Cherubs Pre School

Cherubs Pre School Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY246080 Inspection date 01/10/2009 Inspector Jane Wakelen

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Setting address Linton Village Hall, Linton Hill, Linton, Maidstone, Kent, ME17 4AP Telephone number 07947776140 Email Type of setting Childcare on non-domestic premises to achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children's social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, work-based learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It rates council children’s services, and inspects services for looked after children, safeguarding and child protection. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 08456 404040, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as

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you give details of the source and date of publication and do not alter the information in any way. Royal Exchange Buildings St Ann's Square Manchester M2 7LA

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T: 08456 404040 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Introduction

This inspection was carried out by Ofsted under Sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 on the quality and standards of the registered early years provision. ‘Early years provision’ refers to provision regulated by Ofsted for children from birth to 31 August following their fifth birthday (the early years age group). The registered person must ensure that this provision complies with the statutory framework for children’s learning, development and welfare, known as the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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Introduction

The provider must provide a copy of this report to all parents with children at the setting where reasonably practicable. The provider must provide a copy of the report to any other person who asks for one, but may charge a fee for this service (The Childcare (Inspection) Regulations 2008 regulations 9 and 10).

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Introduction

The setting also makes provision for children older than the early years age group which is registered on the voluntary and/or compulsory part(s) of the Childcare Register. This report does not include an evaluation of that provision, but a comment about compliance with the requirements of the Childcare Register is included in Annex B.

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Introduction

Please see our website for more information about each childcare provider. We publish inspection reports, conditions of registration and details of complaints we receive where we or the provider take action to meet the requirements of registration. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Description of the setting

Cherubs Pre-School was registered in 2003 and is one of two groups that are privately owned. The group operates from the village hall located in Linton, a rural area of Maidstone. Children have access to a small outdoor area which is fully enclosed. It is open five mornings a week from 09.45 am to 12.15, but on a Wednesday closes at 1.30 pm due to lunch club, term time only.

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Description of the setting

The pre-school is on the Early Years Register and on both parts of the Childcare Register. A maximum of 24 children may attend the nursery at any one time. There are currently 36 children aged from two to under five years on roll.

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Description of the setting

There are five members of staff, three of whom have a level 3 qualification in early years and two members of staff who have a level one qualification and are working towards their level 2. The setting receives support from the Early Years Advisory Team.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Overall the quality of the provision is outstanding.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Children are able to make excellent progress in their learning and development because staff have a secure understanding of the requirements for the Early Years Foundation Stage. Outcomes for children are fully promoted to ensure children's welfare needs are met and this is supported by the excellent partnership with the parents. Staff are enthusiastic and motivated to providing activities for children to maintain their interest and extend their learning in all six areas of learning. The manager is committed to continuous improvement of her setting and constantly reviews and monitors the effectiveness of the setting through self-evaluation and discussions with her staff team.

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further?

To further improve the high quality early years provision the registered person should consider:

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further?

 make additional resources more accessible to children to promote choice and further develop their independence  continue to extend children's literacy skills with letters, sounds and familiar words in everyday activities

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the early years provision

The manager ensures children are safeguarded in the setting by implementing robust recruitment procedures to ensure all staff are safe to work with children and hold relevant qualifications and experience. The setting is kept secure with one This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 access door, which is kept locked during the session. Secure arrival and departure procedures ensure that children only leave with the nominated adult and are recorded in and out on the attendance register. Thorough risk assessments are in place and are carried out on a regular basis to ensure all hazards are identified and made safe for children. Consequently, children enjoy a very safe environment which is carefully planned to provide an extensive range of activities and resources for children to participate in. A carefully written policy and a rolling programme for staff training in child protection fully promotes children's safety and well-being.

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the early years provision

Children benefit from a dedicated and committed staff team who constantly monitor the activities for children and offer challenges with an exciting range of activities and resources, both indoors and outdoors. The manager has implemented a system of self-evaluation which she updates on a regular basis with the support from the staff, to ensure all areas are given equal consideration. Areas to develop are identified by the staff team and discussed at team meetings to promote exciting opportunities for children. The manager provides a good role model for her team of staff and this results in staff being motivated and enthusiastic with a good understanding of their roles and responsibilities. Yearly appraisals and regular meetings with staff ensure they attend training courses to update their knowledge and skills and feel an important asset to the setting. Therefore, children are able to benefit from the staff who feel valued and in turn,

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the early years provision

Children use an excellent range of resources to address all areas of learning and share excitement with the staff when they identify new equipment. Resources and equipment are given lots of thought by the staff to meet children's learning and individual needs. Staff ensure the resources are robust and child friendly, allowing children to explore and experiment without fear of damaging or breaking the toy. Children access resources from those chosen by adults, but due to storage difficulties, children are unable to self-select resources as the cupboards have high shelving. This is an area identified for improvement by the setting.

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the early years provision

The manager and staff value parents' contribution to the setting and make this partnership a high priority to fully promote children's learning and development whilst at the setting. Parents are kept extremely well informed about their child's learning and development and are given regular summaries of their progress every term. Alongside this, parents are able to see the assessment files at any time and are asked to contribute to the assessment process by agreeing and identifying future targets for their child. On entry to the pre-school, parents give the staff basic starting points for development, detailing what stage their child is at in their learning. This information is then used by the key person to begin the procedure for observation and assessment. All parents feel very supportive of the setting and feel their children are making excellent progress in their development. Newsletters, fund raising events, shared policies and daily communication all ensure parents

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the early years provision

and staff continue to develop the wonderful partnership that is in place. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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and outcomes for children

Children benefit from the caring, friendly and stimulating environment within the pre-school. Effective communication and information from parents ensures each key person is fully aware of children's individual needs and enables them to plan a programme of activities to help children make progress in all areas of learning. Each key person makes observations of children's learning and identifies the stage of their development. This information is then used to plan next steps in children's learning and targets are identified for each area of learning for the term. The targets are used to inform the short term plans to meet children's needs.

