The Saplings Pre-School

Inspection of The Saplings Pre-School Burnham Copse Primary School, Newchurch Road, Tadley, Hampshire RG26 4HN

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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 arrive at the setting, enthusiastic and ready to learn. They quickly connect with their friends and explore all activities on offer, together or independently. Children form close bonds with staff who are consistently kind and caring. As a result, children feel safe and secure. They thoroughly enjoy stories being read to them individually by members of staff. At these times, they listen intently, giggle at funny parts of the story and share happy moments together. This helps to promote positive relationships and mutual respect.

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The provision is good

Children develop good social skills. They behave well and show empathy towards others. Children learn about different emotions and how these are portrayed. For instance, if friends get upset, they gently rub their backs and talk to them reassuringly to make them happy again. Children are praised for their efforts as they model the setting's values, such as 'kind hands'. This makes them feel valued and proud.

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The provision is good

Children love being active outdoors. They show great control and coordination as they participate in the many exciting activities on offer. Children learn that they can improve their skills and achieve anything if they persevere. For example, they practise using just the right amount of power to make a large ball land in a basketball net. This also supports children's hand-to-eye coordination and spatial awareness.

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need to do better?

n The manager is committed to providing high quality care and education. She makes regular assessments of children to identify their needs and to monitor the good progress they make. As a result of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on children's development, the manager has identified areas of the curriculum to focus on more. This includes personal, social and emotional development and communication and language. This has proved effective as children demonstrate improved confidence, independence and concentration. n The special educational needs coordinator plays a leading role in supporting children to make progress where there are persistent gaps in their learning. She works effectively with staff and parents to help individual children make good progress from their starting points. For example, children with speech delays are shown real objects to understand the transition from one routine to the next,

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need to do better?

such as a knife and fork to indicate mealtimes. This process is later replaced with photos and then symbols to help them make connections and understand better. n Staff know how to promote children's communication skills. They use children's favourite stories and songs. For instance, younger children delight in moving to

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need to do better?

31 January 2023 the beat of nursery rhymes, while the older ones join in tunefully with the lyrics and actions. Children make up different sounds to verses in the song, 'Wheels on the bus'. In this way, children's vocabulary is increased further. n Children's critical thinking skills are promoted well. They eagerly explore and test out their ideas on a problem that may arise as they play. For example, children roll a toy car along tubing and put a basket at the end to 'catch' it. After a few misses, they realise that moving the basket forward and back, is a good strategy to arriving at a solution. n Staff's wellbeing is given the utmost priority. They comment on the manager's supportive nature, which has helped to lead to high staff morale. Overall, the manager monitors staff's practice and supports them to improve, leading to good outcomes for children. However, this process is not fully consistent for

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need to do better?

every member of staff. As a result, some staff are less confident about what they want children to learn and how this should be implemented. n The manager and staff recognise the significance of raising children's awareness of other cultures. They do this by preparing activities related to an event, such as Chinese New Year. However, children's home backgrounds and languages are yet to be fully explored to support their understanding of similarities and differences between their own and others' cultures. n Parents highly value the support, care and advice they and their children receive from the manager and her staff. They are impressed with the good progress children make and appreciate that each child and family are treated as individuals. This strong partnership provides continuity of support to children, such as adopting the 'tidy up' song at home.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders and staff have a secure knowledge of their responsibility to protect children from harm. They have a good understanding of the potential signs and symptoms of abuse, including exposure to extremist views and behaviours. Staff know how to report any concerns that they may have about a child's welfare to the relevant agencies. The manager and staff carry out regular risk assessments to keep children safe while they are at the nursery. The manager ensures that staff keep their safeguarding knowledge up to date. There are robust recruitment procedures in place to ensure staff are suitable to work with children.

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should:

n sharpen existing procedures for monitoring individual staff's practice to help them enhance children's learning even further n consider more ways to enhance children's awareness of the diversity of cultures

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should:

31 January 2023 represented in the setting to enable children to make connections between their own and others' heritage.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY333449 Local authority Hampshire Inspection number 10264837 Type of provision Childcare on non-domestic premises

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Registers

Early Years Register, Compulsory Childcare Register Day care type Full day care

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inspection

Total number of places 42 Number of children on roll 50 Name of registered person The Saplings Pre-School

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reference number

Telephone number 0118 9812927 Date of previous inspection 28 June 2017

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Information about this early years setting

The Saplings Pre-School registered in 2006. It operates independently within the grounds of Burnham Copse Primary School in Tadley, Hampshire. The pre-school is open from 8.30am to 4pm on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday and from 8am to 4pm on Thursday in term time. The pre-school receives funding for the provision of free early education for children aged two, three and four years. There are eight members of staff, of which seven hold relevant childcare qualifications from level 3 to level 6. The manager holds early years professional status.

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Inspection activities

n This was the first routine inspection the provider received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with the provider and has taken that into account in their evaluation of the provider. n The inspector observed the quality of education during activities, indoors and outdoors, and assessed the impact this has had on children's learning. n Staff and children spoke to the inspector about their experiences at the setting. n The manager carried out a learning walk with the inspector. She discussed the curriculum on offer. n The manager made available relevant documentation for the inspector to review, including staff's suitability to work with children. n Parents shared their verbal and written views about the education and care their children receive. The inspector took account of their feedback.

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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

31 January 2023 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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