Rolleston Primary School

INSPECTION DETAILS

Inspection Date 01/03/2005 Inspector Name Susan Victoria May

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SETTING DETAILS

Day Care Type Sessional Day Care Setting Name Begbroke Playgroup Setting Address Village Hall Annex Begbroke Lane, Begbroke Kidlington Oxfordshire OX5 1RN

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REGISTERED PROVIDER DETAILS

Name The Committee of Begbroke Playgroup

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ORGANISATION DETAILS

Name Begbroke Playgroup Address Village Hall Annex Begbroke Lane, Begbroke Kidlington Oxfordshire OX5 1RN

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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

Begbroke Playgroup is a voluntary parent committee run playgroup established in 1979. It operates from an annexe of the village hall in Begbroke, near Kidlington. It has a secure enclosed outdoor area for play. The intake of children is from the local rural community and surrounding areas. A maximum of 16 children may attend at any one time. There are currently 20 children from 2 to 5 years on roll. Of these, 10 receive nursery education funding. The playgroup opens from 09.15 until 11.45 Monday to Friday during term time. Children attend for a variety of sessions. The setting is able to support children with special needs and children who speak English as an additional language. Three staff work with the children, one of whom has a recognised early years qualification and one who is currently working towards a relevant early years qualification.

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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?

Begbroke Playgroup 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 personal, social and emotional and mathematical development and knowledge and understanding of the world. The quality of teaching is generally good. Staff provide a range of interesting and stimulating resources and use questioning and dialogue to encourage and extend children's thinking. Staff demonstrate a reasonable understanding of the early learning goals, however, the system to record children's progress is not fully developed and staff do not always deploy themselves appropriately to effectively support the children's learning. Children's language and communication is developing well, however, there are some missed opportunities to promote early literacy skills. Staff promote children's creative development through art, crafts and

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How effective is the nursery education?

role-play, less so in music. Systems support children with special educational needs and for children whom English is an additional language. Staff are good role models and children respond positively to the clear expectations of staff.

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How effective is the nursery education?

Leadership and management are generally good. A caring staff team is in place, which is committed to providing an environment where children learn through a wide range of activities. There are currently no formal systems in place to offer continuing professional development to staff or to monitor and evaluate the curriculum effectively in all areas of learning. Partnership with parents and carers is very good. This contributes well to the children's learning. Staff inform parents about the activities and routines through verbal exchanges and regular correspondence. Staff share their observations about the children and help parents understand how they can support children's learning at home.

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What is being done well?

• Children are happy, secure and curious, they are articulate and interact well with staff, they engage easily in conversation expressing personal preferences and making independent choices. Staff work hard to build children's confidence and develop their self-esteem. • Children have the opportunity to count and use numbers regularly. A wide selection of practical activities allows children to confidently and competently solve a range of simple mathematical problems. • Children are able to explore and develop their knowledge and understanding of the world through effective use of activities from which they can learn first hand. Staff promote learning using simple experiments, objects, topics and

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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 discussion.

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What needs to be improved?

• the staffs knowledge to effectively support children's progress towards the early learning goals, observing and recording the children's development consistently and use to assist with future planning • the system to identify areas for staff's professional development and the system to monitor and evaluate the provision for nursery education • the opportunities through everyday activities to develop children's early word recognition skills • the opportunities for children to express themselves creatively using musical instruments.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

Generally good progress has been made since the last inspection. Staff have been on training courses and provide through topics and everyday events a variety of activities to promote children's knowledge and understanding of the world. New resources provide children with further opportunities to explore and develop their knowledge of the environment and they make very good progress in this area of learning. Children have increased opportunities to choose from a wide range of activities to extend their self-initiated learning; staff have achieved this through the purchase of new resources and consideration of the way in which staff present them. Most resources are easily accessible to the children.

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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 are positive and enthusiastic; they are confident and eagerly participate in activities. Children learn respect for each other as they sit quietly, for example at snack time. Staff foster children's self-esteem through praise of their achievements. Children have an understanding of taking turns and sharing and begin to develop awareness of the consequences of their actions. Staff promote children's independence by encouraging them to choose their own activities.

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COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERACY

Judgement: Generally Good Children's speaking and listening skills develop well through a range of activities and experiences, they are articulate speakers who engage easily in conversation. Role-play resources encourage children to mark make, for example, 'The Post Office'. There are some missed opportunities for early word recognition, for example, identifying names. The book corner is attractively set out and children clearly enjoy stories, however, not all books are accessible for the children to self-select.

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MATHEMATICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good An effective provision of practical activities extends children's mathematical development, for example, recording the size of foam animals when dry and again when wet. Children use language to compare numbers and develop an understanding of addition and subtraction. They are confident to do this by themselves, for example, self-monitoring the number of children at an activity. There are many opportunities for children to identify shape, size and quantity and to solve mathematical problems.

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

Judgement: Very Good Displays and interest tables allow children to explore a range of natural objects and materials. Activities, such as watching the development of tadpoles provide opportunities to look closely at similarities, differences and change. Photographs and displays of previous work effectively develop children's understanding of past and present events. Topics, visitors from the community and trips to local events provide children with opportunities to explore their community and the wider world.

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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 have opportunities to participate in a variety of movement activities, which allows them to move freely, imaginatively and safely within the premises. Children confidently use the outdoor equipment on which they move over, under and around with increasing skill. They peddle, push and pull equipment successfully negotiating the space. Resources are available to promote fine motor skills, however, staff do not always offer children appropriate support to learn and develop skills fully.

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CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good Children experience a range of activities and materials, which allow them to explore colour, texture and form. Sensory and tactile activities provide opportunities for children to describe what they see, touch and feel, for example, cooking activities. Children enjoy singing sessions and have many opportunities to use their imagination in art and role-play; however, there are insufficient opportunities for children to use musical instruments to express themselves freely.

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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

• increase staffs knowledge of how to effectively support children's progress towards the early learning goals, observing and recording the children's development consistently to assist with future planning • develop the system to identify areas for staff's professional development and the system to monitor and evaluate the provision for nursery education • provide opportunities through everyday activities to develop children's early word recognition skills • provide opportunities for children to express themselves creatively using musical instruments.

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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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