Lyng Hall School

INSPECTION DETAILS

Inspection Date 04/05/2004 Inspector Name Elaine Douglas

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SETTING DETAILS

Day Care Type Sessional Day Care Setting Name Tatworth Preschool Setting Address The Memorial Hall Tatworth Chard Somerset TA20 2QW

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REGISTERED PROVIDER DETAILS

Name The Committee of Tatworth Pre-School Committee 1022464

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ORGANISATION DETAILS

Name Tatworth Pre-School Committee Address The Memorial Hall Tatworth Chard Somerset TA20 2QW

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ORGANISATION DETAILS

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000; and Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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ABOUT THE INSPECTION

The purpose of this inspection is to assure government, parents and the public of the quality and standard of day care in accordance with the National Standards for Under Eights Day Care and Childminding; and that the nursery education for funded three and four year old children is of an acceptable quality. Inspection of nursery education also identifies strengths and weaknesses so that providers can improve the quality of educational provision and help children to achieve the early learning goals (elgs) by the end of the Foundation Stage. This inspection report must be made available to all parents. If the setting has been inspected previously, an action plan will have been drawn up to tackle issues identified. This inspection, therefore, must also assess what progress has been made in the implementation of this plan.

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Information about the setting

Tatworth Pre-school opened in 1969. It operates from a designated room in the village Memorial Hall on the edge of a housing estate and serves the local community. The group use one room with access to a storage area, spacious hall, kitchen, toilets and a fully enclosed outside area. There are currently 32 children from two years nine months to five years on roll. This includes twenty-two funded three-year-olds and eight funded four-year-olds. Children attend for a variety of sessions. The group supports children who have special needs. The group opens five days a week during school term time. Sessions run from 09.15 - 11.45 each day and 12.15 - 14.45 Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. There is a toddler session held each Friday morning in the same building. Six staff work with the children. Three have early years qualifications. Two staff are currently on training programmes. The group receive support from the Early Years

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Information about the setting

mentor/teacher (EYDCP). There are close links with Tatworth school, to which many children move on.

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How good is the Day Care?

Tatworth Pre-School is providing satisfactory care overall. A high proportion of staff are either qualified or working towards a qualification. The supervisor is newly in post, but she has already built good effective relationships with the staff who all work well as a team. Documentation is well organised although it sometimes lacks the necessary detail. Staff are clear about their roles and responsibilities with regard to the children's safety and provide constant supervision. They have good first aid procedures and most staff have a first aid qualification. Staff encourage the children to develop good hygiene routines. Staff have a satisfactory understanding of children's individual needs and of child protection issues although not all procedures are in place.

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How good is the Day 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; and Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 The available space is limited but well organised, with additional space for storage. Children have regular use of the spacious hall and garden. Staff are effectively deployed and work directly with the children, supporting their play and learning, although they do not always encourage children to develop self-discipline. Weekly plans ensure all areas of learning are covered and staff provide interesting activities appropriate to the children's stages of development. A good range of well kept equipment supports children's learning. Staff provide a warm welcoming environment for parents and children. Parents are actively encouraged to be involved in the group, the committee and their child's learning. Parents receive daily information on the activities provided and have

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How good is the Day Care?

regular opportunities to find out about their child's development and exchange information, however the information provided by parents on their child's ability is not always used effectively.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

At the last inspection the group agreed to : develop an operational plan and share it with the parents, a copy is available for parents on a daily basis, visiting parents are given the opportunity to read it, this means that they are kept informed of the policies and procedures and how the group operates. They were to obtain written parental permission to seek emergency treatment or advice, consent is now sort and retained in each child's file. The group were also required to develop a policy regarding the administration of medication and share it with parents, the policy is now in the operational plan and in the parents policies and procedures file. They were to ensure fresh drinking water is available at all times, a jug of fresh water with cups is now available throughout the session for children who wish to have a drink.

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What is being done well?

• The staff make good use of the available space, which meets the children's needs and supports learning. The staff set up the room to make it welcoming with designated areas for development, for example the imaginary play area for creative development. • The staff's awareness of safety is good, they are vigilant about children's safety at all times and effective systems are in place for the safe arrival and collection of children. • The hygiene routines actively promote good hygiene with the children. Arrangements for first aid are very good; five staff have a first aid qualification. • The staff effectively use observation to identify any special needs; their knowledge of gaining appropriate support, setting achievable targets and monitoring progress is good.

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What is being done well?

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000; and Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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What needs to be improved?

• the system for ensuring staff have received an appropriate induction programme and have understood the policies and procedures • the methods used to encourage children to develop self-discipline • the policies to ensure there are procedures for if an allegation should be made against a member of staff in the child protection policy; written procedures for contacting parents should a child become ill while attending the group in the sick child policy; and a policy for outings to ensure there are clear procedures which are made available to parents.

