Edith Cavell Academy and Nursery

INSPECTION DETAILS

Inspection Date 03/02/2003 Inspector Name Melissa Tickner

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SETTING DETAILS

Setting Name Ducklings Preschool Setting Address Methodist Hall Weymouth Dorset DT3 4DX

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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

Ducklings Pre-School opened in 1993 and is registered for full day care to accommodate 20 children between the ages of two and five years of age. The pre-school is managed by a parental committee. It employs seven members of staff, four of whom are qualified appropriately and the other three are working towards gaining relevant qualifications. The pre-school is situated in the village of Chickerell, near to the town of Weymouth. Most of the children in attendance live locally and come from a range of backgrounds. The pre-school is accommodated in a Methodist Church in the centre of the village. The Church is used at weekends and occasionally during the week by other community organisations. The pre-school is open each weekday from 9.00 a.m. until 12.15 p.m. and on Monday and Thursday afternoons until 3.30 p.m., in term time only. The accommodation consists of a large room with separate entrance hall, toilet facilities, storage and a kitchen. Outside, at

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Information about the setting

the side of the building, there is a secure tarmac area for the children to use. Currently there are 37 children on role, some of whom have been identified as having special educational needs or English as an additional language. At the time of inspection the pre-school had 10 funded 4 year olds and 16 funded 3 year olds on the register. Support and curriculum advice is given to the pre-school by the local Early Years Partnership.

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How effective is the nursery education?

Ducklings Pre-School provides very good nursery education. Overall teaching is very good. The staff team is knowledgeable and they provide well planned interesting activities which are meaningful to the children. There is a good balance between structure activities and those initiated by the children. As a result children are making very good progress towards the Early Learning Goals in all areas of learning. Teaching is very good and staff relationships with the children are excellent. Staff work hard to introduce challenging and interesting topics and activities that are meaningful to the children. Staff are good role models and have reasonable expectations of children's behaviour. Staff promote self-confidence and a positive attitude in all children. Planning and assessment are thorough and cater for children's individual needs in all areas of learning. Leadership and management is very good with a clear management structure and thorough induction procedures

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How effective is the nursery education?

and appraisals for staff. Partnership with parents is very good. Parents are provided with good information about the setting and the activities experienced by the children. Parents are also kept well informed about their children's progress and are given opportunities to be involved in their learning.

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What is being done well?

Planning and assessment work very well together and take into account children's individual achievements and needs, together with the planning of activities that the children are really interested in. Children are making very good progress towards the ELG's in all areas of learning. Provision for personal, social and emotional development is good, children are confident, independent and their behaviour is good. Leadership and management are very good. Parents are informed well of their children's progress and given opportunities to be involved in the learning process. Good use is made of space and the accommodation to enable children to gain confidence, spatial awareness and to be familiar with their surroundings.

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What needs to be improved?

Consideration needs to be given to making books more attractively displayed to encourage children to use them more frequently for themselves. Despite the constraints of the property more thought needs to be given to alternative methods of providing physical play that enables children to use their large body movements.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

The quality of teaching and assessment Staff's knowledge and understanding of the Early Learning Goals. The planning of the educational programme The provision for creative development and physical development

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PERSONAL, SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Progress in personal and social and emotional development is very good. Children have complete freedom to play with any of the activities, inside or outside throughout the whole session and all activities are set out for them to access independently - such as the 'café-style' snack table and the junk modelling. Children are confident and staff promote self-esteem by constantly praising them. The children work well together in small groups and help each other. Their behaviour is very good.

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COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERACY

Judgement: Very Good Progress in communication, language and literacy is very good. Children communicate very well with each other and staff. Good use is made of new vocabulary and staff are continually extending the children's conversation. The children listen well and are familiar with stories, although better use could be made of the book corner to enable children to use books individually. The are encouraged to read and write their own names and captions by using labelling and good quality writing tools

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MATHEMATICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Children are making very good progress in mathematical development. They are given opportunities to recognise numbers and to be familiar with counting rhymes. They are beginning to be familiar with mathematical language and concepts of shape, space and measurement in activities that are interesting to them. Situations are devised by staff to enable children to solve problems and begin to learn the concept of addition and subtraction.

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

Judgement: Very Good Very good progress is being made by the children in knowledge and understanding of the world. They have opportunities to investigate, explore and observe changes through interesting topics. They are skilled in using the computer and other IT equipment. Children are given opportunities to talk about their families and to be familiar with the environment, as well as learning about other cultures and beliefs.

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PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good Progress in physical development is generally good. Children have opportunities to use a very good selection of tools and equipment to develop their fine manipulative skills, such as the woodworking and writing tools. Many opportunities are given for children to use a range of equipment for physical exercise, such as bikes, balancing beams and balls, but there are few opportunities for children to climb and use large body movements as there is not the space to store or erect such equipment.

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CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Children are making very good progress in creative development. They have opportunities to explore, use and select different mediums and materials. A good range of musical instruments is available for children to use freely or with direction. Opportunities are planned and scenarios are set up for children to recreate stories and make up their own, such as the role-play area designed as a 'baby clinic'.

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CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT

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

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OUTCOME OF THE INSPECTION

The provision is acceptable and is of high quality. Children are making very 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

There are no significant weaknesses to report, but consideration should be given to improving the following: Taking into account the constraints of the property, continue to improve upon the provision for physical development to enable the children to develop large body movements. Consider rearranging the book corner more attractively to enable children to make better use of books.

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