Hetty (Hoole Enterprise Trust-Time For You)

Hetty (Hoole Enterprise Trust-Time For You) Inspection report for early years provision

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EY361734 Unique Reference Number 02 July 2008 Inspection date Sue Anslow Inspector

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Hoole C of E Primary & Nursery School, Hoole Lane, CHESTER, CH2 3HB

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Setting Address

01244 323890 Telephone number head@hooleceprimary.cheshire.sch.uk E-mail Hoole Enterprise Trust Registered person Integrated Type of inspection Full day care, Out of School 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 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?

Hetty (Hoole Enterprise Trust-Time for You) comprises of a pre-school and out of school care for children aged from two years upwards. It opened in 2007 and is part of the Social Enterprise Trust, situated within Hoole C of E Primary School. A maximum of 50 children may attend the pre-school at any one time and a maximum of 32 children may attend the out of school club at any one time. The pre-school is open each weekday from 08.00 to 17.45, 51 weeks of the year. The out of school club is open from 08.00 to 09.00 and from 15.10 to 17.45 during term time and 08.00 to 17.45 during some school holidays, according to viability.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

There are currently 97 children aged from two to under six years on roll in the pre-school. Of these, 63 children receive funding for early education. Children come from a wide catchment area and may attend for a variety of sessions. The preschool currently supports a number of children with learning difficulties and a number of children who speak English as an additional language. There are currently 38 children aged from five to 11 years on roll in the out of school club. The out of school club caters for children from Hoole C of E school and a neighbouring school.

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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 Hetty employs 13 members of staff. Of these, six hold appropriate early years qualifications, including a qualified teacher and a higher level teaching assistant, and two other members of the staff team are currently working towards a qualification.

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is good. Children's health is promoted and protected very well through staff following written health and safety procedures and paying attention to hygiene practices. Children are encouraged to wash their hands at appropriate times and can access soap, towels and paper tissues easily. Tables are cleaned with antibacterial spray before food is served and fruit is washed thoroughly. However, children do not have individual plates to put their food on, which compromises good hygiene practice in this area. Accidents and illnesses are managed well and there is always a member of staff on duty with current first aid training. Children can rest or sleep whenever they wish on small mattresses in the sensory room or on the comfy cushions in the snuggle area. Parents are informed if there are any infectious conditions in the pre-school and asked to keep children at home if infectious themselves. Accidents, incidents and any medication

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Helping children to be healthy

administered are recorded correctly for each child. However, a countersignature from parents, to acknowledge that medication has been administered, is missing from the medication forms. This compromises good health care procedures.

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Helping children to be healthy

Healthy lifestyles are encouraged both in the pre-school and the out of school club. Children enjoy lots of physical play, both inside and outside, and are learning to use a range of large and small tools and play equipment. Tunnels, wheeled toys, balancing beams, grassy hills and a climbing frame help children learn how to use their bodies in different ways and develop positive attitudes to exercise. They ride their bicycles on the painted roads in the playground, going in the direction of the arrows and stopping at the zebra crossing. Indoors they are able to move freely around the play areas, with the older school age children able to play a variety of sporting activities in the school hall and the younger pre-school children enjoying lots of action songs and dancing.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children are well nourished throughout the day with a variety of healthy snacks. Fresh fruit and raw vegetables are served at every pre-school session and children bring their own packed lunch if they are staying for an extended day. Snacks are prepared fresh every day by staff and any special dietary requirements are respected, in full consultation with parents. A water dispenser is available for children to help themselves to during the day and drinks of water or milk are provided with all snacks, thus preventing any dehydration. Children learn about healthy foods and where they come from through growing vegetables in pots outside. They discover that peas develop in pods and are hard and crunchy before they are cooked. Children in the out of school club enjoy breakfast in the morning and a variety of cooked and raw foods after school. They take turns to devise a week's menu of snacks for after school and thoroughly

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Helping children to be healthy

enjoyed pasta shells with hot dog sausages on the day of the inspection.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is good. Children feel welcome and settle quickly in the bright, attractively decorated pre-school rooms. Warm and well maintained play areas provide children with a safe and suitable environment, together with easy access to safely enclosed outside play areas. Children feel a sense of

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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 belonging as they are greeted warmly by staff who take time to talk to parents and settle children happily into the group. Good organisation of well maintained toys and play equipment means that children can move around safely and freely, helping themselves to available resources from tables, boxes and shelves at their height. Good use is made of safe, natural play materials, such as sand, water, textiles and cardboard boxes. These serve to enhance children's play experiences, giving them opportunities to handle different textures. Indoor and outdoor activities merge together as children enjoy free access to all areas. They enjoy painting, construction and matching puzzle games just as easily outside as indoors. Playing house with the dolls and buggys is just as much fun in the playhouse outside as it is in the sensory room indoors. Children

