White Lodge Children's Centre

INSPECTION DETAILS

Inspection Date 01/03/2005 Inspector Name Mo Roberts

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SETTING DETAILS

Day Care Type Sessional Day Care Setting Name 3-2-4 Playgroup Setting Address The Portacabin School Drive,Chandag Road,Keynsham Bristol BS31 1PQ

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ORGANISATION DETAILS

Name 3-2-4 Playgroup Address 3-2-4 Playgroup, The Portacabin Chandag Road KEYNSHAM BS31 1PQ

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ORGANISATION DETAILS

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of 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 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

3-2-4 Playgroup is a long established group and is located in the grounds of a school in Keynsham. Nearby are the infants, junior and senior schools. The group originally began in hired halls until the decision was made to purchase their own mobile. It is now on the school site with its own fenced outside play area and letter box and serves the local area. 3-2-4 playgroup is registered to provide care for 18 children in the age range of 3 to 5 years and offers learning through play and is registered to take Nursery Education Grant for 3 and 4 year olds. Sessions last from 09:15 to 11:45 and 12:45 to 15:15, Monday to Friday during the school term times. There are 69 children on roll at present. They attend a variety of sessions. There are 24 funded four-year-olds and 39 funded three-year-olds. The group is managed by qualified, experienced play leaders and there are six other experienced staff members, half of whom are qualified. The group is managed by a

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Information about the setting

parent committee with the support of the joint play leaders. The group has some visits from the Early Years Partnership and has strong links with the Infant School on the same site.

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Information about the setting

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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How effective is the nursery education?

3-2-4 Playgroup provides good quality nursery education. Progress is very good in five of the six areas of learning. In physical development progress is generally good as there is limited access to climbing and really robust outside play. Teaching is generally good overall and there are many really strong features. The plans are well designed and show clearly what children are expected to learn from the exciting range of activities provided. They cover most of the six areas well however, there are minor gaps relating to the new information technology equipment and activities encouraging the use of major muscles. Small muscle development is especially well planned. Assessment procedures are satisfactory but the information gained is not always used in the planning to adapt activities for those who learn quickly. Children with Special Educational Needs are given good support. Staff have a very good knowledge of the Foundation Stage and are adept at producing a happy

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How effective is the nursery education?

atmosphere where children concentrate and are well behaved. Relationships are warm and children are secure. Leadership and management is generally good. Staff are committed to their work. They are good at team work and ensure the setting runs smoothly. Plans are discussed and all staff are able to access training. The appraisal and monitoring systems are informal and are not rigorous enough to have identified the minor weaknesses in the programme. The committee support the group appropriately. The partnership with parents is generally good. The prospectus gives a good overview of the procedures and what is involved in the Foundation Stage, but parents are not fully encouraged to share what they know about their child's first learning. Feedback on children's progress is informal. Although some parents help in the group and see progress for themselves others are less well informed. The newsletters give useful details about the current 'theme' and parents send items to

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What is being done well?

• Children's personal and social development is very good. Children are kind to each other and imitate the model of caring for everyone shown to them by the staff. They also concentrate well on the activities. • Language and early mathematics skills are developed effectively by very good questioning and discussion with staff. • Children's creativity is fully encouraged and they make a good range of art and craft as well as enjoying role playing all sorts of characters. • Knowledge of the world around them is good and children enjoy many hands on activities that stimulate their senses.

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What is being done well?

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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What needs to be improved?

• the opportunities for robust physical activity and climbing • the use made of assessment information to further refine the challenges in some activities • the information obtained from parents about their child's previous learning on entry to the setting, and the information given to parents about children's progress during the time the children attend • the monitoring of the programme to ensure all aspects are fully covered, that any weaknesses that occur are dealt with, and that staff are given formal feedback on their work from time to time so they know what areas of their practice to develop.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

The group has made very good progress since the last inspection. They were asked to improve their organisation and time management with regard to the assessment procedures. The key worker system has been refined and they now have simple but effective ways of recording assessments and observations. All children now have full records of their progress related to the early learning goals. The second issue was to ensure that the children's awareness of their health and bodies was incorporated fully into the planning. This is now done and child enjoy healthy snacks of fruit and are aware of how exercise makes their hearts beat faster. They are now learning the importance of making healthy choices.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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PERSONAL, SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Children settle quickly as they arrive. They are well motivated and keen to try the variety of activities on offer. They behave well and are able to help with all the routines including the tidying up. Self confidence develops well and children take care of their personal needs with the minimum of fuss; some require prompting to wash their hands. There is a good sense of community as they give thanks for their snack. They learn appropriately about their own culture and about others' beliefs.

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COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERACY

Judgement: Very Good Children are encouraged to speak and the staff use good strategies to extend children's vocabularies. The 'show and tell' time allows everyone a chance to speak, and this encourages everyone else to be patient and listen. Children are given time to express their thoughts and ideas in activities. They are beginning to link sounds to letters, especially those in their own names - which they mostly are able to recognise. They enjoy stories. Mark making and early writing develops well.

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MATHEMATICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Children learn to count through organised and ad hoc activities like counting the strawberries brought for snacks. They recognise some larger numbers relating to the date. There are very good opportunities to make patterns. They recognise the numerals on a telephone. They are able to solve simple subtraction problems using five fingers, taking one away as they sing familiar rhymes. More able children succeed in doing challenging three dimensional puzzles and all are learning to persevere.

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

Judgement: Very Good Children enjoy investigating melting snow. They plant seeds and watch the flowers grow. They show awareness of how the weather effects the tree outside the portacabin and spot where various insects live. They discuss past events and anticipate things like going on holiday. They record the passing days and learn about festivals like Divali. They design and make things confidently but have less experience with the computer, although they know about technology like battery operated items.

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good Children's eye to hand co-ordination is well supported and they practise and develop good throwing and catching skills. There are lots of tools to use and children are confident for example, in making combs fan out the sand. They know how exercise effects the body and they enjoy movement and avoid bumping into each other. Indoor space is not cleared sufficiently for robust movement and plans do not show the outside being used quite enough. Climbing equipment does not challenge the most able.

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CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Children recognise their colours and enjoy mixing new ones. They have plenty of opportunity to create art work and to experience a variety of textures. There is regular access to well resourced role play areas as well as 'small world' play with garages and a doll's house. Children sustain imaginative play and ask for items they want to incorporate in their roles. Their senses are well stimulated. They enjoy making music and are rhythmic when playing together. They use loud and soft dynamics.

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

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of 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

• ensure the assessment records are used fully to help adapt activities for those who learn quickly and to give parents more formal opportunities for feedback on their child's progress • enhance the planning to show clearly how the major muscle groups will be developed, include more challenges for climbing • develop systems for appraising staff and monitoring the overall provision of nursery education so if any weakness occurs it is identified and can be acted on promptly.

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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 Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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