Cameron Vale School

Winton Pre-School Playgroup

Inspection report for early years provision

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Winton Pre-School Playgroup

Unique Reference Number 100538 Inspection date 09 February 2006 Inspector Christine Coram

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Winton Pre-School Playgroup

Setting Address Winton Baptist Church, 15 Cardigan Road, Bournemouth, Dorset, BH9 1BG Telephone number 01202 514124

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E-mail

Registered person Winton Pre School Playgroup Type of inspection Integrated Type of care Sessional 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 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?

Winton Pre-School is a community pre-school run by a committee. It opened 43 years ago and operates from 2 connecting rooms in a community hall. It is situated to the rear of Winton Baptist Church, close to the main shopping area. A maximum of 20 children may attend the setting at any one time. The setting is open each weekday. On Wednesdays, it is open for the lunch club at 12.00 and then for the pre-school session from 12.00 to 15.00. On the other days, the sessions are from

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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 09.00 to 12.00 with the lunch club from 12.00 to 12.45. The setting operates in school term time only. All children share access to a secure enclosed outdoor play area. There are currently 25 children aged from 2 to under 5 years on roll. Of these, 20 children receive funding for nursery education. Children come from the local community. The setting currently supports children with special educational needs and also supports children who speak English as an additional language. The pre-school employs five staff. There are three members of the staff, including the manager, who hold appropriate early years qualifications. There is one member of staff working towards a qualification and one towards a further qualification.

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is good. Children's hygiene needs are met and they learn to take responsibility for their own hygiene. For example, staff are very vigilant about ensuring that children wash their hands before meals. They remind children by asking 'what do we do before we sit down to eat?'. Children's health is protected through clear procedures for accidents and the administration of medication. These are written down for parents who receive a copy of the comprehensive accident records. Children benefit from a very healthy and nutritious snack, such as milk and fruit with an oatcake. Their need for regular drinks is met very well. They can, and do, help themselves to drinks of water whenever they are thirsty. Children are beginning to make their own healthy choices following projects designed to teach them about nutrition and how to look after their bodies.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is satisfactory. Children are welcomed into a safe environment that has been made colourful with posters and displays of children's work. The activities are prepared and set out before they arrive. The space is used effectively to provide a good range of activities. Children can move between them in safety and with ease. However, the temperature in the rooms is not always maintained at an adequate level. Children benefit from fresh air and exercise in the safe outside play area. This is used creatively for gardening, physical play and games. Children are kept safe through a range of procedures and practices. Generally, the quality of equipment is acceptable and all the equipment is safe for the children to use. Broken items are immediately removed for repair or thrown away. Staff supervise children well. They are careful to monitor children leaving the room to go to

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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 the toilet. They move to an activity if children are getting over-excited to prevent accidents from happening. Children are protected through effective risk assessment and the premises are secure. No one can access them without staff opening the door. This is always locked unless staff are present in the porch. Children are protected against possible abuse because staff understand their responsibilities and would report any concerns to the manager.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is good. All children benefit from the wide range of experiences and play opportunities that are offered. Children develop well because activities are adapted skilfully to meet their needs and to suit their stages of development. The children clearly enjoy their play and gain new skills and understanding as they involve themselves with the activities and as they engage with staff and their peers. Nursery Education. The quality of learning and teaching is good. Children are self-assured and sociable. They arrive with confidence and excitement to see what is on offer and chatter as they play. They play independently and continue activities after staff have moved away. They crowd round a table with a new activity. They argue over the resources and who has more, but resolve the argument with no adult support. Children enjoy expressing themselves through talk and use extended vocabulary such as 'Keep it in the centre'. They love to listen to stories and eagerly join in

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

conversations about what is happening in the book. They are beginning to understand that sounds make up words and recognise rhyme. Some are confident to continue a rhyming string. They enjoy using a variety of mark making equipment such as chalk and pencils and experiment with different ways of using them. Children show an interest in numbers. They count in their play and identify numbers in the environment. They show an interest in calculating and number puzzles. They are beginning to use language of size. They spontaneously compare the amount of tealeaves in one cup to another saying 'mine's nearly bigger'. Children love to explore objects and substances, showing curiosity and interest. They are aware of concepts such a floating and sinking, pushing their hands into the water tray and shouting 'I'm sinking!'. They are interested in the many opportunities to learn about the environment and the world around them.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children move in a variety of ways. They are confident climbers. They swing from the bars and crawl under the slide and through small openings and jump with both feet together. They work together to carry a large box and use peddles on tricycle to good effect. They persevere in using one-handed tools such as a hammer, and demonstrate increasing control and skill.

