Metheringham Pre-School

Inspection of Metheringham Pre- School The Village Hall, Fen Road, Metheringham, Lincoln, Lincolnshire LN4 3AA

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Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Outstanding

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The provision is good

Children are happy and feel safe in this welcoming, homely setting. Staff provide a nurturing environment which values the uniqueness of each child. Children confidently follow the established routine. They sit together during circle time and recall the days of the week. Children are encouraged to look outside to see what the weather is like and talk about the seasons. They consistently use their manners and are developing their independence. For example, they are very able to self- register for snack time, wash their hands and choose what to eat. Children are given timely reminders before tidy-up time, which helps to prepare them for transitions throughout the day. Children feel secure within these boundaries.

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The provision is good

Children progress well due to an ambitious curriculum that changes in line with their current interests. Staff have high expectations for children and provide a wide range of stimulating activities and resources. Children come to the pre-school with different skills and experiences, and activities are planned to broaden those experiences. Children enjoy investigating and testing out what they know. For instance, they are fascinated to learn about balance and stability, and explore how torches work differently inside and out.

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need to do better?

n Staff know their key children very well. They take time to get to know children and their parents and build strong and trusting relationships. Parents particularly like the family environment promoted by staff, which they say helps children to feel safe and secure. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) receive very good support. Staff build effective partnerships with parents and professionals involved with children. This ensures high levels of continuity for children's care and learning. Parents comment that the support staff offer to their children goes 'above and beyond'. n Staff use assessment effectively to provide children with a well-planned curriculum which reflects their interests and next steps in learning. Managers and staff check children's progress and quickly identify any gaps in learning. The manager monitors the implementation of the curriculum by staff and supports

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need to do better?

their development through coaching and training. n Children benefit from an unhurried and calm time spent at pre-school with their friends. They initiate their own play and enjoy their learning. All staff engage well with children and join in with their play and ideas. They listen to what children say and ask questions to develop children's confidence to talk. Staff offer children many opportunities for sustained interactions. However, they do not always use opportunities to consistently help children's learning develop to a greater depth. n Children are encouraged to take responsibility for themselves and the learning

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need to do better?

11 March 2020 environment. They pour their own drinks, wash their own dishes and put away their toys after use. Children have many opportunities to play outdoors and to be physically active. They balance on crates and climb benches in the garden. This gives them a growing awareness of their own abilities. Children take part in sensory activities in the garden. For example, they become excited as they splash in muddy puddles and use water and brushes to paint the wall. n Children's language development is supported well by staff. Children are engaged and eager to contribute when staff ask them questions about a story they are reading. Children are encouraged to sing and are excited to copy the actions to familiar rhymes. Staff encourage children's vocabulary well. They hold conversations with children and introduce new words. For example, they introduce 'weaving' and 'enormous' through activities and stories. At times,

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need to do better?

group activities are prolonged and young children lose focus and interest. n Staff draw upon resources in the local community well. This provides children with interesting learning opportunities, beyond those they might otherwise experience. For example, they meet and talk to local residents at a village coffee morning and attend events at the local school. This helps children to learn about the wider world.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

The manager and staff have developed a strong culture of vigilance to safeguard children's welfare. All staff are aware of how to identify and report any concerns they may have regarding the children. The manager has strong partnerships with a wide range of professionals to ensure children consistently receive the support they need. Staff are deployed well within the setting and constantly risk assess the environment to ensure children are safe and secure. Children learn how to keep themselves safe, such as by climbing carefully and not shining bright torches in their eyes or those of their friends.

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should:

n make the most of all opportunities that arise as children play to support their learning to the highest levels n review small-group times to ensure all children are consistently engaged and suitably challenged.

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Setting details

Unique reference number 253567 Local authority Lincolnshire Inspection number 10130465 Type of provision Childcare on non-domestic premises Registers Early Years Register Day care type Full day care

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inspection

Total number of places 24 Number of children on roll 31 Name of registered person Metheringham Preschool Committee

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reference number

Telephone number 07974870822 Date of previous inspection 3 July 2015

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Information about this early years setting

Metheringham Pre-School registered in 1967. The pre-school employs five members of childcare staff. All of these hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 3. The pre-school opens from Monday to Friday, during term time, from 9am to 3pm. The pre-school provides funded early education for two-, three- and four-year-old children and supports children with SEND.

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Inspection activities

n The inspector observed the quality of education during activities, indoors and outdoors, and assessed the impact this has on children's learning. n The manager took the inspector on a learning walk across all areas of the setting and gardens to explain how the early years provision and the curriculum are organised. n The inspector held a number of discussions with the manager. She looked at relevant documentation and reviewed evidence of the suitability of all persons working on the premises. n The manager completed a joint observation and evaluation of an activity with the inspector. n The inspector spoke with staff and children at appropriate times during the inspection. She also took account of the views of parents spoken to during the inspection.

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Inspection activities

We carried out this inspection under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 on the quality and standards of provision that is registered on the Early Years Register. The registered person must ensure that this provision complies with the statutory framework for children's learning, development and care, known as the early years foundation stage.

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Inspection activities

11 March 2020 regulates and inspects to achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children's social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children's services, and inspects services for looked after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspection activities

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Inspection activities

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Inspection activities

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Inspection activities

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