Palace Wood Primary School

The Knightsbridge Kindergarten Inspection report for early years provision

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135106 Unique Reference Number 31 January 2008 Inspection date Alison Romanczuk Inspector

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119 Eaton Square, London, SW1W 9AL Setting Address

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E-mail

Beverly Delfgou Registered person Integrated Type of inspection Sessional care, Out of School 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 Knightsbridge Kindergarten provides Sessional Day Care and is situated in the basement of St Peter's Church in Eaton Square. The premises consists of three group areas, a soft play room, office, kitchen, toilets and suitable storage space. The children have supervised access to a small, fenced, paved outdoor area with storage for toys and a soft landing area. There are currently 14 members of staff, most of whom are qualified in childcare and education and nine are teachers.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

The kindergarten caters for a diverse local population and is close to many of the embassies in London. As a result 45 of the children speak English as an additional language. There are currently no children attending identified with learning difficulties and/or disabilities. The kindergarten is registered to care for 76 children aged from two to five years old, of these, not more than 40 may be aged between two and three years old. There are currently 76 children on roll, 45 of whom receive nursery education grant. The kindergarten is open from Monday to Friday from 09:00 to 15:30 with sessions from 09:00 to 12:00 and 13:00 to 15:30 term time only.

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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's good health is given priority at the kindergarten. Staff are clearly inducted to procedures to ensure the clean and well managed environment supports children's ongoing health. Children learn good habits such as washing their hands and show increasing independence, for example when helping themselves to tissues and disposing of paper towels in the bathroom areas. Clear records about children's individual needs and consistently used medication procedures ensure children's good health when they are unwell and the majority of staff are trained in first aid. Parents are aware of the kindergarten's infectious illness policies. Children's increasing knowledge of how to keep healthy is well supported through activities such as those which encourage the children to look at and talk about what they are eating. They are well nourished when at the kindergarten with staff encouraging parents to bring in

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Helping children to be healthy

healthy packed lunches and snacks. Children enjoy and benefit from regular physical play to support their growing bodies and wellbeing. For example, the children enjoy rough and tumble in their soft play room and are often involved in activities such as dance and team games throughout the week. This helps the children to let off steam and to develop important skills in areas such as coordination and control.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is satisfactory. Children's safety is underpinned by clear health and safety policies in place which are clearly inducted to all staff. Their safety is further ensured at the kindergarten because the environment is well managed and children can move around freely using good quality resources, for the most part safely. Risk assessments, whilst in place, do not always work consistently well in identifying and removing hazards from around the building and this results in some chemicals being left out and plug sockets uncovered, for example. Despite this, children are well supervised during activities and the high ratios of staff ensure they are not left alone. Children are protected from fire hazard because the kindergarten has accessible fire escapes and regularly checked fire prevention equipment installed. Regular fire drills are practised with the children and records kept as appropriate. Children are safeguarded from harm because staff get to know the children

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

well and monitor them closely. Concerns are recorded as appropriate and shared with other professionals if necessary. Staff attend training in this area to ensure they are updated to current procedures and share these with children's parents so that communication is open and two way.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is good. Children enjoy coming to the kindergarten and settle quickly into the routine. Staff use their knowledge of Birth to three matters well to provide an interesting and fun range of activities and the children respond well. They are given time to settle into this busy kindergarten by joining small groups with dedicated staff and staff offer lots of cuddles and reassurance for new starters. Staff observe the children and get to know them well as a result. During free play times the children are able to explore resources around them such as construction sets, role play kitchens and cosy book corners which are interesting and easily accessible. At other times the activities provided appear overly staff led and this prevents children from fully exploring the environment and their interests. Despite this, the children enjoy cooking activities where