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CONDITIONS OF REGISTRATION

All registered persons must comply with all conditions of registration included on his/her certificate of registration. As a result of this inspection conditions of registration have been imposed / varied / removed and a new certificate of registration will be issued.

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by the time of the next inspection

Std Recommendation 14 Include procedures for caring for a sick child and contacting parents, to the sick child policy and formalise the outings procedures and make them available to parents. 2 Devise a system to record the induction process to ensure all staff have read and understood the policies and procedures. 11 Improve the methods used for behaviour management to encourage children to develop self-discipline. 14 Ensure that the child protection policy for the playgroup includes procedures to be followed in the event of an allegation being made against a member of staff.

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by the time of the next 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; and Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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How effective is the nursery education?

Tatworth Pre-School provides good quality nursery education overall, which enables children to make generally good progress towards the early learning goals. Children make very good progress in their mathematical development and creative development. Teaching is generally good. Staff build good relationships with the children which builds their confidence and underpins their learning in all other areas. They extend children's play and learning without over directing them. Staff encourage children to think through good open-ended questions; they plan activities with clear learning intentions. Staff support individual children well, and through good observation have identified and supported children with special needs to ensure they can take part in the full range of activities. Adult led activities are well planned but too few opportunities are provided for children to select from a range of resources for

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How effective is the nursery education?

themselves. Staff handle children's behaviour well but do not always support them in learning to sit quietly. The leadership and management are generally good. The supervisor has been in post only a short time and has build good relationships with staff, they are clear about their roles and responsibilities and feel their ideas are valued. There is a shared commitment from the committee, supervisor and staff for improving the education and the supervisor has begun to implement some changes to identified weaknesses. However not all the key issues from the previous inspection have been fully addressed. The partnership with parents is generally good. Parents receive good information on the setting and it's provision. Daily information is provided on the activities provided and staff take time to talk to parents informally. Parents are actively encouraged to be involved in their child's learning and receive good information on their child's

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How effective is the nursery education?

progress, however their comments are not used in the children's assessments to inform planning.

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What is being done well?

• Children are confident and good communicators due to the good relationships built with staff. • Children are well supported in their learning through the good deployment of staff. Staff encourage children's learning through supporting but not over directing their play. • Parents are kept well informed about the curriculum, the provision and their child's development; they find staff approachable and knowledgeable about their individual children.

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What is being done well?

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000; and Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 • Staff support children with special educational needs well, they plan to ensure they are included in all activities and can access all the curriculum. • Children are making very good progress in mathematical and creative development through well planned opportunties. • Clear leadership and management provides a good working relationship with staff, providing them the opportunity to be involved and their ideas valued.

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What needs to be improved?

• the access to a wider range of resources for children to develop design skills • the opportunities for children to learn to use tools safely • the resources used to encourage children to use writing for different purposes and to begin to form recognisable letters • the use of parents comments about what their children can do, to inform future plans • the attention given to encouraging children to sit quietly and develop self discipline when appropriate.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

Generally good progress has been made since the last inspection. The planning has been developed to ensure all areas of development are covered. Children have regular opportunities to climb, in the large hall and in the outside area. Activities are planned for children to learn about health awareness; daily routines are also used, such as snacks and lunch. Children have access to a computer and are learning basic skills for using the mouse and keyboard, the group intend to develop this further by buying a digital camera for the children's use to load onto the computer. Children learn about time through discussion and activities, for example looking at how they have changed from being a baby. Parents are involved more in their child's progress through daily discussion and open days, however parents comments are not recorded or used to inform planning.

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What has improved 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; and Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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PERSONAL, SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good Children build strong relationships with the staff and are able to work together as a team when taking part in completing a floor puzzle. They initiate conversation and interaction, and are confident to express their own ideas. Children confidently speak out in a group and display good concentration when taking part in activities, however they have a limited understanding of using self-discipline and sitting quietly when in whole group situations.

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COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERACY

Judgement: Generally Good Children use books well for enjoyment and for information; they are beginning to understand that print carries meaning and can read names and some familiar words. Children interact well in conversation with each other and with staff, they speak clearly and confidently, and use speech to organise real experiences, such as how they got to pre-school. Children do not regularly use writing or form recognisable letters in their play due to limited resources in activities, such as role-play.

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MATHEMATICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Children confidently count everyday objects to ten and beyond through good routines such as the calendar. They regularly use songs to learn the number that is one less than the given number, and by good questioning from staff are developing an understanding of addition and subtraction, for example staff ask children "if the monster has two heads, how many eyes does he have?". During planned activities children extend their mathematical language well and begin to understand its meaning.

