St John's RC Playgroup

St John's RC Playgroup

Inspection report for early years provision

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St John's RC Playgroup

301987 Unique Reference Number 05 December 2006 Inspection date Helene Anne Terry Inspector

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St John's RC Playgroup

Beacon Road, Bradford, West Yorkshire, BD6 3DQ Setting Address

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E-mail

St John's RC Playgroup Registered person Integrated Type of inspection Sessional care Type of care

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E-mail

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000

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ABOUT THIS INSPECTION

The purpose of this inspection is to assure government, parents and the public of the quality of childcare and, if applicable, of nursery education. The inspection was carried out under Part XA Children Act 1989 as introduced by the Care Standards Act 2000 and, where nursery education is provided, under Schedule 26 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998. This report details the main strengths and any areas for improvement identified during the inspection. The judgements included in the report are made in relation to the outcomes for children set out in the Children Act 2004; the National Standards for under 8s day care and childminding; and, where nursery education is provided, the Curriculum guidance for the foundation stage. The report includes information on any complaints about the childcare provision which Ofsted has received since the last inspection or registration or 1 April 2004 whichever is the later.

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The key inspection judgements and what they mean

Outstanding: this aspect of the provision is of exceptionally high quality Good: this aspect of the provision is strong Satisfactory: this aspect of the provision is sound Inadequate: this aspect of the provision is not good enough

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The key inspection judgements and what they mean

For more information about early years inspections, please see the booklet Are you ready for your inspection? which is available from Ofsted's website: www.ofsted.gov.uk.

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

On the basis of the evidence collected on this inspection:

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

The quality and standards of the care are good. The registered person meets the National Standards for under 8s day care and childminding.

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

The quality and standards of the nursery education are good.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

St John's RC Playgroup has been registered since 1993 and is managed by a voluntary committee. It operates in a portable building, situated in the grounds of St John's RC Primary School. The building consists of one main room with access to kitchen and toilet facilities off the playroom. Children directly access a fully enclosed outdoor play area within the main school playground surrounding the building. The playgroup serves the local community.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

A maximum of 20 children aged between three and five years may attend at any one time. There are currently 22 children on roll, of whom 20 receive funding for nursery education. The playgroup is open five mornings per week, offering sessional care from 09.00 until 11.30.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 The playgroup employs seven members of staff on a part-time basis. Three of the staff, including the leader, hold appropriate early years qualifications. The setting receives support from the local authority and Bradford Under Five's Association.

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is good. A good balanced healthy diet is promoted to foster children's health and development. Children are offered drinks and snacks regularly throughout the session and they learn about foods that are good for them. They make choices about what they like, such as toast without the beans, and milk or water. They enjoy a variety of fruit, vegetables and dips, yoghurts, and cheese and crackers. Individual dietary needs are fully considered to promote children's well-being.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children are cared for in a clean and well maintained environment where effective procedures and practices ensure that children's health and welfare are fully considered. The staff provide good support and guidance to ensure that children develop a good understanding of hygiene, such as encouraging them to wash their hands after toileting and before eating. A poster displayed above the sinks in the bathroom reminds children of good hygiene practices. Children also learn about personal hygiene when they are reminded to cover their mouth when they cough and they comment that they wash their hands to get rid of the germs. Staff follow good hygiene practices by using different cloths for different cleaning purposes and they regularly wipe down the tables to protect the spread of infection. Records to promote children's health are very well maintained. Parents provide written permission to enable staff to seek emergency

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Helping children to be healthy

treatment or advice for their children, a sound sickness policy is in place and accident and medication records are completed accurately.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children enjoy a wide range of physical activities which contribute to their good health. They have regular access to physical activities both indoors and outdoors, such as the use of balancing and climbing equipment, a slide, bikes, scooters and bats and balls. They delight in playing games to make them active, such as pretending to be jumping beans, string beans and runner beans.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is good. Children use a broad range of very good quality, developmentally appropriate resources that foster all areas of their development. Most resources are very well organised into specific areas of learning within the playroom at child height; encouraging children to make choices and promote their independence skills. Other items are stored neatly in the storeroom.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The premises are well maintained, bright and welcoming to parents and children, owing to the colourful displays of children's work. Children move around safely and freely in the very well organised setting, where risks are identified and minimised by staff through very good practices. Regular risk assessments are done by staff both inside and outside the building to ensure safety. Access to the provision is monitored very well. Doors are locked at the start of the sessions,

