Hillview Under Five's Pre-School Playgroup

INSPECTION DETAILS

Inspection Date 07/03/2005 Inspector Name Rita Cruddos

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SETTING DETAILS

Day Care Type Sessional Day Care Setting Name Hillview Under 5's Pre-School Playgroup Setting Address Beechwood Avenue Beechwood Runcorn Cheshire WA7 3HB

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REGISTERED PROVIDER 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

Hillview Under 5's Pre-School Playgroup is run by a voluntary management committee. It opened in 1981 and operates from the Community Room within Hillview CP School which is situated in Runcorn, Cheshire. A maximum of 22 children may attend the pre-school at any one time. The pre-school is open each weekday from 09:00 until 11:30 term time only. All children share access to an enclosed outdoor play area. There are currently 25 children from 2 to under 5 years on roll. Of these 13 receive funding for nursery education. Children come from the surrounding area. The pre-school is able to support children with special educational needs. The pre-school employs two full-time and two part-time staff. There are two members of staff, including the manager who hold appropriate early years qualifications and two who are working towards a qualification. The setting is supported by Halton Early Years Partnership.

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How good is the Day Care?

Hillview Under 5's Pre-School Playgroup provides good quality care for children. A well motivated staff team provides a warm and welcoming environment for children and organises space and resources to meet children's needs. Very good relationships are developed with the children, who are happy, confident and secure. All staff have good practical skills in caring for children and undertake regular training to improve and build on these. Records and documentation are well organised, most are accurate and up to date. The provider has a good awareness of safety and takes positive steps to provide a safe environment and prevent accidents. This includes regular risk assessments. Half of the staff have undertaken first aid and food hygiene training. Good hygiene practices are encouraged and healthy, nutritious snacks are provided. Staff are aware of the setting's child protection procedure and the local Area Child Protection

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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 pre-school offers a very good range of activities indoors and outdoors which help children progress in all areas of their development. Staff are deployed well and enable the children to make good use of the space available. The comprehensive range of toys, equipment and materials provided are age appropriate and challenge the children's thinking. Multi-cultural resources and themed activities promote and extend the children's experiences of the world and provide positive images of culture and diversity. Children behave well and respond to the use of positive reinforcement strategies by the staff. The setting is proactive in ensuring appropriate care is provided for children who have special needs and two members of staff are SENCO

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How good is the Day Care?

trained. Good partnerships are developed with parents. All information about the setting is available to them and is displayed on the notice board.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

At the last inspection it was agreed that an operational plan would be developed and be available to parents, the equal opportunities policy would be available for staff at all times and children only released to individuals named by the child's parent. A comprehensive operational plan is now in place. All documents in regard to the setting are on display and available to parents and staff as is the equal opportunities policy. A policy is in place and known to staff, in regard to the collection of children by named persons only. The completion of these actions further safeguards the children whilst they are at the setting and enables parents to have a better understanding of the way the pre-school operates.

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What is being done well?

• The organisation and deployment of the committed staff team is effective. Staff training needs are identified and there is a commitment to enable staff increase their knowledge and skills through further training. • Regular risk assessments are completed ensuring children can play safely. Staff are aware of and can implement Health and Safety requirements. • Good use is made of space with clearly defined areas for play. Children have access to a safe outdoor play area and a wide range of toys, equipment and activities which are set out each day. These are all accessible to the children. • Staff know the children well. They are interested in what the children say and do. They plan and provide activities to meet the children's needs and have high expectations of the children They use positive reinforcement to promote good behaviour. • The setting is proactive in ensuring appropriate care and opportunities are

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What is being done well?

provided for children who have special needs. • Good relationships are maintained with parents. A comprehensive set of policies and procedures available to them at all times. They also have ongoing information and reports from staff regarding their child's progress.

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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 child protection policy in regard to allegations made against staff • the policy for the administration of medication • the information for parents with regard to Ofsted in the complaints procedure.

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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 Ensure all documentation and policies contain the appropriate information and are kept up to date.

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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?

Hillview Under 5's Pre-School Playgroup provision is acceptable and of good quality overall. Children are making generally good progress towards the early learning goals. Children's progress in communication, language and literacy, mathematical development, knowledge and understanding of the world and physical development is very good. Teaching is generally good. The staff have a good understanding of the early learning goals and plan an interesting and stimulating range of activities which cover the areas of children's learning however children have limited opportunities to freely select resources, explore and investigate materials. Some of the activities provided do not offer the children opportunity to extend their independence and self-help skills. Staff support, encourage and challenge children's learning and thinking using good questioning techniques and good intervention. Relationships between staff and

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How effective is the nursery education?

children are very good. The assessment system for children enables the team to plan for the children's individual learning needs. The leadership and management of the setting is generally good. The manager and staff are committed to the development of the setting and to attending further training when available. Staff work well together as a team, they are aware of their roles and responsibilities and communicate well with each other. Partnership with parents is very good. Parents are welcome in the setting and their views are clearly valued. They receive good-quality information about the setting and good channels of communication are in place. These include daily discussions, Activities at Home sheets, regular written information about themes and activities. Progress reports and the use of notice boards also provide good information. Parents take an active role in the setting through management committee

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How effective is the nursery education?

membership and through the parent's rota system.

