Wesleyhall CC

Wesley Hall Pre-School Centre Inspection report for early years provision

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226887 Unique Reference Number 28 February 2008 Inspection date Judith Chinnery Inspector

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Wesley Hall Community Centre, 76 Hartington Road, Leicester, Leicestershire, LE2 0GN

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E-mail

Wesley Hall Community Centre Limited 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?

The Wesley Hall Community Centre Limited provides sessional care for children aged between two and five years. It is situated in the Highfields area of Leicester City. The pre-school serves the local community which is predominately Asian and reflects a variety of social and economic backgrounds.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

The pre-school operates every weekday morning from 9.00 - 12.00 and every weekday afternoon from 13.00 - 15.00. The setting is registered to care for a maximum of 26 children at any one time. The children have access to the pre-school room, community hall, small back room, toilets and enclosed outside play area.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

There are currently 45 children on roll. There are 36 funded children. The setting supports children who have learning difficulties and/or disabilities. All children at the setting speak English as an additional language.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

There are four members of staff that work with children throughout the week. All members of staff have appropriate childcare qualifications and all are bilingual.

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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 enjoy good health and a healthy lifestyle in this setting. Children are learning about good hygiene because the staff have established good hand washing routines after using the toilet and before having a snack. The staff also maintain the premises in a clean manner which means that cross-infection is less likely. Staff maintain good records for managing accidents and dealing with mediation. They also work closely with parents and keep useful records about children's health needs such as allergies, likes and dislikes. This means that children's individual health needs are catered for effectively both on a daily basis and in an emergency.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children are healthy and well nourished because they enjoy a variety of different foods such as fruit and toast for snack time. Staff also ensure that children receive and can make healthy choices from the foods which they provide for celebrations such as Diwali and Eid. They also have access to water and milk each day and can help themselves whenever they need to; this means that children are unlikely to be thirsty in the setting and remain hydrated.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children are active and are developing good physical skills as they take part in regular activities which promote these skills effectively. Children are competent at running and throwing balls, are learning to climb and balance using the large apparatus and are able to move around the setting with agility avoiding each other and other obstacles. The staff are also developing the outdoor play space to ensure that children are able to get out in the fresh air each day.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is good. Children's safety is a priority in this setting. They are well protected from harm and neglect because the staff are vigilant and ensure safety precautions are well maintained.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Good procedures are in place for keeping risk assessments up-to-date and relevant to the setting. Fire evacuation procedures and drills are also well documented. This means that potential hazards to children are carefully minimised and ensures that children are kept safe whist playing. Safety precautions such as covered sockets ensure that children can move around the building safely.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Children benefit from the wide range of well-chosen toys and equipment available throughout the setting. Toys are purchased with children's needs and safety in mind. They are able to eat, sit and play safely because tables and chairs are appropriate for their stage of development. Children are well protected from unwanted visitors because all external exits are locked and well monitored by staff and managers.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Staff are knowledgeable about safeguarding children. They recognise common signs of abuse such as unexplained injuries and changes to children's behaviour; they can clearly explain the procedures for recording and reporting any concerns. Managers also have a clear understanding of dealing with child protection concerns and following up any allegations made against staff. Written policies are up-to-date and support staff well in managing any safeguarding concerns.