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 and staff ensure children leave at the end of sessions with a known adult in order to protect children. Staff fully comply with health and safety requirements to keep children safe. Children are also learning well about their own personal safety through activities, such as road safety and the regular fire drills.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Children are well protected by staff who have a good understanding of the child protection procedures in line with the Local Safeguarding Children Board. Staff have attended awareness training in child protection, and all the required policies and procedures for the safe management of the setting are in place.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is good. Staff provide a good range of activities and play opportunities to foster all areas of children's development. Activities and resources in the playroom are age specific for children attending, and these are arranged into specific areas of learning. For example, children play in the creative area, small construction and book area. However, some of the play areas are only stocked with resources that are specific to the current theme or topic. This limits children's ability to initiate and consolidate their own learning through their own interests. For example, the book area only consists of books related to the current theme and children do not have access to science and investigative equipment unless they are doing a theme about growth or mini-beasts. Children are happy, very settled and move between activities freely spending as much or as little time as they wish, depending on their interest. The daily routine is varied and flexible with

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

times for children to have snacks and take part in activities both indoors and outdoors.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The interaction between staff and children is very good, ensuring that warm, trusting relationships are developed. Staff spend all of their time playing with the children, giving support, using playful talk and encouraging them to explore their environment. Staff are interested in what children do and say and respect their views and wishes, which impacts on children's sense of well-being.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The quality of teaching and learning is good. Staff have good knowledge of the Curriculum guidance for the foundation stage and of how children learn effectively. This is demonstrated by the way staff use effective questioning and impromptu activities to extend learning. The staff have high expectations of the children and know their abilities well. For example, a younger child is asked to count the buns they have made from the dough, and a more able child is asked how many more cherries are needed so that each bun has a cherry on the top. The short term planning is currently very basic and does not cover the six areas of learning effectively nor does it contain the learning outcomes for the children. However, children achieve well owing to staff's good awareness of the Foundation Stage and their ability to take every opportunity to extend learning. Children's assessment records are used to inform the planning of the activities

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

ensuring that individual development needs are effectively addressed, although they are only updated every half term. Methods used to engage children in the activities are very good. Staff are patient, they listen to the children, respect their views and create warm caring relationships, which gives children a sense of belonging and boosts self-esteem.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 Overall, the children are making good progress in all areas of learning. A good strength of the setting is children's progress in their personal, social and emotional development. They have good concentration spans and spend extended periods of time at some of the activities, such as at the computer, in the role play area and at the dough table. They adapt to the changes in the routine very well, stopping their play when asked by staff to prepare for snack time or going outdoors to play. They have friends who they enjoy playing with and find partners easily to accompany them when they walk orderly over to the school hall to practise the Nativity play. Children operate very independently within the setting. They make decisions about what they want to eat at snack time, such as beans with their toast and milk or water. They tidy up the

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

resources very competently, self-register at the beginning of the session, pour their own drinks and take great pride in the little tasks that they do when they act as monitors. For example, when they give out cups, place name cards on the table and collect the used hand wipes, cups and name place cards. They also enjoy having responsibility for changing the day and weather chart during circle time.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children use language well to initiate conversation with their friends and adults; they ask questions and use talk to connect ideas, explaining what they are doing and what they are going to do next. They enjoy books and understand the concept of words; for example, they are aware that the big writing on the front of the book is the title and smaller writing is the author's name. They are beginning to recognise their own names and some more able children recognise those of their friends. Children are developing early writing skills as they explain what their message says as they mark make, and more able children are attempting to write letters of their name. They are beginning to recognise the sounds of letters of the alphabet, particularly those associated with the initial sound of their name and days of the week.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children make good progress in their mathematical development. They count very well, use numbers in their play and use their fingers to represent numbers, for example when they talk about how old they are and how many objects they have. The more able children show confidence and offer solutions to problems as they do simple calculations, for example, five fingers take away one makes four, and how many more monitors are needed to do the jobs.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children examine objects and living things to find out more about them as they plant and grow seeds. They construct with a purpose in mind, using a variety of materials as they make aeroplanes and fly them around the room. Children become engrossed as they do activities on the computer, with some children completing programmes. They also enjoy using the tape deck and head phones to listen to music and story tapes as they practise their technology skills.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children move freely with pleasure and confidence both indoors and outdoors. They negotiate space well and can adjust their speed to avoid obstacles when chasing one another outdoors. They show increasing control when they balance on apparatus and have good access to climbing equipment and wheeled toys. Children confidently explore a very good range of creative materials, such as paint, malleable materials, collage, sand and water. They freely access these materials to represent their feelings, thoughts and ideas, and staff effectively support them to extend learning as children enter in dialogue about what they have created.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is good. The staff have a very good awareness of positive behaviour management techniques to enhance children's well-being. Children are gently reminded about the rules of the setting that are displayed, such as, 'we always share', 'we always walk', and when asked 'do we touch anything in the school hall?', children confidently shout 'no'. Children are very well behaved owing to their interest and involvement in the activities. More able children share well, take turns and use good manners, such as please and thank you. Children happily stop their play when asked to by staff; they all place their hands in the air and wait to hear what is going to happen next. Lots of praise and encouragement is offered to the children, boosting confidence and self-esteem. This fosters their spiritual, moral, social and cultural development.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Children's individual needs are very effectively met through a variety of means including information received from parents at the gradual induction of the child. Equal opportunities are promoted very well. Boys and girls are encouraged to take part in all the activities and there is a very good range of resources that positively represent diversity in society. Children also celebrate a variety of festivals from around the world. This enables children to develop a positive attitude towards other people's differences and similarities and enables them to make connections between different parts of their lives.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The partnership with parents and carers is good. Children benefit from being cared for according to parents' wishes, which promotes continuity of care. Information is shared through regular chats at the beginning and end of sessions, and parents can talk with their key person when they help out on the parents' rota. Parents also receive good information about the setting, including access to the policies, procedures, information booklets, school's newsletters, notice board and access to their child's development files. Parents of children receiving nursery education funding are encouraged to be involved in their child's learning; they share information about their child as they start the Foundation Stage, and can review information as their child moves along the stepping stones towards the early learning goals. Details of what children are going to do during each half term are given to parents at the start of the term. However, parents