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and outcomes for children

Children have wonderful opportunities to develop their knowledge and understanding of the world. They have access to the interactive globe, learning where different countries are in relation to England and learn about different cultures within different countries. Children learn that chopsticks are used by families in China and make and taste pizzas that come from Italy. They play with a good range of resources that reflect positive images of cultural differences and disability and learn about some festivals celebrated by different religions, such as Diwali and Ramadan. Children explore their environment, showing excitement when they spot a bug outside or squeal with surprise as they observe the frog in their green house. Children ask to do gardening and show enthusiasm putting on their gloves and planting bulbs and herbs with support of the staff.

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and outcomes for children

Physical skills are promoted on a daily basis and children show confidence and balance as they climb up the steps of the low bridge and jump onto the safety mat. They climb the cubes outside, slide down the slide and show developing skills as they climb the steps from the hall into the garden, learning to use the hand rail for support. Children are beginning to use the pedals on the tricycles and gain spatial awareness as they weave in and out of the children playing on the sit and ride toys and scooters. Children show good hand/eye co-ordination, threading the beads, rolling the dough and pouring the water from one container to another in the water tray. Children concentrate for long periods of time on self-chosen activities such as painting or the playdough and enjoy going to the book area to look at a book or share one with an adult. They develop good levels of communication because staff ask open-ended questions to encourage children to

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and outcomes for children

think and understand what they are doing, such as examining the bugs under the microscope. Children have daily opportunities to make marks, although they are not always fully encouraged to identify familiar words, letters or sounds in everyday activities.

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and outcomes for children

Opportunities for children to use their imagination and creativity are available on a daily basis. Children use collage materials to stick and create images of the three pigs' house, cut and stick pictures from magazines or paint a picture on the easel. They use recyclable materials to build and stick, learning about problem solving when using different mediums to join packages together. They act out familiar roles in the role play area, showing good imagination and show excitement when the walls of the role play area are in place, creating a separate area from the main play space. Children show care and concern to their baby dolls and rock them to This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 sleep, singing to them. Children enjoy singing songs from memory and become animated playing the instruments to make lots of noise and using them when they sing familiar songs.

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and outcomes for children

Children are able to develop a confident understanding about the importance of a healthy lifestyle as they are encouraged to benefit from fresh air on a daily basis. Children learn the importance of exercise and what constitutes healthy foods because they select from a variety of snacks, including fresh fruit, toast, occasional biscuits and vegetables. Children are encouraged to independently pour their drink of milk or water from the jug, with support for the younger children from the staff. During the session children can access drinking water by themselves and learn about the importance of hygiene routines, such as washing hands before eating and after using the toilet. Staff follow effective hygiene routines for changing nappies and ensuring surfaces, such as tables are cleaned with antibacterial spray. Soap and paper towels help prevent cross infection, which is supported by a sick child policy to prevent children spreading any contagious illnesses.

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and outcomes for children

Children develop an excellent understanding about keeping themselves safe as they are reminded by staff about using their feet to stop the sit and ride toys on the slope, not running in doors in case they fall over or bump into someone else and being careful near the wet floor. Children show a good understanding about the importance of jumping onto the mat when jumping off the wooden low bridge and wait for staff to supervise the activity. Children are aware of the dangers of the wooden steps outside when accessing the garden and often ask to hold an adults hand if they are feeling insecure. Risk assessments fully ensure children play in a safe environment and children show their feeling of security by approaching staff if they are feeling insecure or upset or want to tell staff about something that has happened at home.

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and outcomes for children

Children learn about taking turns with the toys and resources. They gain an understanding of sharing as staff help children to understand they cannot take another child's toy and play games in groups to encourage waiting for their turn. Staff calmly deal with disputes giving simple explanations to children about why some behaviour is not acceptable and offering praise and encouragement for good behaviour. Stickers help children feel proud of their achievements and children show pride as they learn a new skill and want to share this with the adults, for example, learning that they can make the magnet move without touching it and when they suddenly learn how to use the pedals on the tricycles. Staff treat each child as an individual which helps children feel special and supports their confidence and feeling of belonging. Pictures around the room that children have created raises their self-esteem because they feel valued.

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and outcomes for children

This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Annex A: record of inspection judgements

The key inspection judgements and what they mean

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Annex A: record of inspection judgements

Grade 1 is Outstanding: this aspect of the provision is of exceptionally high quality Grade 2 is Good: this aspect of the provision is strong Grade 3 is Satisfactory: this aspect of the provision is sound Grade 4 is Inadequate: this aspect of the provision is not good enough

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children in the Early Years Foundation Stage?

The capacity of the provision to maintain continuous improvement

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and managed?

The effectiveness of leadership and management in embedding ambition and driving improvement The effectiveness with which the setting deploys resources 1 The effectiveness with which the setting promotes equality and diversity The effectiveness of safeguarding 1 The effectiveness of the setting’s self-evaluation, including the steps taken to promote improvement The effectiveness of partnerships 2 The effectiveness of the setting’s engagement with parents and carers

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Stage

The quality of the provision in the Early Years Foundation Stage 1

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Stage

The extent to which children achieve and enjoy their learning 2 The extent to which children feel safe 1 The extent to which children adopt healthy lifestyles 1 The extent to which children make a positive contribution 1 The extent to which children develop skills for the future 2

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Stage

procedures set out in the guidance available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Annex B: the Childcare Register

The provider confirms that the requirements of the compulsory part of the Childcare Register are: Met

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Annex B: the Childcare Register

The provider confirms that the requirements of the voluntary part of the Childcare Register are: Met

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