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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 really enjoy being in this setting. They are making good progress in their learning and play across all aspects of their development.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children enjoy good relationships with each other and the staff. They are happy and well settled in the setting. This is because the staff are sensitive, patient and spend time gaining children's confidence and trust. The children are now familiar with the setting and its routines and quickly become engaged in activities. Most children attempt to complete jigsaw puzzles and talk about the pictures. They love listening to stories and are beginning to use these in their imaginative play such as being animals in the jungle. The staff support children well in learning English. This means that children are gaining in their confidence to use English; they rapidly learn new words and are now using sentences to explain what they have been doing.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children readily create their own pictures. They use lines and circles to represent their ideas and readily use a variety of materials such as paint, pencils and chalk. Children also like to explore the sand and water activities and are finding out what it will do.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Staff are starting to make and record more useful observations of what children can do. They are also beginning to keep better records of children's progress through the 'Birth to three matters' framework. However, the staff are less confident in analysing this information. This means that while staff are developing a secure knowledge of what individual children can do they do not always identify what the children need to do next. The staff plan and provide a wide range of worthwhile and stimulating activities for the children to experience based on their knowledge of the 'Birth to three matters' framework. However, staff do not always use their knowledge of the children and their development effectively to inform their plans. This means that activities are not always based on what children are interested in and need to do next.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The quality of teaching and learning for Nursery Education is good. Children are starting to make good progress, given their starting points, towards the early learning goals in all areas of the Foundation Stage. Children's personal, social and emotional development is progressing well, they settle quickly to activities as they arrive and concentrate for growing periods of time. For example, children spend time completing puzzles and forming different shapes with the playdough. Children's independence skills are also growing because the staff provide worthwhile opportunities for this to happen such as buttering their own toast and trying to put on their own coats.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Staff's knowledge of the Foundation Stage is growing. They are beginning to make better use of open-ended questions to help children develop their thinking skills as well as being more flexible in their approach to children's learning. For example, they are relying less on directing children's activities and are now starting to enable children to explore and make decisions for themselves such as playing and talking together in the role-play area.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children are beginning to develop good communication, language and literacy skills because the staff listen to them and provide opportunities during circle time and stories to share their ideas and thoughts such as which animals might live in the jungle. They really enjoy listening to stories and readily join in with their favourite or most well-known parts such as repeating a rhyme or anticipating what might happen next. Children love to draw and make marks because

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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 there is plenty of paper and different media to do so. They use chalk, pencils or paint to ably represent their ideas with lines and circles. Most children now recognise their own names and can pick out their places for snack time.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

In mathematics children are becoming competent at counting by rote often beyond 10. Plans also show that children participate in activities and learning about shape and size such as noticing shapes in their environment. However, children are less able to solve simple mathematical problems because staff sometimes miss opportunities to use everyday routine activities to promote these skills. Children's knowledge and understanding of the world is growing. Children enjoy planting seeds and bulbs and checking on their growth as well as looking at and talking about the natural materials the staff have collected. This extends children's interest in the natural world around them. They enjoy opportunities to use some technology such as the computer. They like to design and make their own models from constructions kits. Children are learning about the weather and the days of the week during circle time. They also

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

explore and learn about differences and diversity as they celebrate different festivals and find out about food such as during Diwali or Christmas celebrations. Children's physical skills are developing competently as they take up opportunities to use scissors, manage cutlery at snack times and attempt to fasten their coats. The varied opportunities offered both outside and indoors ensure that children make progress in their large body skills. Children love using paint and spend a lot of time carefully creating their pictures using different colours. Their creative development is also fostered well as they participate in musical activities and singing. Children are also becoming more spontaneous in using role-play because the staff are facilitating opportunities for this to happen. Staff create attractive scenes such as the jungle which helps children to build on their skills to use their imagination to become different characters and

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Much of the children's successful development and progress through the Foundation Stage is because the staff plan and provide a good range of activities across all six areas of learning. They are starting to get to know the children at the beginning of a new term and are keeping better records of observations and the progress children make through the stepping stones. However, as already mentioned earlier they do not always identify what the children need to do next or make clear links between the assessments they make on individual children and their planning. As a result activities do not always take account of children's interests and what they need to do next. It also means that some more able children are less well challenged to move on and make even more progress.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is good. Children are able to join in and make a positive contribution in this setting because staff are committed to getting to know them as individuals through their effective key worker system.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Staff are knowledgeable about promoting equality of opportunity through daily activities in the setting. They use resources such as books, artefacts and small world people figures to teach children about diversity and differences. Children are learning to develop a respect for themselves and others because celebrating festivals and finding out about other cultures and beliefs is important to the setting. Children who may have learning difficulties and/or disabilities are well supported in the setting. The member of staff who acts as the Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator for the setting ably supports other staff in managing record keeping, liaising with parents and other professionals, as well as adapting activities so that all children are included in the life of the setting.

