Harris Primary Academy Crystal Palace

St Oswald's Playgroup

Inspection report for early years provision

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St Oswald's Playgroup

139966 Unique Reference Number 13 December 2006 Inspection date Patricia Ann Edward Inspector

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St Oswald's Playgroup

St Oswald's Church Hall, Brocks Drive, North Cheam, Surrey, SM3 9UW Setting Address

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E-mail

St Oswalds 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 satisfactory. 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 satisfactory.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

St Oswald's Playgroup is run by St Oswald's committee. It opened in 1966 and operates from St Oswald Church. It is situated on a site adjacent to the Church on the Park Farm Estate in the London Borough of Sutton.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

A maximum of 30 children may attend the setting at any one time. The playgroup is opened each weekday morning from 08.50 to 11.50 and each Friday afternoon from 12:30 to 15:30, for 38 weeks of the year. All children share access to a secure enclosed outdoor play area.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

There are currently 54 children aged from two years six months to under five years on the roll. Of these 26 children receive funding for early years education. The nursery currently supports a number of children with disabilities and also supports a number of children who speak English as an additional language.

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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 12 members of staff. Of these, seven hold appropriate early years qualifications and there are four working towards a qualification.

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is satisfactory. Children are beginning to learn the benefits of healthy living and have access to adequately healthy nutritious snacks, which are available to them on a daily basis. They also have access to drinking water throughout the session.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children's welfare is appropriately safeguarded because staff have ensured the required documentation is in place to record medication in line with regulation. However because the group runs for a short period only prescribed medication for allergies and breathing conditions are administered. There are sufficient procedures in place for if children become unwell and the playgroup does not accept children who are ill. There are a large number of staff with training in paediatric first aid to administer treatment in the event of accident. Permission is in place for staff to seek medical advice or treatment for children in the event of an emergency.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children are beginning to learn the importance of sufficient hygiene practice and routines. However the groups current hand washing procedures do not allow children to access running water to wash their hands before snacks. Which compromises children's health and risk of cross infection.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children have access to large hall on a daily basis to develop their physical development and skills. There is an outside area that the children access in the summer months weather permitting. Children have opportunities to develop their spatial awareness when riding bikes and running around. However it often leads to accidents with children bumping heads. They also have ample opportunities to develop their balance and co-ordination skills on apparatus such as climbing frame and slide and activities such as circuit courses and during action rhymes.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is satisfactory. Children access a satisfactory range of play equipment and resources, which are set out by staff members on a daily basis. However resources are not stored effectively to give children choice or a sense of independence. The learning environment is sufficiently stimulating and welcoming to both children and adults, which ensures children’s learning and increases self-esteem, for example their creative art work is displayed in the large hall.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Children are cared for in a secure environment where the risk of accidental injury is generally minimised by staff's vigilance and implementation of appropriate practices such as regular risk assessments and emergency evacuation practices to reduce potential accidents. However the accident book entries have not been assessed to prevent the regular occurrence of children colliding into each other during free play 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 Children are protected from the possible signs of abuse or neglect because staff have a sound understanding of child protection issues and are aware of procedures to follow should they be concerned about a child in their care. There is an appropriate safeguarding policy in place, however it does not include the procedure to follow if an allegation is made against a staff member or volunteer. Staff also lack knowledge of Government procedures as detailed in "What to do if you're worried a child is being abused" guidelines.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is satisfactory. Children enjoy their time at the setting. They arrive happy and confident and quickly settle, making their own choices about their play. Children are interested in activities that are available. They are progressing because staff use their understanding of children's development, to provide satisfactory quality care and learning experiences. Staff have sufficient knowledge of their key children and talk to them about their family and what they have been doing at home. This interaction, and the implementation of a key worker system, helps to secure relationships between children and staff developing a sense of trust.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children enjoy regular opportunities to express their imagination through role-play. They love dressing up and acting out scenarios such as cooking meals and going shopping. They experience a range of media and materials encouraging them to explore, for example, through junk modelling and painting. Staff know the children well and how they are progressing. Staff plan activities according to interests and topics, such as, colours, Autumn, Halloween. They recognise the value of play in a child’s development and introduce a range of experiences, enabling all children to learn to play and work together in small and large groups as well as independently.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children enjoy accessing messy play materials, such as sand, which they happily explore with buckets and spades or their hands. Children are becoming confident communicators and are free to express their views and opinions to staff and their peers during activities and at circle time. Staff listen with interest and praise and encourage children as they sing solo songs to their peers at snack time discussions. However some staff members do not use effective questioning at story time to develop children's memory and sense of recall.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The quality of teaching and learning is satisfactory. Children make progress because staff have an understanding of the Foundation Stage and of how children learn and have sufficient knowledge of the children. Staff observe the children and plot their progress on a developmental chart. However, the individual observations and assessments do not inform planning of the next steps for children's individual learning. This impacts on children's progress and opportunities of challenges.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children have sufficient opportunities to look and learn about living things such as stick insects. They feed them leaves and used magnifying glass to observer them closer. Children plant bulbs and take them home to nurture them with the supervision of their parents.

