Katherines Primary School

Churchill Pre-School

Inspection report for early years provision

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Churchill Pre-School

115245 Unique Reference Number 08 February 2007 Inspection date Carol Cox Inspector

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Churchill Pre-School

Memorial Hall, Ladymead Lane, Churchill, Winscombe, Avon, BS25 5NH Setting Address

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E-mail

Churchill Pre-School Registered person Integrated Type of inspection Full day 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?

Churchill Pre-School opened in 1968. It operates from the Memorial Hall in the village of Churchill, North Somerset. The pre-school has access to a small rear garden and also use of the playing fields and local amenities. A maximum of 26 children may attend the setting at any one time. The pre-school is open each weekday from 09:00 to 15:15 on Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays and from 09:00 to 13:00 on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Children may attend a lunch club after the morning session on each weekday. The pre-school is open during term times only.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

There are currently 38 children aged from two to under five years on roll. Of these, 32 children receive funding for early years education. Children come from a wide catchment area as well as from the local village. The pre-school has experience of supporting children with learning difficulties or disabilities.

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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 pre-school is managed by a voluntary parents' committee and employs nine staff. Of these, five have appropriate early years qualifications and two are working towards a qualification.

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is good. Children's health is well promoted through clear policies and procedures which are shared with parents. For example, children are protected from spread of infection through clear exclusion policies. Most staff have current paediatric first aid certificates and are able to offer good care, should children have accidents. There are sound procedures in place to ensure the safe administration of medicines and to record any medication needs of children.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children have many opportunities to enjoy physical exercise. During inclement weather, the large hall offers plenty of space to ride on bicycles, climb, slither through tunnels and enjoy circle games. Staff talk to children about the importance of warming up before physical exercise. The group also benefit from the use of the large field and well-equipped play area adjoining the church hall.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children enjoy a variety of healthy and nutritious snacks and drinks. They enjoy helping themselves to fresh water from the dispenser and happily munch through fruit and vegetables at snack time. They enjoy bringing lunch boxes to lunch club and have many opportunities to taste different foods linked to topic work. Staff work closely with parents to identify any particular food needs and there are careful procedures in place to ensure children's needs are met.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is good. Children enjoy the freedom to learn and play in a safe and secure environment because staff have a good understanding of all safety issues. Staff contact annual risk assessments and daily checks to make sure the hall and activities do not present hazards for children. Children are safeguarded effectively in case of emergencies or fire through good staff induction and regular fire drills.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Children are all well protected by good procedures such as the collection policy, which requires parents to authorise those allowed to collect. All visitors to the premises are required to identify themselves and sign the visitors book. There is a good range of resources, which children are free to access.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Children are well protected from abuse or neglect because staff ensure that their knowledge of child protection procedures is current. Staff understand the need to record all concerns about children and share this information with parents.

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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

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is good. Children make good progress at the pre-school because staff have a good knowledge of how to help children settle and become confident. The younger children are included in all planned activities. They develop their speech and language skills through close interactions with staff and enjoy the stimulation of joining older children in their games. They explore and experiment with different materials and have opportunities to extend their physical skills. However, at times some younger or less able children find large group activities difficult when the activity or resources are not appropriate for their level of understanding. Staff generally use the Birth to three matters framework effectively to plan for children's learning.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The quality of teaching and learning is good. Children make good progress in all areas of learning because most staff have an effective working knowledge of the Foundation Stage curriculum. Key workers observe children's progress and record achievements in clear learning profiles. However, these records are not always maintained consistently, consequently staff do not always know how to extend children's next steps in learning.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children are happy and confident and enjoy choosing their own resources and making up games. Children show good creative skills in their role play and express their ideas in a variety of media. For example, paintings are not directed by staff and a morning's gallery displays a wide range of individual styles and techniques. Children are encouraged to explore media, for example a child happily mixed different coloured paints and used the end result for hand prints. Children have many opportunities to observe the natural world and to record their findings. For example, records show how children investigated different fruits and vegetables to search for seeds. Once found, the seeds were planted in an attempt to grow more plants.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children are beginning to write their names and most recognise their name tags at self registration time. They have opportunities to use mark making for purpose in meaningful activities. Staff help children use mathematical language in everyday situations, such as describing comparative size and position when building with different materials.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is good. Staff use their good knowledge of the children's needs and interests to promote their development. Children learn to value differences between people through celebrating festivals from other cultures in relevant activities. For example, during the autumn term children celebrated harvest festivals from two different faiths. They made and eat foods relevant to the festivals and decorated their play room accordingly. Children who have learning disabilities or difficulties are very well supported by knowledgeable staff who work closely with parents to identify and meet the needs of each child. All children enjoy using Makaton signs during their good morning song.

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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 Children generally behave very well and show care and consideration for each other. For example, although older children run around during energetic games they are aware that they need to look out for younger or smaller children. Children understand the simple rules and learn how their behaviour may affect others through gentle explanations by staff.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Partnership with parents is good. Parents are welcomed as valued partners in their children's care. Staff work to build relationships to ensure consistency of care and provide clear written and verbal information about the provision and each child's progress. Parents are invited to share in parents' evenings and display days when they can learn more about the Foundation Stage curriculum. Children's social, moral, spiritual and cultural development is fostered.

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Organisation

The organisation is good. Children enjoy an exciting range of activities to help them learn through play. Staff are well qualified and attend regular training. The environment is well-organised and staff plan effectively to rotate resources which are made easily accessible to children. There are good policies and procedures in place to help children settle and keep them safe. All necessary documentation and records are in place, although some are not shared confidentially with parents, for example, the incident records.

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Organisation

Leadership and management is good. The parents' committee fund-raises for resources and offers continuing support to staff to ensure children enjoy good care and education. The staff are currently completing an update of their quality assurance award. The committee support the staff appraisal system and actively encourage training to ensure knowledge and practice is current. The setting meets the needs of the range of children for whom it provides.

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Improvements since the last inspection

At the last care inspection a recommendation was made to develop an induction programme for new staff and students. This is now in place and new staff have a good knowledge of policies and procedures. At the education inspection the pre-school was asked to develop systems to show children's progress and to further involve parents in their children's learning. The pre-school are continuing to improve the system to record observations of children's learning and use these as a basis for discussion with parents. Parents are also invited to attend parents' evenings and display days when they can learn more about the Foundation Stage curriculum.

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Complaints since the last inspection

Since the last inspection there have been no complaints received by Ofsted that required the provider to 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 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): • ensure all records and documentation are shared with parents in a confidential manner

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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): • further develop staff's knowledge and understanding of how children learn and maintain consistent records of children's progress to inform planning for future 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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