Holy Trinity CofE Primary School, Sunningdale

Miss Polly's Kindergarten Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number 110018 Inspection date 03/03/2010 Inspector Melissa Cox

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Setting address The Hurst Community College, Brimpton Road, Baughurst, Tadley, RG26 5NL Telephone number 01189 814129 Email nicola.doublet@hurst.hants.sch.uk 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 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

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You may copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as 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: 0300 123 1231 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

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

Miss Polly's Kindergarten opened in 1990. It is based in the Hurst Community College and operates as a self-funding day nursery. The kindergarten is situated in a purpose-built unit, and is located in the rural area of Baughurst in Hampshire. The kindergarten is open each weekday from 7.30am until 6pm all year round. All children have access to a secure enclosed outdoor play area.

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Description of the setting

The kindergarten is registered on the Early Years Register and is registered to provide day care for a maximum of 74 children, aged from birth to five years. There are currently 100 children on roll and all are in the early years age group. The accommodation offers three rooms, which cater for children of different ages. Busy Bees room is dedicated to the children aged from birth to two years, the Caterpillar room is used for children from 18 months to three years and the Ladybirds for children two years six months to five years.

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Description of the setting

There are 25 members of staff who support children's learning. Appropriate qualifications in childcare and education are held by the majority of staff, including Level 3 and Level 4. One member of staff holds an early years degree level qualification, with several staff working towards degree level qualifications.

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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

The nursery provides an extremely effective environment to help children develop and thrive. The leadership and management are very strong and all staff are dedicated to maintaining improvements and keeping standards high. The nursery has a very good capacity for improvement and staff show an excellent commitment to training. Experienced, motivated staff provide well for children's welfare and development, so that their overall progress is very good. Equality and diversity are fully valued and routinely promoted through effective key person bonds and skilled delivery of the education programme. Health and safety are very effective in practice due to the competency and dedication of the staff, however, the procedure to assess risks before outings does not fully meet requirements. Excellent support is given to those children with special educational needs or English as an additional language.

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further?

To fully meet the specific requirements of the EYFS, the registered person must:

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further?

 conduct a full risk assessment for each type of outing or new activity and make necessary adjustments to secure safety at all times. (Safeguarding and welfare) 01/04/2010 This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 To further improve the early years provision the registered person should:

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further?

 evaluate the effectiveness of resources, staff deployment, range of activities and effectiveness of planning to ensure better outcomes for children in the toddler room.

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the early years provision

All staff have a very secure understanding of safeguarding issues having recently completed child protection training. They benefit from regular revision of the setting's policies and a clear written procedure to follow to remind them of the safeguarding process in case concerns arise. The staff are fully committed to supervising play and joining in the activities to remind children how to keep themselves safe throughout the day. They conduct risk assessments for most aspects of the setting but only complete a general one for local outings which they do not routinely review before each specific outing and have failed to risk assess some general activities. This is a breach of welfare requirements.

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the early years provision

Staff are enthusiastic and keen to provide a good service to both the parents and children. Leaders and managers communicate their vision for implementing the Early Years Foundation Stage with great enthusiasm and genuine commitment. Reflective practice, self-evaluation, action plans, training and advice are exceedingly well utilised at all levels. All staff are involved with continuing to improve both the environment and the standard of teaching and learning. They know the children well from initial interviews with parents and their own observations, with the key persons building good relationships to ensure the children's needs are met. The staff provide an encouraging environment where all the children are valued as individuals, and their interests, likes and dislikes taken into account. Through varied planning and observations of children's interests, a wide and stimulating range of activities is provided to support the children's

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the early years provision

development. This is effectively monitored and their progress assessed in all the areas of learning. All children are welcome in the nursery, and resources and activities are provided to raise their awareness of inclusion and diversity.

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the early years provision

Partnerships with parents are good. Staff communicate with parents on a daily basis to share important information about their children's routines. Parents are welcomed into the nursery and warmly greeted. They have access to a wealth of information about the organisation, through newsletters, policies and procedures and information on notice boards. Parents are encouraged to be involved in the theme days and activity sessions. Parents spoken to during the inspection expressed great satisfaction with the care their children receive. They are confident the children are safe and happy, which helps when they go to work as they do not worry. The parents find the staff very approachable and are able to raise any concerns with them. The nursery builds very strong, effective links with other practitioners and necessary services to promote the integration of care and education.