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

in the out of school club enjoy ample space in the school hall and outside in the playground during fine weather. Wall space is available for displaying notices and art work and children have access to a wide variety of appropriate toys, games and sports equipment.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

All children are kept safe and secure in the two settings because staff follow comprehensive health and safety policies and routines. Risk assessments are carried out regularly on the premises and equipment and the checking of electrical appliances and fire fighting equipment is shared with the school. Children are taught how to keep themselves safe through daily routines and reminders, such as not running too fast or climbing on tables. Emergency evacuation procedures are displayed near each entrance and children in the pre-school join in with the main school when there is a fire drill. However, not all pre-school children are familiar with these procedures and separate records are not kept. This compromises their safety in an emergency. Arrows in the playground remind children to ride their bicycles in the same direction to prevent any collisions. Doors are kept locked during the day and only known adults are

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

allowed to collect children, thus ensuring the children's safety and security at all times. Children's welfare is well protected by staff who have a sound knowledge of child protection procedures. A well written policy, available for parents to read, ensures everyone is familiar with typical signs and symptoms and acts appropriately with regard to recording and reporting significant concerns.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is good. Children under three years enjoy the same wide range of activities as the pre-school children. They all mix together in the same key groups, participating in a good balance of free play and more structured activities, according to their interests and abilities. They are becoming familiar with books and stories and are beginning to identify colours, shapes and numbers through the daily routines. Pictures of familiar activities are displayed on a board so children know what happens next and when it is time to go home. This reassures younger children who have recently started in the pre-school. Children's creative development is promoted extremely well through a variety of media experiences, such as different kinds of painting and filling and emptying containers with sand or water. Activities promoting physical dexterity and self discovery feature strongly with this age group. Children thoroughly enjoy outdoor play as they learn to walk on

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

the balancing beams or pedal the bicycles round the garden. They are learning to manoeuvre the computer mouse around the screen and delight in decorating their sand castles with shells. Staff use the 'Birth to three matters' framework in their planning and assessment of children's progress and wall displays around the room inform parents how and what the children are learning.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The out of school club caters very well for children aged five years and above. Children enjoy a varied range of activities to suit their moods and interests outside school hours. They benefit from ample space in the school hall and homework area, where they can relax or be active, play

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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 together or on their own. Staff prepare several activity tables prior to children arriving but cupboards are left open so children can choose different toys and games if they wish. Staff are on hand to help, guide, join in or sort out any minor squabbles. Children are well behaved, happy, cheerful and chatty. They play very well together and enjoy taking it in turns to choose the snack menu for a week. They often work on homework projects together, helping each other and answering questions. Sporting activities are a favourite way to unwind after a busy day at school and children enjoy playing dodge ball or football indoors or outside, depending on the weather.

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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 their development, enjoying a range of different activities each week which incorporate all six areas of learning. Children are generally well behaved, kind and respectful towards each other, as they share and take turns at the different activities. Independence and responsibility is encouraged as children put on their coats for outdoor play, collect the cups after snack time or manage the soap dispensers in the bathroom. They thoroughly enjoy baking activities but do not have the opportunity to help prepare any food for their snacks, which hinders their self help skills in this area. Staff are liberal with their praise for helpfulness, kindness and achievements and children love being chosen as 'star of the day' to help with extra jobs and be the leader of the line up to go outside. Regular group times each day provide opportunities

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

for children to express themselves with confidence and discuss events of the day. They thoroughly enjoy listening to stories read by staff, who enhance children's enjoyment with appropriate animation and questioning. For example, 'What do you think the witch will do next?' and 'Do you think the giant will squash all the houses down?' Books are available for children to help themselves to during the day and comfy seating, cushions and 'snugly places' invite children to enjoy the reading experience. Pictures and photographs around the walls are accompanied by words of explanation, toy boxes are labelled and children's names are displayed. This introduces children to letters, their shapes and sounds and they are able to practise mark making as they 'write' their names on their art work and talk about all the words that begin with a particular letter.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

A variety of resources and activities encourage children's understanding of number and number operations. They count the number of children in the group and thoroughly enjoy opening up their pea pods at snack time and counting the number of peas inside. Songs about 'currant buns' and 'cheeky monkeys' help children work out how many are left when one is taken away and they love sorting and matching different objects by colour and size. Baking is another favourite activity where children find out about weighing and measuring as well as watching what happens when the eggs are cracked into a bowl and then all mixed up together. They plant and tend seeds, watching them grow into something they can eat and they go on nature walks around the school grounds to look for insects and leaves with different patterns. Children talk about the weather, deciding what footwear is most suitable for sun or rain. However, there

