Milnrow Pre-School Playgroup

Milnrow Pre-School Playgroup Inspection report for early years provision

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316412 Unique Reference Number 15 May 2007 Inspection date Stephanie Joy Bennett Inspector

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Charles Lane, Milnrow, Rochdale, Lancashire, OL16 3NZ Setting Address

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E-mail

Milnrow Pre-School Playgroup Registered person Integrated Type of inspection Full day care, 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?

Milnrow Pre-School Playgroup is a committee run organisation. It has been open for a number of years and operates from one main room and an extended conservatory in a purpose built building. It is situated in Milnrow, close to Rochdale. A maximum of 32 children may attend at any one time. The group is open each weekday from 08.00 to 16.00 term time only. All children have access to an enclosed play area.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

There are currently 75 children aged from two to under five years on roll. Of these, 63 children receive funding for early education.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

The nursery employs eight members of staff who work with the children. All hold appropriate early years qualifications.

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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 good. Children gain a strong awareness of being healthy and develop good hygiene practice. Staff work hard to maintain good daily routines and help children develop independence. For example, they select their own tissues to clean their noses and are reminded to wash their hands, using pictures displayed in the bathroom. The group have successfully achieved a 'Golden Grin' award. As a result, children know how to keep their teeth healthy, what foods are good for you and the benefits of growing their own fresh produce. They enjoy the benefits of accessing fresh water independently from a water cooler and have various healthy snacks, such as fruit, bread sticks, cheese and crackers each day, so that a healthy diet is maintained.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children are encouraged to grow and develop, as they practise physical skills, such as balancing and climbing on frames and walking up and down ladders. They peddle bikes and enjoy activities, such as parachute games outdoors. They have daily opportunities to enjoy fresh air and exercise because the staff use tarpaulin covers and materials to make canopies, so that children can play out in all weathers. Children's fine physical skills are well developed, as they thread cotton reels, use scissors to cut out pictures and manipulate various materials, such as play dough.

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Helping children to be healthy

Records and procedures to maintain children's daily health and well-being, such as the administration of medication and their individual needs, are effectively managed. Children are handled appropriately in the event of a minor accident because staff hold current first aid certificates.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is good. Children are cared for in a very welcoming, safe and secure environment. Good procedures are in place to ensure that hazards are effectively minimised. Children are kept very secure. Staff carefully monitor who enters and leaves the premises, using security cameras and good systems to sign adults, children and visitors in and out.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Children play with equipment which is checked and cleaned regularly to keep them safe. Most resources are stored effectively, to encourage the children's independence in accessing activities both indoors and out. However, one creative area is currently disorganised, so children cannot easily select equipment they need for their own activity.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Children learn how to keep themselves safe as they practise regular emergency evacuation procedures and understand simple behaviour boundaries to keep them safe indoors. They are fully safeguarded from harm because staff have up to date knowledge on the new Local Safeguarding Children Board procedures. Staff keep accurate records of accidents and incidents, which are shared with parents.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is good. Children are very settled, secure and confident, as they are cared for by staff who show genuine care and concern for each child. The key person system is effective in ensuring that each child is known well by a member of staff, who works closely with parents to meet their needs.

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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 Staff are secure in the knowledge of 'Birth to three matters'. Planning integrates well with the Foundation Stage, so that children are fully included in all activities, through the provision of continuous areas of play and learning. Therefore, young children play and learn according to their own levels and abilities. As a result, children can be imaginative, creative and enjoy an interesting environment, where they explore a different range of experiences, such as building sand houses, painting on clear glass frames and exploring different textures on top of light boxes. All children benefit from the well resourced outdoor area. They build dens for various role play games or dig in the sand with toy remote control diggers. They enjoy searching for mini beasts, such as snails and then caring for them in their special boxes, supplying them with

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The quality of teaching and learning is good. Children benefit from the staff's secure knowledge of the Foundation Stage, as they plan and assess the children's progress towards the early learning goals well. As a result, children are fully engaged in a wide range of interesting and purposeful activities which promote their learning in all areas. Staff understand the children's individual capabilities. However, assessment records do not show their next steps in learning and planning does not show how older and more able children's learning is extended.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The calm, friendly atmosphere and family approach contribute to children's strong development of personal, social and emotional skills. Most children enter confidently, calling their carers 'aunty', who ensure that they are fully secure and supported as they arrive. Children concentrate on activities for long periods of time, as they work hard to build sand houses and railway tracks. They use good negotiating skills to decide who will build what and which materials are needed. Children gain good independence and self-care skills, as they access their own drinks from the water cooler, sweep sand with a dustpan and brush and manage their own hygiene. More able children enjoy taking turns to help prepare snack, for example, by counting out how many plates and cups they need.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Communication, language and literacy is strong. Children have free access to books and handle them well. They enjoy listening to stories or joining in with action songs and rhymes. They are very confident communicators, as they ask adults many questions and hold articulate conversations, describing events from their own lives, such as where they live or where they went on holiday. They make good early attempts to write for a purpose, using clipboards indoors and out and a mark making area. Older children have excellent letter recognition skills and link sounds and letters well, as they confidently write out their own names and sound out the names of their peers.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children count confidently to 10 and beyond and older children recognise some numerals. They begin to solve problems as they decide whether all the shells will fit on the sand house, which they have built. Younger children confidently match colours and work out sequences, as they follow threading and cotton reel patterns. However, some opportunities are missed through interaction and planning, to extend older more able children's learning, to increase the use of early calculation skills.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children have many opportunities to be creative and design, join and assemble. For example, they cut with scissors, and use sticky tape and straws to make flags. They develop good concepts of shape and colour, as they focus on a colour and shape of the week and their pictures are displayed. However, the current organisation of the creative area does not always help them choose materials independently.