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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 Children concentrate well at self-chosen activity. Snack time provides opportunities for children to find their own drinks bottles, which have their names written on them. Their understanding that print carries meaning is reinforced by having access to book area. However children do not independently access the area without adult direction. Children are encouraged to write their names on art work and many of them can complete their names using recognisable letters.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children enjoy moving timely to music. Paint at the easel helps them to create their own designs and experiment with colours. The home corner is appropriately resources to give children meaningful opportunities to act out real life experiences.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Some children are able to count confidently and recognise numbers one to ten. They are beginning to understand one-to-one correspondence. They are also learning the basics of addition and subtraction through singing nursery rhymes and songs, on a daily basis.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children have sufficient self-esteem and were confident to stand in front of a large number of people at the Christmas nativity play.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is satisfactory. Children are valued as individuals and staff ensure children engage in activities that enable them to learn about other cultures. For example the celebration of Easter, Hanukah, Chinese New Year and Ramadan. Children’s spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is therefore fostered. However children lack access to positive play materials that reflect diversity.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Children with special needs are given adequate support to make progress. At the same time, the staff seek advice and guidance from other professionals when setting meaningful targets. The special needs co-ordinator has some training and experience in this area.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Children are usually well behaved and work harmoniously with each other in response to the realistic boundaries and expectations of staff. However the organisation of large group story time, is disruptive. Children tend to fidget and talk to their peer’s rather than focus on the story that is being told.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Children benefit from satisfactory partnership with parents. For example key worker systems operates well and practitioners are happy to talk to parents on request. Parents are greeted personally at the door of the setting as they arrive or collect their children. They are sufficiently informed about the pre-group, routines and activities by means of newsletters and notice boards.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Partnership with parents and carers is satisfactory. Parents of children who receive nursery education have a sufficient awareness of the routines and activities and have access to plans and sufficient information on the six areas of learning in the Foundation Stage. On arrival and departure, parents have some opportunity to speak with staff. They also have access to children’s assessment files. There are however little opportunities for parents to contribute to their child’s assessment records or provide information about their child that would be formally used to promote their children's learning.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

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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Organisation

The organisation is satisfactory. Appropriate induction systems ensure that the staff are well informed and able to keep children healthy, safe and protected. The manager has a ‘hands on’ role and she evaluates teaching effectively, through daily observations of the staff team and regular monitoring. The staff record the children's achievements and progress and compile reports to share with the parents and local schools. The staff work well with one another, parents and other professionals to ensure children with additional needs make progress. All required documentation is in place and stored appropriately. However the register and the safeguarding children policy are not yet in line with current legislation.

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Organisation

Overall, the leadership and management of the setting are satisfactory. Staff have a positive attitude towards improvement and are working hard to make progress to develop the service. Most staff are appropriately qualified in child care and early years. The setting obtains support from the Foundation Stage co-ordinator, who comes in once a month to help with planning. The majority of staff are deployed so that children are well supported, however the deployment of staff who work with children receiving nursery education is not consistent. The manager oversees the planning of activities to evaluate the quality of teaching and its impact on children's learning. From this she is able to identify staff training needs and any resources needed to support children's learning.

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Organisation

Space and resources are organised adequately, enabling children to play and learn in a comfortable and relaxed environment. The organisation of the hall ensures a stimulating environment, in which children are able to help themselves to a range of equipment set out. Older children also have access to room on the first floor to complete more focused work with less distractions daily. This contributes to children's satisfactory progress in all areas of learning and the smooth operation of the setting as a whole.

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Organisation

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 inspection, the group were asked to ensure committee members are given full information and guidance about their roles and responsibilities and offer snacks that are healthy and nutritious. The group has improved the information that is given to committee members and ensures that children have access to fresh fruit, which has developed children's understanding of healthy living.

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Complaints since the last inspection

Since the last inspection 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.

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Complaints since the last inspection

The provider is required to keep a record of complaints made by parents, which they can see on request. The complaints record may contain complaints other than those made to Ofsted.

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Complaints since the last inspection

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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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 satisfactory. 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 satisfactory.

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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): • improve hand washing routines to reduce children's risk to cross infection. • revise safeguarding children's policy to include procedures to follow in the event of an allegation against a member of staff or volunteer and develop awareness of What to do if you're worried a child is being abused guidelines. • increase children's knowledge of staying safe to reduce the amount of accidents relating to them bumping into each other. • improve registration system to detail times of children's arrival and departure. • improve the deployment of the staff members who work with children receiving nursery education to promote consistency

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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): • develop a system to ensure children's assessments inform planning and the evaluation of activities identify the next steps for individual learning and to ensure that parents can be fully involved in all aspects of their child's care and learning

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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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