Busy Bees Pre-School

Busy Bees Pre-School

Inspection report for early years provision

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Busy Bees Pre-School

Unique Reference Number 511327 Inspection date 11 January 2006 Inspector Sheila Dennis

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Busy Bees Pre-School

Setting Address Village Hall, Church Lane, Bishops Sutton, Alresford, Hampshire, SO24 0AA Telephone number 01962 734495

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E-mail

Registered person Busy Bees Pre- School 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?

Busy Bees Pre School opened in 1992 and operates from the village hall in Bishops Sutton. The pre-school is managed by a committee of parents and it serves the children of the local area. A maximum of 24 children may attend the preschool at any one time. The preschool is open each weekday morning between 09:30 and 12:00, term time only. All children have access to a fully enclosed outdoor play area.

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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 There are currently 19 children aged from 3 years to under 5 years on roll. Of these, all children receive funding for nursery education. The pre-school is able to support children with special needs. The pre-school employs four members of staff; three members of staff have early years qualifications and one member of staff is working towards a qualification.

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is good. Children have a good understanding of personal health and hygiene practices as staff consistently promote these throughout the daily routine. For instance, most visit the toilet independently and wash their hands, also most children automatically wash their hands before eating and understand why this is important. Others are gently reminded and supported by staff. Children are protected and kept healthy by staff who act as good role models and who implement effective policies and procedures. Children are provided with regular drinks and enjoy a range of healthy and nutritious snacks, which are provided by parents. Children's independence is promoted at every opportunity, for example, children decide when they are ready for their snack, they take their lunch boxes to the "coffee shop café" and enjoy the social interaction with their friends as they eat. Children carefully negotiate space as they move confidently around the setting and

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Helping children to be healthy

enjoy taking part in a range of physical activities indoors and out, such as hopping skipping, peddling trikes and using bats and balls. They successfully combine and imitate a range of movements as they join in enthusiastically during music sessions. Children develop an understanding of how to look after their bodies as they talk about healthy eating and warm up their bodies before exercise. Children confidently use a wide range of small equipment such as glue spreaders, different size paintbrushes, rollers and pens to develop their manipulative skills and are gaining in control and co-ordination.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is good. Children are well cared for in a warm and welcoming environment in which the calm atmosphere is often enhanced by classical music playing quietly in the background. Children are able to move around the pre-school room freely, confidently choosing from a range of play materials and activities set out attractively, for example with the use of partitions to form the Doctors surgery and the coffee shop. Children are well protected by staff who implement effective procedures, for example, risk assessments are carried out to ensure that all areas, toys and materials accessed by children are safe, all visitors to the setting are required to sign in and parent helpers are provided with clear written information explaining that they cannot

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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 have unsupervised access to children. Children's welfare is also safeguarded by staff's sound understanding of their responsibilities with regard to child protection and the procedures which need to be followed.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is good. Children enjoy their time in the pre-school, they enjoy good relationships with the staff and are happy and secure. Children settle well into the session and are familiar with the daily routine, for example, most children confidently select their name card to self register as they arrive at the setting. Children who are fairly new to the setting are reassured by their parent's presence for at least part of the session. Children access a wide range of activities which contribute to their enjoyment and they confidently self-select from the interesting resources set out for them. NURSERY EDUCATION. The quality of teaching and learning is good. Staff have a sound knowledge of how children learn and ensure that they are provided with a wide range of stimulating activities which are linked to the stepping stones. All staff are involved in making observations and assessments of the children, they know the small group of children well and extend and adapt activities to

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

meet their individual needs, although this is not specifically recorded. Staff make good use of time and resources to provide a stimulating environment in which children can explore and make progress at their own pace. Staff encourage child-led activities and provide sensitive support by standing back to allow children to work things out for themselves but being ready to support children when necessary. Children have a positive attitude to learning and eagerly take part in the range of activities available to them. Children's confidence is developed by staff who know them well, spend time talking and listening to them and value their contributions. Children's independence and self care skills are very effectively promoted by staff that are attentive to their needs, for example, a member of staff spends time showing children in the coffee shop how to pierce the milk carton with the straw rather than

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

doing it for them. Children make choices in their play as they confidently move from one activity to the next and express their own ideas through imaginative role play for example in the Doctors surgery and through creative activities such as junk modelling. Most children are confident to talk in a familiar group, they eagerly volunteer to do the weather chart and ask questions during large group story time. Less confident children are given sensitive support to enable them to do so. Children use language to initiate and organise their play, they are encouraged to develop descriptive language and are praised as they extend their vocabulary by using new words. Staff use skilful questioning to extend their learning. Children are beginning to link initial sounds to letters and enjoy taking part in jolly phonics activities, for example, they

