Marjorie McClure School

Twyning Playgroup

Inspection report for early years provision

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Twyning Playgroup

Unique Reference Number 101697 Inspection date 09 January 2006 Inspector Miriam Sheila Brown

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Twyning Playgroup

Setting Address Village Hall, Fleet Lane, Twyning, Glos, GL20 6DG

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E-mail

Registered person Twyning 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 satisfactory.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

Twyning Playgroup has been established since 1963. It is situated in rural Gloucestershire, and the children who attend are mainly from the local village community. The group, which is run by a management committee of parents, is held in Twyning Village Hall. All equipment is set up and stored away daily. The playgroup is open 4 days a week, Monday to Thursday from 09.30 until 12.00. The Tuesday session, which is specifically for pre-school children, lasts for an

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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 additional hour in the spring and summer terms. The Wednesday morning session is open to accompanied toddlers. A maximum of 26 children may attend at any one time and at present there are 37 children on roll, 20 of whom receive funding for nursery education. The group receive support from the learning support service and local primary school. Four members of staff work with the children, one of whom holds an appropriate childcare qualification and one who is working towards a qualification. They have experience in caring for children with special needs although none currently attend. Staff are assisted by volunteers and rota parents.

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is good. Children learn the importance of good personal hygiene as they are encouraged to wash their hands prior to eating, cooking and after messy play. They talk about why they should keep their hands clean when cooking and manage their own personal care well, although smaller children do not have easy, independent access to toilets and sinks. Staff maintain accident and medication records effectively and have received first aid training, helping to ensure that children are cared for appropriately if they have an accident or become unwell. Children are provided with good role models by staff who pay close attention to basic hygiene practices such as wiping tables with anti-bacterial spray prior to eating. Snack times are pleasant social occasions when children sit together and learn social skills such as saying please and thank you. A variety of foods are offered at snack times some of which provide healthy food options, and children enjoy tasting foods

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Helping children to be healthy

from different countries, for example, poppadums and fajitas. Children choose drinks at snack time but these are not currently freely available throughout each session. Each term, staff plan a 'breakfast day' when children have their breakfast at playgroup, which further extends their awareness of healthy eating and lifestyles. Children's physical development is very well supported through a wide range of planned activities which assist in their small and large muscle development. They play outside each day using wheeled toys or playing team games, have obstacle courses in the hall, visit the local park and school adventure playground. Inside they enjoy many activities which support their small muscle development, such as, small construction, painting, threading and drawing.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is satisfactory. Children and parents are warmly welcomed to the playgroup and staff work hard to prepare the room prior to children's arrival to enable them to go straight to their chosen activity. The premises are clean, warm and well maintained. Children have sole use of the hall during playgroup hours, providing them with a large play area 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 enjoy a good range of activities. Furniture, toys and equipment are in good repair and checked daily when they are taken to and from the large storage room. There are sufficient resources to ensure children are comfortable and can play and eat together, developing their social skills and helping them to make choices. Children can reach their toys and equipment easily and sit or lie comfortably to play and join in activities. Staff rotate toys and activities according to their plans for the day, helping to ensure that children enjoy a varied range of experiences. Children's safety is generally well maintained and proper precautions are taken to promote safety within the premises. For example, children practise fire drills each half term and understand simple rules such as not running in the hall and tucking-in their

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

chair when leaving a table. Staff ensure the premises are secure at all times and are vigilant in ensuring that main doors are secured when children are present. Children play outside using a hard surface area and small grassed area, which runs the length of the building. Staff supervise this generally well although some parts are not sufficiently well supervised to ensure children's safety at all times. Children visit the local park and school adventure playground and when walking to and from these, learn about keeping safe on the roads. For example, they wear brightly coloured tabards and understand they walk in two's, holding hands. Road safety is further supported by visits from the road safety unit. Children's welfare is safeguarded by good staff awareness of child protection procedures. The group policy outlines the groups approach to any concerns and a member of staff with child protection training is on site during each session.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is satisfactory. Children take part in a good range of activities throughout each session. Younger children are confident in the setting and in their relationships with each other and staff. They are learning to take turns as they play with electronic toys and musical instruments. They are encouraged to develop their communication skills at circle and other group times such as registration when they sing the 'hallo' song and say good morning to each other. Children enjoy using a wide range of creative materials such as flour, jelly and bubble painting, which encourages them to express their experiences and feelings in a variety of ways. Nursery Education The quality of teaching and learning is satisfactory. Children are making generally good progress and staff support them generally well through their a good understanding of the Foundation Stage curriculum. Planning covers all areas of learning, however, short term plans lack the detail required to enable some individual

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

learning needs to be met appropriately. Observations and assessments are not completed on a regular enough basis to help inform planning, resulting in challenges not always being appropriate to individual stages of development. Staff have attended special needs training and demonstrate a good understanding of how to

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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 support those with special needs, although none currently attend the group. Children respond well to staff involvement in their play and learning. Staff pose questions to help children think, for example, 'what will happen if we turn off this switch' and 'what does the jelly feel like to you'. However, children miss some opportunities to develop their independence, for example, pouring their own drinks at snack time. Children's knowledge and understanding of their immediate and the wider world is very good. They enjoy regular visits from scientist Sam and carpenter John who help them to explore and investigate the natural world. For example, children discover how to make a diver move up and down in a closed bottle and how to use tools to make things from wood. Children use a range of everyday technology in their play