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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 gain a very good knowledge and understanding of the world, as staff use all opportunities to increase their awareness of their environment. For example, outdoors the tarpaulin, which is used as a canopy, suddenly blows in the wind. The children express great excitement as it makes a lot of noise and are able to say that 'the wind made it go whoosh'. Some pegs break loose, so the children excitedly help to collect the pegs and secure the tarpaulin again. They have a very good sense of time and place, as they talk about their holiday while 'listening to the sea' in the sea shells, or describe that they live in England. They make very good use of a computer to support their learning or operate toy shopping tills and compact disc players, which develops their skills in using information and technology equipment.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is good. Children are welcomed and included in the setting, as they see displays of their own work around the room and photographs of themselves. This increases their sense of belonging. They gain a good awareness of other cultures and their own, as they enjoy special activities, such as eating Chinese food for Chinese New Year. They access a good range of resources, which include toy wheelchairs and disability dolls, books and dressing up clothes to promote a positive awareness of ethnic diversity and disability.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Children's spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is fostered. All children behave very well because staff consistently reinforce positive behaviour boundaries and offer lots of praise and support. As a result, children are very polite, saying 'excuse me' to adults and please and thank you during snack time. They become very independent, as older children help to prepare the snack by counting plates and putting straws in the milk bottles. They express wonder, as they experience the affects of the wind on their canopies outdoors, or watch snails make trails in the tank.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Partnership with parents is good. Parents contribute to children's educational development and receive good information about the service provided. They learn of their child's progress and education, through parents' evenings, newsletters and displayed plans or notices. They are able to view their child's profile at any time and continue promoting their child's learning at home. For example, through practical activities, such as continuing to grow vegetables that have been planted at nursery, or caring for 'teddy' for the week.

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Organisation

The organisation is good. The registered provider ensures that all procedures are correctly followed, to ensure that staff continue to be suitable to care for children. The team are well established with a low turnover of staff, so that continuity of care is effectively promoted. Staff are very well deployed and organised. They each know their roles and responsibilities well to promote a good balance of adult and child led activities. This means that children have good opportunities to learn independently and develop their own ideas.

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Organisation

Good induction procedures ensure that staff have a secure knowledge of the setting's policies and procedures. All records relating to the children's daily safety, health and well-being are well maintained. This includes the complaints procedure which is up to date and shared with parents.

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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 Leadership and management is good. The leader takes full opportunities to train and develop her own skills and her staff in order to effectively manage and carry out the nursery education. The team are developing methods of reflective practice and improvement plans, but currently these do not show the setting's strengths and weaknesses, for example, in how they record and plan for the children's next steps in learning. The staff are very highly motivated to meet the children's needs and improve the education provided. They plan and work effectively together, so that children are secure and enjoy learning in a very happy and friendly environment.

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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 care inspection, the setting were asked to provide opportunities for parents to receive regular information on their child's progress. Since then, parents have free access to their child's development profiles. They are able to attend parent's evenings and have a 'one to one' with their child's key person or the pre-school leader. Parents are encouraged to contribute to their child's learning. As a result, children are more able to progress and reach their potential.

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Improvements since the last inspection

At the last inspection of nursery education, the setting were asked to; develop assessment and planning systems, to ensure consistent links with the stepping stones across all six areas of learning, taking into account activities for older and more able children. Staff now make full use of the stepping stones as part of their planning, so they know what they wish the children to achieve. However, there is still little reference to how older and more able children's learning is further extended. Therefore, in some areas of learning, such as maths, they are not fully challenged to reach their full potential.

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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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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): • organise the creative area, so that children can make clear choices from all the materials available to further develop their independence (also relates to nursery education).

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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

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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 plans and assessments, so that the children's next steps in learning inform planning and older and more able children's learning is extended to their full capabilities.

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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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