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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 make the S movement as they join in enthusiastically with the song. Children enjoy books. They benefit from various opportunities to recognise the written word and their early writing skills are well promoted through good use of incidental opportunities, for example, children select notepaper and envelope independently and choose to write a letter to their mummies, they make notes on the notepad & pencil next to the telephone during imaginary play at the Doctor's surgery. Children gain confidence in using numbers for counting and recognising numerals; they use size language in their play and talk about shapes. Children are beginning to learn simple calculation as they count the number of children during register and decide whether there are more boys or girls, however, staff miss incidental

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

opportunities to develop this further as children play. Children gain an understanding of the world around them through interesting activities which allow them to explore and investigate. Children use modern technology to support their learning, for example, they select and play music independently, they investigate the use of the overhead projector, choose to write their names and are fascinated as they project this, they project their hands and a range of natural and man made objects on to the wall. Children use their imaginations well in a number of play situations, such as the regular music sessions provided by an outside teacher, they respond to sound with body movements, listening to fast and slow beats and respond accordingly, for example, by pretending to be a fast cheetah or a slow tortoise.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is good. All children are included, valued and treated with respect in this caring environment. Children are made to feel secure as they are individually welcomed in each day and are confident with the familiar routine, for example, they respond promptly to the hands up sign and cooperate well together as they tidy away the play equipment. Children's understanding of the wider world is promoted as they play with resources which reflect diversity in society and find out about other people's beliefs and cultures through creative activities which are linked to different festivals. All children are treated with equal concern and those with special needs are very well supported by staff who have developed effective support links with parents and other agencies. This enables them to work together to ensure that children's individual needs are met and their learning promoted. Children enjoy good relationships with staff and their peers; they are beginning to

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Helping children make a positive contribution

develop an understanding of their own needs and respect for others as they are encouraged to take turns. Children behave well in this calm environment; they receive plenty of praise and encouragement from staff who consistently act as good role models for them. Children's spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is fostered. The partnership with parents is good, parents find staff friendly and approachable,

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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 they feel welcome to help settle their children and discuss any issues regarding their care and learning. Parents are provided with all relevant information about the group's operation, including policies, procedures and topics. On-going discussion and sharing of information keeps parents informed about their children's progress although there is no formal opportunity to review their children's progress with staff.

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Organisation

The organisation is good. Children feel at ease within this environment which is well organised, making good use of staff time, space and resources to provide good play opportunities for children. Generous staff to child ratios enable staff to get to know individual children well and ensure that their needs are met. The staff team are suitably qualified and experienced to work with children; they continue to update their knowledge and skills by attending a range of courses. All staff are familiar with the group's policies and procedures and all documentation required to promote children's safety and wellbeing is in place, with the exception of a written procedure to be followed in the event of a child being uncollected. The setting meets the needs of the range of children for whom it provides. The quality of leadership and management is good and enhances children's play and learning experience. The Leader and staff group work very well together as a team,

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Organisation

with all members of staff sharing ideas and contributing to the planning and evaluation of activities and daily routines. The Leader and staff team are keen to continue to develop and improve upon existing practise and work closely with the local school and development workers to this effect. Frequent changes of committee and leader in the past had led to some gaps in the organisation; however, these have been addressed by the current committee who have a clear understanding of their roles and responsibilities. The committee, Leader and staff team demonstrate a commitment to continually develop and improve the quality of care and education which children receive. The setting meets the needs of the range of children for whom it provides. The leader ensures that all staff are able to share ideas and contribute to the planning and evaluation of activities. The leader and staff work well together as a team and

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Organisation

demonstrate a commitment to continually develop and improve children's care and education, through training and working with the local authority. Children experience a well-organised pre-school, which is conducive to their play and learning. There is good deployment of staff, space, and resources for working with children and communicating with parents. Children feel at ease with the environment and enjoy good relationships with staff enabling them to feel confident to initiate and extend their own play. The high child to staff ratios ensure that children are fully supported throughout the sessions. All policies and procedures are used effectively to promote the welfare, care and

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Organisation

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 learning of children. The stable staff team are suitably qualified and experienced to work with children, they continue to update their knowledge and skills. All required documentation is in place, and is stored in a secure yet accessible manner. The setting meets the needs of the range of children for whom it provides. The leadership and management is good, the management and staff team work very well together There is good leadership and commitment to continually develop, reflect upon, and improve children's care and education, through training and working with the local Early Years Development and Childcare Partnership.

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Improvements since the last inspection

At the last inspection, the group was asked to ensure the sessions are organised so that the children are kept involved at all times and provide additional toys and activities to promote equality of opportunity, especially those giving a positive view of disability, so that the children's knowledge and understanding of the world is increased. Sessions are now organised so that children are kept involved at all times and additional toys and activities have been introduced to promote equality of opportunity and develop children's knowledge and understanding of the world.

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Complaints since the last inspection

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. There have been no complaints made to Ofsted since the last inspection.

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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):

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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 • develop a written procedure to be followed in the event of a child being uncollected.

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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 build on informal systems which link observations to plans, to ensure that all staff are aware of children's individual developmental needs. • provide children with opportunities to develop an understanding of calculation.

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The quality and standards of the nursery education

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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