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the early years provision

Staff promote equality and diversity very well. They provide an inclusive practice This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 and value diversity, so that all children are valued regardless of their background and heritage and are helped to learn and progress as well as they can. Children learn about differences and the wider world through the provision of toys, books and activities that show different languages, foods, people and places. Children learn about the importance of sharing and playing as part of a group and value each other's contributions and efforts.

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the early years provision

The children benefit from an extensive range of activities and choices to keep them stimulated throughout the day. The staff routinely monitor the service and implement changes promptly in order to raise standards. The children influence planning by telling staff what they like and dislike. They have easy access to resources to develop their independence and staff allow them to use resources for their own purpose. However, routines in the toddler room are not always consistent with the high standards maintained elsewhere within the nursery and on occasions deployment of staff, resources and levels of involvement with children are only satisfactory, impacting on their individual needs.

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and outcomes for children

Children are making good progress and their welfare needs are very well met. They settle quickly and enjoy being at the nursery, they have made some firm friendships amongst themselves and interact closely with the staff. Adults support each child's learning and development well, using the wealth of excellent and sustainable resources. Children have a simple routine to their day and can choose to use resources in a variety of ways, both indoors and out. For example, babies' senses are well stimulated with a variety of boxes containing brushes, fabrics, variously filled plastic bottles, mirrors, bells and hanging kitchen utensils. All children are enjoying natural wooden materials for problem solving, sorting and investigative activities and there are accessible messy play materials and good quality role play equipment in all rooms. Older children self-register, finding and attaching their name card to the chart and children proudly display their artwork

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and outcomes for children

and creations around the setting for all to see.

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and outcomes for children

Resources are invitingly set out to continuously provide play opportunities linked to the six areas of learning, so that staff can spend time alongside children when they have initiated their own play choices. The play spaces have been well planned to provide a stimulating and effective learning environment where all the children are helped to progress. Children take part in a wide range of interesting and age- appropriate activities that are planned by the staff to help them to move forward in all areas of learning. The children learn and play both indoors and outside; the nursery gardens have been designed to encourage children to continue their learning when outside. Staff question, challenge and extend children's competence and learning through a good balance of child-initiated and adult-led planned activities. Throughout all the age groups staff observe the children when they play; they find out what the children are interested in and like to play with. The key

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and outcomes for children

person effectively assesses and records the children's progress and then uses the information they have gleaned from their observations to plan a next step in their learning for each child. Parents are able to see these 'learning journeys' at any This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 time and are encouraged to add what they know about their children's learning and progress to the records.

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and outcomes for children

The nursery is helping children to acquire some of the different skills they will need for the future. The children are learning to work independently and cooperate with others when necessary. They enjoy playing together and cooperating when building in the sand tray. Children are learning particularly well to value and understand diversity and about the wider world; they engage in a good range of experiences and activities to support their learning in this area. Children's progress in communicating, in their literacy skills and their use of communication technology is outstanding. The pre-school children use the computer with great confidence. The babies and toddlers are encouraged to become active, curious and inquisitive learners, and to explore their surroundings and the play resources provided.

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and outcomes for children

Children feel safe in the setting and understand issues relating to safety. Older children state that they feel really safe, because they have adults who care for them and help them. Children are confident and familiar with routines; they approach staff with confidence and are happy during their play. They understand the issues relating to safety and know to follow group safety rules when out and about. Children learn about expected behaviours and the difference between right and wrong. They talk about being kind, taking turns and sharing. Staff manage children's behaviour sensitively and according to the nursery's policy and individual ages and stages, although this is less evident in the toddler room. Older children follow the nursery's rules and boundaries and understand how their behaviour impacts on others.

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and outcomes for children

In their daily activities and routines children have excellent opportunities to learn about the importance of maintaining healthy lifestyles. The children and staff talk about 'washing away the germs', as they wash their hands before meals and after using the toilet and staff follow vigilant hygiene procedures. The children enjoy freshly cooked meals and snacks and all special dietary requirements are very well noted and observed. Children also grow their own vegetables and fruit in the nursery garden, which they prepare for snack further promoting their sense of a healthy lifestyle. 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 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 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 1 The extent to which children make a positive contribution 2 The extent to which children develop skills for the future 1

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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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