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

are no opportunities for watching the effect of the wind on different materials or collecting and measuring rainfall, which hinders learning opportunities in this area. Children have access to computers, which supports their learning about new technology and they love making different things out of their various construction kits or bits of paper and cardboard. Staff organise and present a range of creative activities and resources enabling children to produce interesting and individual pieces of art and craft work. A wide variety of different materials and textures, such as sand, water, pasta and cereals are used by the children to enhance their imaginative and creative development. They enjoy using the telephones and writing out tickets in the 'travel agents' and use the snugly corners to play house with their dolls. Regular use of

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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 musical instruments, singing and dancing is included in the weekly activity plans, enhancing children's freedom of expression and physical dexterity.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Staff organise activities under different themed headings throughout the year, incorporating all aspects of the Foundation Stage curriculum. They observe and monitor the children's interests and abilities, ensuring a range of new skills are experienced and practised. Observations are recorded and entered into the children's profiles, alongside photographs and examples of art work. In this way staff can track each child's progress and development. These profiles are also used by staff, to inform the next steps in the children's learning, offering extra support or challenge in particular areas if needed. Activities are evaluated on a regular basis for their interest, stimulation and enjoyment value for the children. Each day is planned to provide a balance of active and quiet activities, both indoors and outside, in a variety of groupings.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is good. Children are learning about inclusion and differences are celebrated. They have positive experiences which help them to develop a responsible attitude to culture and disability and activities are planned which cover all aspects of children's learning about equality. Festivals are celebrated and children enjoy playing in the 'travel agents', choosing which country to visit next. Children learn about nature through discussions about seasons and the weather and they thoroughly enjoy watching the seeds grow and develop into something they can eat. Individual needs are respected and staff work closely with parents and outside agencies to ensure children feel at home when they join the nursery and are able to join in with all the activities. Any special requirements are discussed between all parties to ensure consistent management of care and routine.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Positive behaviour and respect for others is promoted well in the nursery, with staff praising and encouraging achievements, kindness and helpfulness. Children are generally well behaved and polite as they share toys and materials, hand round food at snack times or help each other build sand castles. They love to be chosen as the 'star of the day' as they are able to lead the line up outside, feed the fish and hand out the cups at snack time, which boosts their self esteem and confidence. Children are developing personal independence when using the bathroom, putting on their coats or collecting the cups after snack. Children's spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is fostered.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The quality of partnership with parents and carers is good. Daily verbal handovers ensure that continuity of care is maintained and notices near the entrance doors inform parents of the current theme and what sort of activities their children are doing. New families receive a colourful prospectus about the pre-school and regular newsletters and notices keep them informed about events and activities, inviting them to get involved as much as possible. References to the setting's policies and procedures are contained in the prospectus and a file containing all the policies can be seen by parents at any time. Detailed information about the new Early Years Foundation Stage framework is contained in the prospectus and further explained through posters and displays of photographs around the rooms. Plans of activities in each room help parents understand about the areas of learning their children will be covering during their time

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Helping children make a positive contribution

in the pre-school. Parents complete a detailed form about their children's interests, abilities and preferences, when they start at pre-school, which helps the key workers devise appropriate games and activities to help children's learning and development. Parents' wishes are respected and maintained and staff respond to any comments or concerns appropriately.

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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

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Organisation

The organisation is good. Children's care is enhanced by the motivation and commitment of the staff teams, both in the pre-school and out of school club. There are six staff who hold early years qualifications and all staff update their knowledge and skills regularly by undertaking further courses and workshops. Recruitment and induction procedures are sound and staff meet together regularly to discuss and plan for the children's learning and enjoyment. Children settle well in this warm, welcoming, learning environment and their health, safety and progress is managed well through the mostly accurate and regular record keeping. Registers of attendance are kept up to date and parents record their times of arrival and departure.

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Organisation

Leadership and management of the educational provision is good. Children benefit from being supported by a qualified and experienced manager and a qualified teacher, who both work alongside the staff team to develop the quality of service. There is commitment to good practice and an understanding of learning outcomes for children. Close liaison with teachers in the school ensures a smooth transition into the school environment and children thoroughly enjoy attending occasional assemblies, concerts and sports days. Overall, the provision meets the needs of the range of the children for whom it provides.

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Complaints since the last inspection

Since registration 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 complaint 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): • ensure parents sign their acknowledgement for any medications given • improve hygiene standards when serving snacks • increase the regularity of fire drills and ensure separate records are kept.

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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): • continue to develop opportunities for children to prepare and serve food • consider developing the outside play area to enhance children's learning about the weather.

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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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