Kiddiwinks Pre-School

Kiddiwinks Pre-School

Inspection report for early years provision

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Kiddiwinks Pre-School

EY342806 Unique Reference Number 28 February 2007 Inspection date Sue Vernon Inspector

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Kiddiwinks Pre-School

Paxcroft Primary School, Ashton Street, Trowbridge, Wiltshire, BA14 7EB

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Setting Address

0793 3726935 Telephone number ralph.mccaldon@blueyonder.co.uk E-mail Kiddiwinks Pre-School Registered person Integrated Type of inspection Full day care Type of care

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Setting Address

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?

Kiddiwinks Pre-School opened in 2006 and is run by a voluntary committee. The group operates from a mobile classroom within the grounds of Paxcroft Primary School, in the town of Trowbridge, Wiltshire. A maximum of 24 children may attend the nursery at any one time. There are currently 37 children on roll, of whom 18 receive funding for nursery education. Children attend on a part-time basis.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

The nursery group is open each weekday from 09.10 to 14.50. All children share access to a fully enclosed outdoor play area.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

There are four staff employed by the group. Two hold early years qualifications and one is working towards an appropriate early years qualification.

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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

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is satisfactory. Children's health is promoted satisfactorily. Children enjoy fresh fruit or vegetables such as carrot sticks as part of their daily healthy snack and can freely access their own bottle of fresh water during play sessions. Children's lunch boxes are stored appropriately in a cooler area. Any special dietary needs such as allergies are known and monitored which helps parents and children feel secure.

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Helping children to be healthy

A written sickness policy is in place and made known to parents explaining why infectious children are not accepted. This prevents the possibility of cross-infection. Children learn routines such as regular hand washing which support suitable hygiene practices. Staff promote a hygienic environment by using anti-bacterial spray on tables and wearing gloves when changing younger children's nappies. Staff work with parents in order to support any medication issues and required records for medication and accident recording are kept and shared with parents which supports consistency of care for children.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children enjoy some activities that promote active play and develop their physical health. Outdoors they enjoy walks or games with balls and hoops and indoors they stretch and dance to music tapes. Opportunities to develop climbing and balancing skills are not extensive. Children develop skills for using tools such as paint brushes and cutters with dough and they effectively join wooden construction kit pieces.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is satisfactory. Children are cared for in a safe environment where risks have been identified and minimised effectively. Staff use a list of daily checks to monitor room safety and have ensured suitable safety equipment such as heater guards and socket covers are in place. This enables children to move around safely during their play. Security is well monitored with the main door locked during sessions and a written record kept of visitors. Fire safety issues have been addressed effectively. A fire drill is displayed and the fire evacuation procedure is practised with the children. Suitable equipment such as a fire blanket, smoke detector and extinguisher is in place which promotes a safe environment for children. Children develop awareness of how to monitor their own safety as staff remind them to not run in the play room or to hold the hand rail down to the play area.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The play room is attractively set out with safe and suitable resources for the different ages of children attending. Children safely enjoy sand and water play or art work in the messy play area where floor coverings prevent water play becoming a safety risk. Staff routinely clean-up after play activities which prevents safety hazards. Appropriate equipment such as child-sized tables and chairs are used which enables all ages of children to safely participate in the play opportunities.

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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 Staff show a satisfactory understanding of child protection issues though are not fully clear on the procedure to be followed should any concerns arise. A statement of the child protection policy is displayed in order to explain to parents the responsibilities of the group.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is satisfactory. Children arrive happily and settle well. They are relaxed as they explore the activities which are set out to welcome them. Children enjoy a satisfactory range of activities that support their development and learning through play. They gain confidence and social skills as staff help them to share toys in the sand and water trays. All ages are offered opportunities to enjoy group activities such as story time or singing action songs as well as small group play, for example with simple puzzles or craft work.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children and staff build positive relationships with each other. Staff respond with friendly smiles and comments which help children feel secure. Younger children are supported and suitable resources offered in order that they can try different learning activities such as large size puzzles and chunky crayons and chalks.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The quality of teaching and learning is satisfactory. Staff use their general knowledge of the Foundation Stage to plan activities though details of the learning aims of activities and how the link to the stepping stones are not clearly known or shown in daily plans. Staff do not consistently identify extension activities in order to challenge the more able or less able children. Some observations are made in order to monitor children's progress in learning though these do not always identify areas for development or link into short-term planning.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children are interested in their learning and have positive attitudes as they confidently move around play opportunities during free play. They learn about sharing and take turns with the musical instruments or jugs in the water play. They develop independence as they help with putting toys away and enjoy small responsibilities such as taking round the fruit bowl at snack time.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children count regularly such as at circle time when they count the number of girls and boys attending. They identify numerals and select the number for the display. Counting activities are offered such as matching small bears to number cards and simple mathematical language is used as they add more water to fill and empty the bottle up. Children solve simple mathematical problems when they are asked what size building brick is needed to fill the space left.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children have some opportunities for mark-making within play, and learn that writing has a purpose as they use diaries in the home corner. Name cards are selected by the children as they arrive and some attempt to write their names on work though consistent opportunities to link letters to phonic sounds are not offered. Children value books and enjoy looking at stories both by themselves and with a staff member.