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

and planned activities, for example, battery operated toys, food mixers, and electrical equipment. Pre-school children enjoy weekly visits to the local school where they spend time in the computer room. Children are skilful in their use of number, they count each other at circle times, sing number rhymes and record information in the form of wall charts. Children are starting to recognise their written names, although further use of name cards to develop awareness of print having meaning, and opportunities to make marks in child-initiated play are limited. For example, role-play areas are not regularly available to children and most mark-making opportunities form part of adult-led activities. Children enjoy story times with staff but have few opportunities to look at books independently. All children enjoy a wide and varied range of creative activities which stimulate their interest and increase their awareness of texture, smell and uses of different

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

resources. For example, children play with dough perfumed with lavender, peppermint or vinegar. They build models from recycled packaging and paint using fingers, sponges, cars and sticks. Children are confident to take risks in their learning. They happily plunge their hands into pots of cold jelly and make good attempts to spread butter and jam onto a piece of bread. They talk animatedly to staff and unfamiliar adults, about their experiences, and are beginning to concentrate on activities for extended periods of time.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is good. All children and parents are warmly welcomed to the playgroup each morning. Children demonstrate their confidence by settling quickly to activities and joining in with group routines such as registration, story and snack times. They are well known by staff who efficiently record individual details and highlight specific needs to ensure these are met effectively. Each child has a 'special' day at playgroup when they receive a certificate and a card, helping to increase their self-esteem and develop their awareness of others. Children increase their knowledge of the local community by taking part in local events such as the village fete and harvest celebrations, when they have lunch with the elderly folk of the village. They visit the local primary school and enjoy walks in the surrounding area. Visitors to the group further enhance this knowledge. Children celebrate a variety of different festivals throughout the year,

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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 increasing their awareness of the wider world and different lifestyles. Staff demonstrate a good awareness of special needs, enabling them to effectively support children who may attend the group. Children are skilfully encouraged to be well behaved, for example, to share equipment and take turns in their play and activities, although some opportunities for them to increase their independence are missed. Staff ensure they are consistent in their expectations for behaviour and offer frequent, meaningful praise. This positive approach effectively assists in developing children's spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. The partnership with parents and carers is good. Staff are available each day to discuss children's activities and progress, and organise open days and more formal

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Helping children make a positive contribution

feedback opportunities throughout the year. Parents take an active part in group sessions, helping on a rota basis and sharing interests such as individual areas of expertise. This partnership helps children in their continuing learning and development. Parents are provided with clear and informative written information about all aspects of group care and education, developing their interest and understanding of how their children learn.

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Organisation

The organisation is satisfactory. Leadership and Management of the playgroup is satisfactory. Children's care and well being is generally well supported by organised and caring staff and involved committee of parents. Policies and procedures have been recently updated and provide clear, well presented information to staff and parents. Good regard is given to keeping children's records and personal information confidential. The group recruitment, induction and training programme is robust and annual staff appraisals highlight ongoing staff development needs. However, some issues from the last inspection have not been fully addressed and the use of assessments and observations are not effectively used to assist in planning. Staff have successfully identified areas to improve and have organised training to facilitate this. They organise a variety of activities each day and rotate resources to provide a good

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Organisation

balance of opportunities for children. The range of different sessions offered enables staff to focus effectively on preparing older children for the move to main stream schooling and those for younger children help them to settle happily into the group. The setting meets the needs of the range of children for whom it provides.

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Improvements since the last inspection

The last care and nursery education inspections recommended that the playgroup sought emergency medical treatment permission from parents, extended the complaints policy to include a contact for Ofsted and increased the range of multi-cultural resources. The group also agreed to provide more resources and opportunities for child initiated mark-making and role-play and to consider ways to

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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 display children's work and learning resources. Permissions have been sought and the contact number for Ofsted is clearly displayed on the group's notice board, helping to ensure that parents are fully aware of policies and procedures concerning their children. Children celebrate festivals throughout the year and use a range of artefacts, foods, books and other resources to support these planned activities, increasing their awareness of the wider world and different cultures and traditions. Staff make good use of a mobile display board to exhibit examples of children's work, use the stage area to show work completed during a session and hang some large posters around the hall to support different areas of learning. However, mark-making is still largely adult-led and opportunities for role-play are still limited. As a result,

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Improvements since the last inspection

children have few opportunities to extend their knowledge and to build on what they already know, in their imaginary play.

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Complaints since the last inspection

There have been no complaints made to Ofsted 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.

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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 satisfactory.

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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): • ensure that children are effectively supervised at all times when playing in the settings garden area.

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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):

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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 • develop the system for observation and assessment and use this to inform short term plans to ensure that individual needs are met and that children are assisted in moving on to the next steps in their learning. • enable children to develop their independence in everyday activities, for example, pouring drinks and handing food at snack times. • continue to develop mark-making and role-play as outlined in the last action plan.

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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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