The Nook School

Manton Pre-School Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number 146030 Inspection date 13/11/2009 Inspector Doreen Forsyth

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Setting address Manton Village Hall, Preshute Lane, Manton, Marlborough, Wiltshire, SN8 4HQ Telephone number 07776 006000 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

Manton Pre-School opened in 1970. It operates from the village hall in Manton, near Marlborough in Wiltshire. The pre-school is registered on the Early Years Register and on the voluntary and compulsory parts of the Childcare Register to care for up to 18 children aged between three and under eight years old, currently there are 14 children on roll aged between three and five years old; they are all in receipt of government funding for free nursery education. The setting welcomes children that have special educational needs and those that speak English as an additional language.

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Description of the setting

The pre-school opens each weekday morning, except Wednesdays, during school term times. Sessions are from 9.00am to 12.00 noon.

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Description of the setting

There are three members of staff that work with the children. They all have relevant qualifications at levels 2, 4 and 5. The setting receives support from the local authority.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Overall the quality of the provision is good.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Children enjoy their time at the pre-school; they make good progress in their learning and development through the well planned and worthwhile activities that they take part in. There are mostly very effective arrangements in place to ensure the children's health and safety. The strong links with parents and carers that the pre-school fosters help to involve them in their children's learning and progress. The children's individual needs are well met as the setting supports each child and recognises their uniqueness. The setting has a very good capacity for improvement, as the manager, staff and committee are continually planning for improvement and monitoring the quality of the provision that is offered to each child.

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further?

To further improve the early years provision the registered person should:

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further?

 improve the hand washing facilities provided for the children so as to minimise the risk of cross-infection  when planning show how the individual learning goals, as identified by the observations on the children's progress, will be met  provide parents with more planned opportunties to discuss their children's progress and to contribute what they know about their children's learning to the observation records. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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the early years provision

All the records, policies and procedures that are necessary for the safe and efficient management of the pre-school and to promote the Early Years Foundation Stage are well maintained and shared with parents. These include comprehensive child protection procedures. All staff are confident in the steps they must take if they should have any child protection concerns. The management committee ensures that the staff and the relevant members of the committee are suitably vetted; however, some staff are still undergoing appropriate vetting procedures. The pre-school has a policy in place that ensures that no unvetted adults have unsupervised access to the children. All of the staff have relevant early years qualifications; some are currently attending further professional development to help to ensure the children have the highest possible standards of care and education.

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the early years provision

The pre-school uses the village hall which they share with other users; staff have thoroughly risk assessed the premises and minimised most potential hazards to the children. The hall is kept secure; a key pad entry system is in place. Children play under close supervision in the small garden to the front of the hall. The pre-school has a wide selection of suitable resources for the children to use; these are well maintained and effectively organised to promote the children's learning and to allow them to choose what they wish to play with. The setting aims to be inclusive; all children are welcomed and valued at the pre-school and their individual needs are identified and met as far as possible. For example, some of the signs in the setting are written in the home language of a child that speaks English as an additional language. The pre-school has very strong links with parents and carers. Parents serve on the management committee; they provide the pre-school with

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the early years provision

very good administrative support. They organise regular fundraising events and often help on the parents' rota and spend time in the pre-school. Parents provide the children's daily snacks. When parents are in the setting they often use this as an opportunity to see the children's observation records and to talk to the keyworker. There are no other planned opportunities for parents to discuss their children's progress; although they talk with staff informally whenever they wish, often at the beginning or end of sessions.

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the early years provision

The pre-school has very effective systems in place to evaluate the quality of the provision provided and to identify areas for future improvement. The staff and committee all contribute to the self-evaluation documents and have very clear ideas and visions for the future of the pre-school. The recommendations set at the last inspection have been fully met. All at Manton Pre-School strive for improvement so that the children may all achieve as well as possible.

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and outcomes for children

The children are making good overall progress towards the early learning goals in all of the areas of learning. They are able to play well on their own, but also have This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 very good relationships with each other and the adults in the pre-school. They enjoy deciding what they wish play with and suggest what topics they would like to explore. They are able to choose topics which interest them; currently these are birthdays and teeth. Staff effectively plan activities and learning opportunities that follow the children's interests; this helps children to make significant progress in their learning. The staff monitor and observe the children's learning and use these observations to ensure children follow a broad based curriculum. Staff then use their observations and assessments to discuss the children's progress at their weekly planning meetings and to identify a next step in their learning for each

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and outcomes for children

child, but how they will meet these 'next steps' isn't clearly shown in the planning.

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and outcomes for children

Children are learning well about healthy lifestyles. Each session parents bring in the daily snack; the parents and children discuss at home what is a healthy option to take to pre-school. They ensure the snacks consist of plenty of fruit, but often they include treats too, such as homemade gingerbread men and women. When discussing the importance of cleaning teeth as part of the current topic, the children took their toothbrushes into pre-school and cleaned their teeth after snack. They discussed why it is important to clean their teeth and what happens if you don't. The setting mostly helps children to learn the importance of following good hygiene practices such as washing their hands when necessary, but they provide shared water and towels for the children to use when hand washing which poses a risk of cross-infection. Children have some opportunities to play outside in the small garden where they develop their physical skills when they play with balls,

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and outcomes for children

The children display a very strong sense of belonging to the pre-school, they are mostly very settled and confident in their surroundings. They co-operate well with each other in their play; such as devising quite complicated role play scenarios in the home play area. The work well to tidy up together at the end of the session. They understand the rules and routines of their pre-school and usually are skilled at sharing and taking turns. They learn about safety issues through discussion and stories at circle time; for example, the story 'Daisy got lost' helped to remind children to stay close to their parents and carers when they are out and about. Children are beginning to achieve an awareness of diversity through the activities they take part in and through the resources they play with. Their behaviour is good, staff acknowledge and recognise their achievements and suitable behaviour. 'Wow' moments, the child's achievements at home which parents share with the

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and outcomes for children

setting are always celebrated at group times. 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 2 The effectiveness with which the setting promotes equality and diversity The effectiveness of safeguarding 2 The effectiveness of the setting’s self-evaluation, including the steps taken to promote improvement The effectiveness of partnerships 3 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 2

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Stage

The extent to which children achieve and enjoy their learning 2 The extent to which children feel safe 2 The extent to which children adopt healthy lifestyles 2 The extent to which children make a positive contribution 2 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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