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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 learn about the natural world around them as they collect leaves form the school playing fields or make food balls for the birds which are hung on the trees out of the group's window. They observe change as they put ice shapes in the water play and monitor their melting. Staff respond to opportunities well as they collect snow from the grounds on a cold morning and put into the water tray for children to observe. Children have some limited opportunities to learn the value of technology as they switch on toys and select buttons to produce and match animal sounds to pictures.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children experience creative experiences as they explore a variety of media such as wet and dry sand, peat and spaghetti. They enjoy selecting collage materials to stick on pictures although free access and chance to get engrossed is restricted. Craft work is offered daily though focus is often on an end result rather that the process of creating and experimenting. A range of musical instruments help children explore rhythm and sounds both loud and quiet as they sing enthusiastically and play in different tempos.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is satisfactory. Staff get to know the children well and work closely with parents in order to find out about any particular needs. Parents complete an 'All about me' form for their child before they start in the group and settling-in visits are offered in order for the child to feel secure when left. Staff get to know any individual needs such as medication or diets and plan how to support them which helps parents feel valued. All children are offered access to the play opportunities and both girls and boys enjoy dressing-up and construction play. Children learn the value of diversity through playing with dolls, books and play food that reflect positive images of differences and other cultures.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Children benefit from the staff being good role models of friendliness and politeness. The group has a positive behaviour management policy with children being encouraged through praise. The staff team's positive attitude helps children to participate in putting toys away and taking turns, for example when sharing musical instruments. Children's self-esteem is built as they help with small responsibilities such as taking round the bowl of fruit pieces at snack time or collecting up cups after the mid-morning drink.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Parents are welcomed and greeted warmly both on arrival and departure. They receive verbal feedback on their child's experience and they know they can talk to their child's key worker which supports consistency of care for the children. Policies, such as the complaints policy are not fully up to date and not always clearly available to parents. This reduces information to parents about the reasons for the routines and procedures used by the group. Regular newsletters keep parents informed of events and developments in the group. Children's social, moral, spiritual and cultural development is fostered. Their involvement and comments during group activities such as story time are valued and they are keen to be the daily helper chosen to do small jobs as this builds their self-esteem. They express themselves well through regular opportunities to dress up or role play in the home corner. Their understanding of other cultures

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Helping children make a positive contribution

is fostered through books and dressing-up clothes. Children's experiences within their own families are valued and listened to, for example at meal times.

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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 The partnership with parents of children receiving a funded nursery place is satisfactory. An outline of the six areas of learning is included in the welcome booklet that parents receive. However little other information about the curriculum and how it relates to play activities is made available which limits opportunities for parents to understand or feel involved in their child's learning. Parents know they can discuss their child's work with staff but have few formal opportunities to view children's profile records and comment on or contribute to their child's learning.

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Organisation

The organisation is satisfactory. Suitable systems are used to ensure that staff working with children are appropriately cleared and have suitable qualifications, such as first aid. More than half of the staff hold early years qualifications and the management's support for on-going training results in one staff member working towards a qualification. Staff further develop their skills by attending occasional workshops held by the local authority early years department. Staff ratios are met and exceeded which benefits the children attending. Appropriate records and policies are in place though some details such as those for the child protection and complaints procedures are not fully in place.

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Organisation

The room is well planned in order to meet the play and care needs of the children. For example, a soft seating area is enjoyed by children looking quietly at books and a carpeted area enables them to extend their construction play. The room is set out to provide different areas for play experiences which maximises the benefit to children.

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Organisation

The quality of leadership and management is satisfactory.

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Organisation

The staff team in general plan activities and are involved together in monitoring progress and record keeping. However some systems for assessing the teaching programme are not yet fully effective. Staff are supported in attending training and given some time for record keeping. The setting meets the needs of the range of children for whom they provide.

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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. 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): • further develop staff's awareness of the required child protection procedure as recommended by the local Safeguarding Children's Board • ensure all policies and procedures such as the complaints policy meet the required national standards and are available to parents.

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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): • strengthen staff awareness of the Foundation Stage and further develop the links between observations, children's records and short-term planning to ensure all children are challenged and consistently moved through the stepping stones of the curriculum • extend opportunities for free creative expression and self-selection, linking letters to phonics and regular physical play • ensure information about the Foundation Stage is shared with parents and offer opportunities for parents to be involved in their child's 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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