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What is being done well?

• Children are making good relationships with their peers and staff. They behave well and staff have high expectations of the children. They confidently take responsibility for small tasks and for their own personal needs. • Children are gaining confidence through using every day technology such as the computer and a number of electronic toys. • The programme for mathematical development is very good. Children learn mathematical concepts through adult led activities and free play opportunities. • Children confidently join in activities. They link their learning to events and talk about what they have done or have seen and record this using different forms such as captions and lists. They are developing a good understanding

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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 of time and place through planned activities and discussions. • Children move safely with increasing control around the setting. They enjoy a range of role play situations in line with the current themes and during their play in the home corner. • The setting provides a warm and welcoming environment for parents who have access to a good range of information in regard to their child's progress and the care provided by the playgroup.

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What needs to be improved?

• the opportunities for children to freely access resources and investigate objects and materials in order to increase their independence and self-help skills • the opportunities for children to use their imagination in design using self-chosen tools, techniques and materials.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

At the last inspection the setting was required to provide teaching opportunities to link letter sounds with words, improve opportunities for children to experience free art opportunities and improve the current assessment folders in order that they are in line with the early learning goals. Staff have increased knowledge and understanding of ways to link sounds with words. Children have opportunities to develop their understanding through sound games, letter and sound activities, a self registration system, books and self labelled displays. The very good progress made in this area is monitored at staff meetings. All children's individual folders include the ELG's and children's progress along the stepping stones is recorded. The long, medium and short term plans and topic planning sheets include the stepping stones and provide good, clear information in regard to the children's progress. Opportunities for children to express themselves through painting are included in the

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What has improved since the last inspection?

planning. The interpretation of the term free art has been defined as painting by the setting. Issues around freely accessible creative opportunities and resources have been raised at this inspection.

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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 are confident and happy in their environment. They are well motivated and operate independently. However staff do not always take advantage of opportunities to increase the children's independence. Children's behaviour is very good, they take turns and share fairly. Children work well together, they are kind, considerate and respectful to each other. Children learn about their own and different cultures through celebrations, discussions and quality resources.

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COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERACY

Judgement: Very Good Children are confident and fluent speakers who initiate and engage in conversations. They are attentive at group times, enjoying and responding to stories and songs. Children understand that print carries meaning, they are able to recognise and write their own names. They have opportunities to mark make in planned activities and practice mark making through signing their work, making notes and lists for shopping. They make good use of the home corner and talk through a range of experiences.

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MATHEMATICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Children count and solve mathematical problems in planned and everyday activities. Some children count confidently and reliably up to 20 and beyond. Children recognise and name numbers on the Dinosaur wall display, they write numbers and record mathematical activities with numbers, patterns and shapes, use number songs and rhymes to count the number of children in the group. They compare number in a variety of ways sorting and organising. "We are not all here today. Some children are missing."

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

Judgement: Very Good Children explore and investigate a wide range of objects, materials and living things using their senses mostly through planned activities. They explore their environment through home and pre-school activities. They use calculators, the computer, cassette players and cash registers in role play. Children learn about the roles of people in their community and enjoy visits by the librarian and dentist. Children are also learning about cultures and beliefs through the good resources and themes.

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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: Very Good Children move around the environment safely, confidently and with good control. Children use a wide range of tools and materials skilfully, developing very good fine motor skills. They manipulate and explore malleable materials confidently and competently. Children show increasing control when using the climbing frame, sliding, climbing and swinging. Changes to their bodies following active play are recognised and discussed. They confidently throw and catch large balls during circle games.

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CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good Children explore colour, shape and texture using their senses in planned, adult led activities. They sing songs with enthusiasm and dance to music from around the world. Children engage in imaginative play in the well resourced role play areas. They revisit home and pre-school situations and experiences. Children are able to recognise and choose music and stories on cassettes which they use confidently. The opportunities for the children to develop their own design skills are limited.

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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

• further improve the opportunities for children consolidate their learning, to use equipment and resources effectively and work at their own pace • reinforce the staff's understanding of how children learn. 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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