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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 they help to mix ingredients for their fish biscuits, for example and times when staff read their favourite books, often as the children enjoy their snacks. The children demonstrate increasing independence, chatting to their friends at the table and enjoy and get to know the routine set out. They respond with excitement to rough and tumble and climbing in the soft play room, stretching their toes and balancing in dance activities and join in with enthusiasm to singing their favourite songs and rhymes.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The quality of teaching and learning is good and staff work well together in sharing their skills and expertise to support children's learning. Children's achievements towards the Foundation Stage are evident as a result. The good staff to child ratios mean staff can give individual children valuable attention and get to know them well. Staff clearly observe children's progress through the stepping stones and plan an interesting and lively curriculum including specialist music, dance and sports taken by visiting teachers. Children are enthusiastic and engaged, for the most part but opportunities to enable the children to use their initiative are sometimes missed because staff are eager to provide a fully structured routine within the time available. Despite this, the children show pride in their work and concentrate well when they attempt to scribe their names or when labelling their underwater theme with fish labels, for example. Labels

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

and numbers around the rooms support children's awareness of early literacy and numeracy and staff offer supportive questions to engage the children's considered response in activities.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The children communicate well and show increasing independence when discussing and helping each other with tasks. Moreover, children count proficiently, match and correspond, often using practical objects to support their learning of addition and subtraction and opportunities to work with material such as sand and water give the children valuable first hand experience of volume and mass. The children often engage in activities which support their understanding of the wider world, for example when celebrating festivals and cultural days. They construct imaginative objects and benefit from times when they explore technological resources such as keyboards and broken telephones in their play. They demonstrate increasing creativity using collage, paint and rollers, for example and by responding to music and colour. The kindergarten walls are adorned with the children's work, giving them pride in their achievements. Children's

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

physical development is well supported throughout activities. Staff offer lots of one to one attention, for example to help children learn correct pencil control as they scribe letters in their workbooks. Regular dance and soft play activities and access to outdoor play enables children to develop large muscle skills such as control of wheeled toys and coordination of their developing bodies.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is good. Children's individuality is respected in an environment where all children are welcomed. Children's social, moral, cultural and spiritual development is fostered appropriately. Their positive self image is supported because the cultural and linguistic diversity of the local environment is well supported by a diverse and experienced staff team. Staff get to know the children well through the key working scheme and regular observations allow them to help the children settle and to provide well for their individual needs. Those children who may have learning difficulties and/or disabilities are welcomed and staff work with parents and other professionals to provide individual education plans at this time. Toys and activities including books and small world people provided help the children to understand about difference in culture and religion, for example and parents often attend to compliment activities such as cultural celebrations. Children

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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 behave well at the kindergarten and they happily engage with a range of activities throughout their time here, often reminding younger children of the routine and expectations, for example. Their progress is further well supported because the partnership with parents and carers is good. Parents are well informed about the curriculum, both on notice boards and through regular discussions and meetings with staff. Twice yearly reports ensure parents know how their children are progressing through the stepping stones and staff offer positive support to parents on transferring their children onto the next school.

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Organisation

The organisation is good. The kindergarten is well organised and clear policies and procedures underpin the operational plan. The registered person ensures staff are suitable to work with young children and clear recruitment procedures ensure children's care, learning and welfare is well supported by an experienced and well qualified staff team. Training needs are well met, with the majority of staff trained in first aid, and the staff meet regularly to discuss how they will plan the curriculum to meet children's individual needs. Good links are maintained with the local authority to support ongoing developments. Space and resources are well organised overall and staff to child ratios enable children to benefit from a good deal of adult support during their time here. Documentation used clearly meets regulations with clear registers and children's details up to date and maintained in a confidential manner.

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Organisation

Leadership and management of the kindergarten is good and staff demonstrate a good knowledge and understanding of how children learn. Managers clearly support staff's ongoing training in the Foundation Stage and monitor the quality of the curriculum provided. Strengths and weaknesses are clearly identified and staff are able to share skills and experiences to support and enhance children's learning. Staff are regularly met with and observed to ensure good practice is maintained and regular staff meetings support children's progress in this area. Overall, 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 inspection the kindergarten was asked to make available to parents a written statement that provides details of the procedure to be followed if they have a complaint. The kindergarten now has a clear complaints policy and procedure which is suitably shared with parents should the need arise.

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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 then 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 risk assessments work consistently well in identifying and removing hazards from around the building • allow children a greater balance between free play and those times when they are involved in structured activities

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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): • enable children to develop their initiative by following through on their interests in a given area

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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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