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Helping children make a positive contribution

do not receive information on how they can extend this learning at home.

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Organisation

The organisation is good. Space and the deployment of staff are used very effectively to meet the needs of the children and enhance their well-being. Adult-child ratios are consistently maintained and are supplemented by the rota parents. Children benefit from the experience of good qualified staff, most of whom hold early years qualifications to Level 2 or 3. The good range of policies and procedures effectively underpin the setting. All the required documentation is effectively maintained to protect children.

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Organisation

Leadership and management within the setting are good. Management is motivated and enthusiastic, and all staff take full advantage of the training opportunities available to them. The group leader is beginning to reflect effectively on the provision through action plans and she is aware of aspects she wishes to improve. Staff are supported effectively through an

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Organisation

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 appraisal system; they work very well as a team and are aware of their roles and responsibilities. Everyone is committed to the continued improvement of the care and education of the children. Overall, the provision meets the needs of the range of the children for whom it provides.

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Improvements since the last inspection

At the last day care inspection it was recommended that improvements were made to documentation relating to child protection, the visitors book and parental written permissions. It was also recommended that fresh drinking water was accessible to children. Good improvements have been made to protect children and enhance their welfare. A jug of water is accessible to children throughout the sessions. All documentation has been updated. The visitors book is signed by all visitors into the setting, parents give their written permission to seek emergency medical treatment or advice and the child protection procedures now contain information on what to do should allegations of abuse be made against a member of staff.

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Improvements since the last inspection

At the last nursery education inspection it was recommended that improvements were made to children's assessment records, the accessibility of creative resources, opportunities for children to mark make and to develop monitoring and evaluation systems. Good improvements have been made to enhance children's progress. The stepping stones towards the early learning goals are used to monitor the children progress. Children freely access a good range of creative materials to enable them to develop their own ideas and assemble and join a variety of materials. Access to resources to enable children to mark make and write for a purpose are around the playroom and children write in the role play area. Improvements are being made in the evaluation and monitoring of the setting through the use of staff appraisals and the use of action plans.

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Complaints since the last inspection

Since 1 April 2004 there have been no complaints made to Ofsted that required the provider or Ofsted to take any action in order to meet the National Standards. The provider is required to keep a record of complaints made by parents, which they can see on request. The complaint record may contain complaints other than those made to Ofsted.

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

On the basis of the evidence collected on this inspection:

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

The quality and standards of the care are good. The registered person meets the National Standards for under 8s day care and childminding.

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

The quality and standards of the nursery education are good.

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The quality and standards of the care

To improve the quality and standards of care further the registered person should take account of the following recommendation(s):

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The quality and standards of the care

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 • provide a wide range of resources and play opportunities to enable children to build on their own interests and natural curiosity as learners (also applies to nursery education)

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The quality and standards of the nursery education

To improve the quality and standards of nursery education further the registered person should take account of the following recommendation(s): • make improvements as indicated in the care section above • further develop the planning of the curriculum to ensure that all the six areas of learning are covered, and that the learning outcomes of the activities for children are clearly identified.

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The quality and standards of the nursery education

set out in the leaflet Complaints about Ofsted Early Years: concerns or complaints about Ofsted's role in regulating and inspecting childcare and early education (HMI ref no 2599) which is available from Ofsted's website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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The quality and standards of the nursery education

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000

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