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

Judgement: Generally Good Children regularly comment on change and similarities such as noticing flour changes texture when water is added, and white flour becomes pink when red paint is added. Children are beginning to differentiate between past and present by commenting on events in their own lives. Through good activities children have a good awareness of their own environment and the natural world. Children build with a range of construction toys but have limited design skills in art due to too few resources.

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000; and Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good Children move with coordination and control during the regular opportunities to use large equipment, for example balancing on the stepping stones while balancing a bean bag on their head. They negotiate space well in the limited space in the playroom and show an awareness of themselves and others. Children handle construction and malleable materials well, such as playdough, and show increasing control when using cutters and rolling pins. However they do not regularly practise using tools safely.

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CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Children display good imaginations in their role-play, stories and music; they act out imaginary and real life situations and express their own ideas well, for example making up animals to add to the old MacDonald song. Children regularly explore media and materials and enjoy taking part in small and large scale art activities. Children regularly sing familiar songs with enthusiasm.

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Children's spiritual, moral, social, and cultural development is fostered

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000; and Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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OUTCOME OF THE INSPECTION

The provision is acceptable and is of good quality overall. Children are making generally good progress towards the early learning goals. The next inspection will take place in three to four years time.

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WHAT THE SETTING NEEDS TO DO NEXT: THE KEY ISSUES

• increase opportunities for children to access resources to develop writing skills, practise using tools with safety and develop design skills in art • improve staff knowledge of methods to develop children's ability to sit quietly and develop self discipline in whole group situations • develop the use of parents comments on what their child can do, to assist with the children's assessments and inform planning

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WHAT THE SETTING NEEDS TO DO NEXT: THE KEY ISSUES

The provider must draw up an action plan within 40 working days of receipt of this report showing how the key issues detailed above will be addressed. The action plan must be made available to all parents and to the Local Authority if required. An evaluation of the action taken will form part of the next inspection of funded nursery education.

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WHAT THE SETTING NEEDS TO DO NEXT: THE KEY ISSUES

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000; and Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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STANDARD 1 - SUITABLE PERSON

Adults providing day care, looking after children or having unsupervised access to them are suitable to do so.

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STANDARD 2 - ORGANISATION

The registered person meets required adult: child ratios, ensures that training and qualifications requirements are met and organises space and resources to meet the children's needs effectively.

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STANDARD 3 - CARE, LEARNING AND PLAY

The registered person meets children's individual needs and promotes their welfare. They plan and provide activities and play opportunities to develop children's emotional, physical, social and intellectual capabilities.

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STANDARD 4 - PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT

The premises are safe, secure and suitable for their purpose. They provide adequate space in an appropriate location, are welcoming to children and offer access to the necessary facilities for a range of activities which promote their development.

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STANDARD 5 - EQUIPMENT

Furniture, equipment and toys are provided which are appropriate for their purpose and help to create an accessible and stimulating environment. They are of suitable design and condition, well maintained and conform to safety standards.

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STANDARD 6 - SAFETY

The registered person takes positive steps to promote safety within the setting and on outings and ensures proper precautions are taken to prevent accidents.

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STANDARD 7 - HEALTH

The registered person promotes the good health of children and takes positive steps to prevent the spread of infection and appropriate measures when they are ill.

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STANDARD 8 - FOOD AND DRINK

Children are provided with regular drinks and food in adequate quantities for their needs. Food and drink is properly prepared, nutritious and complies with dietary and religious requirements.

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STANDARD 9 - EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES

The registered person and staff actively promote equality of opportunity and anti-discriminatory practice for all children.

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NEEDS AND DISABILITIES)

The registered person is aware that some children may have special needs and is

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NEEDS AND DISABILITIES)

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000; and Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 proactive in ensuring that appropriate action can be taken when such a child is identified or admitted to the provision. Steps are taken to promote the welfare and development of the child within the setting in partnership with the parents and other relevant parties.

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STANDARD 11 - BEHAVIOUR

Adults caring for children in the provision are able to manage a wide range of children's behaviour in a way which promotes their welfare and development.

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STANDARD 12 - WORKING IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS AND CARERS

The registered person and staff work in partnership with parents and to meet the needs of the children, both individually and as a group. Information is shared.

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STANDARD 13 - CHILD PROTECTION

The registered person complies with local child protection procedures approved by the Area Child Protection Committee and ensures that all adults working and looking after children in the provision are able to put the procedures into practice.

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STANDARD 14 - DOCUMENTATION

Records, policies and procedures which are required for the efficient and safe management of the provision, or to promote the welfare, care and learning of children are maintained. Records about individual children are shared with the child's parent.

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STANDARD 14 - DOCUMENTATION

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000; and Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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