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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 Most children behave well in the group. Staff are very patient and understanding of children's needs and gently redirect them to other activities when they do not want to share. Staff are sensitive to their needs and effectively support them in resolving minor squabbles and taking turns. Staff also make use of circle time and pictures to talk with the children about acceptable behaviour.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Children's social, moral, spiritual and cultural development is fostered. This is seen particularly in the provision of activities which promote diversity as well as in children's good behaviour and exploration of the natural world.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Staff work hard to develop good relationships with parents. Children receive care which is tailored to their needs because staff gather and keep good, relevant information from parents such as dietary information, language spoken and their likes and dislikes. Parents also receive information from staff regarding children's daily care. Partnership with parents for Nursery Education is good. Parents receive comprehensive information about the Foundation Stage both through the prospectus and attractive wall displays. Daily contact with staff and regular parent's meetings also enable parents to keep up-to-date with their child's progress and share what they know about their children. Parents are becoming more involved in their child's learning as staff offer ideas, in the newsletter and individually, for activities which support their child's learning at home.

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Organisation

The organisation is good. Outcomes for children are good because the setting is well organised. The setting meets the needs of the children for whom it provides. The setting is also starting to benefit from having a senior manager who has attained the Early Years Professional Status and is using her expertise to lead staff in making many improvements.

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Organisation

Robust recruitment systems include interviews and the take up of references and checks. This ensures that children are cared for by staff who are suitable and experienced in child care. The staff team works well together supporting each other well to offer good care to children.

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Organisation

Managers effectively organise and deploy staff throughout the setting so that children are well cared for in small groups which meet their needs and promote good care, learning and play. Staff are well supported in and encouraged to take up a variety of training opportunities to keep their child care knowledge up-to-date.

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Organisation

Comprehensive policies and procedures are available to staff and parents. Most are effective in promoting children's ability to be healthy, stay safe, enjoy and achieve and make a positive contribution. A thorough induction process ensures that all new staff are informed of the content of the policies. They are also regularly updated and discussed in staff meetings so that all staff are reminded about the setting's procedures.

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Organisation

Leadership and management for Nursery Education is good. Managers have a good understanding of the Foundation Stage and have a clear vision and aim to continually improve children's nursery education. They support staff well and act as good role models for newer staff in working with the stepping stones. Regular appraisals help managers to identify individual strengths, weaknesses and training needs. However, the setting is less good at monitoring and evaluating its educational provision overall and consequently lacks a clear focus for future development.

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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

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Improvements since the last inspection

At the last care inspection in June 2004 the setting was asked to make a number of improvements to record keeping, the provision of activities, safety and provision of drinking water. Since the last inspection the setting has made significant improvements to their record keeping. The operational plan now details how the setting is run and includes policies and procedures which are available to the staff and parents. The register details children's arrival and departure times accurately and appropriate medication records are in place. This means that the staff are effectively supported in meeting children's needs. A comprehensive risk assessment of the setting along with regular safety checks ensures that children are protected from potential hazards. Drinking water is also readily available to children at all times which ensures that they remain hydrated. Staff have now provided many more opportunities for

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Improvements since the last inspection

children to choose and access activities for themselves and to learn directly from first hand experiences; this means that children's care, learning and play is now promoted much more effectively.

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Improvements since the last inspection

At the last Nursery Education inspection in June 2004 the setting was asked to make improvements to the challenges offered to older children, assessment and planning systems and to the range of activities and resources available to the children. Since then the setting has worked hard to improve the range and choice of activities and resources available to the children. They are now much more able to make choices and use their initiative for themselves. Staff now also question and support individual children better so that more able children are more effectively challenged. Staff have made some significant improvements to their planning and assessment systems but as yet fail to make the links between the two. This means that activities are not always planned and provide around children's interests and what they need to do next.

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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 any 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):

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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 • develop the assessment of children's progress towards the early learning goals to ensure that the next steps children need to take are more clearly identified; ensure that this information is used to inform planning so that the activities provided for the children build on their interests and what they need to do next (this 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): • develop systems to monitor and evaluate the educational provision of the setting to ensure that all children make progress to their full potential.

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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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