and potential indicators that may suggest that a child is at risk of harm.

Furthermore, they understand the procedures to follow should they have concerns about children's welfare and how to take timely action to safeguard children. An ongoing process of risk assessments ensures the premises and equipment are safe and suitable. For instance, staff carry out robust checks of the outdoor area ahead of children entering to check that there are no hazards such as broken glass or nettles.

This helps to ensure children's safety.

What does the setting need to do to improve?

To meet the requirements of the early years foundation stage, the provider must: Due date provide effective support, coaching and training to all staff to enable them to improve their practice and to ensure that they offer consistently high-quality and challenging learning and development experiences for children 03/11/2023 provide details of the individuals associated with the organisation, so that suitability checks can be completed on all committee members.13/10/2023 To further improve the quality of the early years provision, the provider should: review the organisation of daily routines to ensure that children receive the best learning experiences possible build on current ways of communicating and sharing information with parents about their children's learning and development in the setting to help them support children's learning further at home.

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