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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 Children explore using a range of senses. For example, children experiment with tealeaves, spooning them into cups with different sized spoons. When they are asked how they know that it is tea, a child raises the spoon to his nose to smell it. They draw and construct in many different ways. They join in singing songs and playing ring games. They use imagination in their play. For example, when playing with farm animals they act out a clear scenario. Staff question very effectively including 'what could we do?', 'how do you think we could do that?' They then follow the children's suggestions. Children respond with enthusiasm. Staff help to extend the children's vocabulary, using correct words for objects such as 'container' and 'suspended' in clear context. Staff are able to identify the learning outcomes in general activities and promote

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

these as they play with the children. Staff use a number of effective methods of teaching but whole group teaching times are the least effective as children take a long time to settle and some disrupt the concentration of others. All staff work with the early learning goals throughout the session. Very detailed planning is undertaken. This is largely led by the needs of the children and their progress through the stepping stones. Long-term plans are changed to suit the needs of the group of children. Planning is evaluated with reference to the success in moving the children though the stepping stones and areas of learning are re-visited as necessary. If an area is noted as a general weakness, strategies are put in place to address this. For example, it was noted that a number of children were showing little interest in books and so relevant books are placed at varied activities. Children with special educational needs receive appropriate support and learning.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Staff are clear about the required recording. Time is used effectively with little time wasted. Children move efficiently from one activity to another and items are well prepared so that they can start activities immediately. The assessment system is extremely effective. It relies on the understanding of the key workers but is also monitored by the manager. The system allows staff to pick up issues and monitor each child effectively. The activities planned form the basis of the week's observations. Staff focus on the learning goals intended for the week's activities. Children's progress is noted and the next steps needed are brought forward. Key workers then concentrate on these areas in the coming days.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is good. Children develop a positive understanding of differences in society through the images of people from different backgrounds in books and resources. Their individual needs are met because staff are clear about their stages of development. All children are valued and encouraged. Children's special needs are identified as staff observe the children and follow-up any concerns. They are offered consistent care because staff work closely with their parents.

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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 Children's behaviour is managed effectively because staff are particularly positive and encouraging. For example, a child is hitting the wooden duster on the chalkboard and creating a lot of dust. Staff intervene by saying 'that's good banging' with humour and sincerity. They then add 'but it's making a lot of dust and it will make us cough'. The child responds happily. Staff follow through and are firm with children when this is appropriate. They take the child into the other room with member of staff to calm them and talk about the behaviour that is a concern. They remained calm and positive throughout. Children's social, moral, spiritual and cultural development is fostered. Partnership with parents and carers is good. Parents comment that they are given a sheet with activities for the term and this contains information about what the children

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Helping children make a positive contribution

will learn. When their children start attending the pre-school, parents are given a pack of information about the structure of children's learning. They were welcomed to visit and speak to staff at any time. Termly meetings are organised for them to discuss their child's progress with the key worker. Parents see children's files and can take them home to read. Their comments are welcomed. The prospectus has information about the early learning goals and the stepping stones. The group is run by a committee offering good opportunities for parents to be involved in the group. They act as parent helpers, committee members and are involved in fundraising activities.

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Organisation

The organisation is satisfactory. Children progress in the well organised setting. Staff are confident in their roles and responsibilities. Appropriate resources are always prepared and to hand. Staff are effectively deployed so that children are supported well. Required staffing levels are maintained and children are protected because procedures to recruit and vet staff are sufficient. The required records are stored confidentially but where staff can easily access information about the children's needs and how to contact their parents. The setting meets the needs of the range of children for whom they provide. The leadership and management of the setting is good. The manager has clear aims for the setting and these are met. She is effective in influencing staff to meet these aims. Their performance is monitored using a thorough appraisal system that includes regular observation of their practice. Their professional development is

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Organisation

positively encouraged. There is a comprehensive system in place to assess the strengths and weaknesses of the setting and to monitor the educational programme. The manager has realistic plans for future improvements. She is clearly committed to on-going progress and uses quality assurance schemes and workshops run by the Early Years Development and Childcare Partnership to help her to achieve this.

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Improvements since the last inspection

At their last inspection, the setting agreed to produce a procedure to be followed in the event of an allegation being made against a member of staff and a written

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Improvements 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 complaint procedure. They were also asked to develop more consistent strategies for behaviour management, review the organisation of large group activities and encourage children's use of mark making and emergent writing throughout the pre-school environment. The required procedures are now in place and clear. The issue of behaviour management has been effectively addressed through new strategies to ensure that children are aware of the boundaries. Behaviour guidelines are displayed and children are reminded of them regularly. Staff consistently manage behaviour in a particularly positive way. The grouping of children has been reviewed and children are now in small groups for some activities. They are still grouped together for some teaching activities and this remains an area for improvement. Mark making

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Improvements since the last inspection

equipment is provided at various activities, encouraging children to write and draw in a variety of situations.

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Complaints since the last inspection

There are no complaints to report. 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 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): • monitor the heating and ensure that the rooms are maintained at an adequate temperature

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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): • review the whole group teaching methods to make sure that children benefit from the learning opportunities offered

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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 procedures set out in the leaflet Building better childcare: Compliments and concerns about inspectors' judgements 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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