Noahs Ark Pre-School

INSPECTION DETAILS

Inspection Date 12/12/2003 Inspector Name Mary Gilbert

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SETTING DETAILS

Day Care Type Sessional Day Care Setting Name Noahs Ark Pre-School Setting Address St Johns Church Hall Caudwell Hall Road (North East) Ipswich Suffolk IP4 4QE

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REGISTERED PROVIDER DETAILS

Name The Committee of Noah's Ark Pre-School 1031652

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ORGANISATION DETAILS

Name Noah's Ark Pre-School Address St Johns Church Hall Caudwell Hall Road (North East) Ipswich Suffolk IP4 4QE

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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

Noah's Ark Pre-school has been open since 1985. The pre-school is affiliated to the Pre-school Learning Alliance and has close links with the Church of St John the Baptist. The pre-school uses two rooms in the newly built church hall. It has an outside all weather play area and access to disabled toilets in the entrance hall. It is situated on the outskirts of Ipswich in a well-established residential area. The group caters for children aged three to five years and is open every day in term time from 9.15 am to 11.45 am and also 12.30 pm to 3.00 pm on Mon & Wed. The pre-school has a qualified supervisor and four full time and two part time assistants. All staff are experienced, have obtained qualifications in childcare and wish to take up further training as it becomes available. There is an adult to child ratio of one to eight with the older children and one to six with the younger children. Parents and carers help out on a rota system and their

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How good is the Day Care?

Noah's Ark pre-school provides satisfactory care for children. The building is warm and welcoming and the staff know the children well. There are clear routines for the children but some attention needs to be given to ensuring good hygiene practises are followed at all times. There is also need to review large group activities, such as snack time, to maximise learning potential. Most risks are minimised, but in some situations there needs to be more attention to detail. There are a good range of resources, particularly for the outdoor all weather play area. Some attention needs to be given to the provision of resources for ICT and music and also to support the promotion of equal opportunities. The relationship with parents is good. They are given clear information as to events and learning taking place and are encouraged to be involved in children's education.

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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 There are clear procedures for the promotion of good behaviour which are adhered to by most staff.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

At the last inspection the providers were asked to ensure all records are kept on the premises. All records are kept on site, and most of the necessary information is included. There is a need to ensure the medication record is instituted and the fire drills recorded regularly. The child procedures based on the ACPC are in place although there is need to extend these to include what might happen should a member of staff be accused of abuse. The procedures to encourage good patterns of behaviour are now in place, however, there is need that all staff should work with these. The setting was also asked to ensure that they followed anti-discriminatory practises. There are still gaps in this with regard to resources and the policy needs to be further extended with regard to the Disability Discrimination Act. Staff are encouraged to take part in training and are now aware of what is available. The visitors book is now in use and most hazards to children are minimised. There is

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What has improved since the last inspection?

still need to ensure doors and gates are kept locked and more formal risk assessments kept.

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What is being done well?

• There is a strong partnership with parents. They are kept well informed as to the activities taking place and are welcomed regularly into the setting to help. • There are good opportunities to take part in fund raising for different charities. Children's awareness is raised to help those who might be less fortunate than themselves. • Good use is made of the building to provide a bright colourful area for the children to learn in.

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What needs to be improved?

• the development of large group activities, such as snack time, to ensure that these become an opportunity to extend children's independence and to encourage learning • the procedures for risk assessment, the recording of fire drill and documentation surrounding the administration of medicine • the awareness of staff with regard to child protection issues • the opportunity for children to have a drink regularly

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What needs to be improved?

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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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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The Registered Person must take the following actions by the date shown

Std Action Date 7 Ensure all children wash their hands before snack time. 16/01/2004

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The Registered Person must take the following actions by the date shown

7 Provide facilities to record the administering of medicine. 16/01/2004

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The Registered Person must take the following actions by the date shown

8 Ensure drinking water is available for children at all times. 16/01/2004

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by the time of the next inspection

Std Recommendation 5 Review resources in all areas of the curriculum taking into account the Foundation Stage and the promotion of equal opportunities. 6 Maintain the safety of children at all times by ensuring they cannot leave the premises or outside area unsupervised, risk assessments and fire drills are regularly recorded. 8 Develop snack time into a learning situation to encourage children’s independence and social skills 13 Develop an action plan to show how staff’s awareness and understanding of child protection issues will be clarified and ensure that the policy is amended to cover the aspect of what would happen if one of the staff is accused of abuse.

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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?

Noah's Ark Pre-school provides generally good provision for nursery education. Children are making generally good progress in their learning and development through a broad curriculum. The quality of teaching is generally good. The range of activities is planned to give the children a wide range of experiences through different topics and activities, however, this needs to be clearly linked to the early learning goals. The high staff ratios allows staff to support the children in all areas of their learning and development and they are good role models for the children. Staff engage with the children at all times, talking to them to extend their ideas and thinking. Staff observe all the children throughout the term and this is recorded on their progress files, although this is not evaluated using the stepping stones to plan children's next step. Planning is done regularly with input and ideas from all the staff.

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How effective is the nursery education?

The group now have access to an enclosed outside play area which is used to provide a range of opportunities for development across all areas. The leadership and management is generally good. The manager is putting new ideas in place to enhance the quality of the children's learning. The staff work well as a team and individual strengths are used when deploying the staff with different activities. The group has good links in the local and wider community. All staff have attended some early years training, although their knowledge of the Foundation Stage needs to be developed. Partnership with parents is generally good. The staff have good relationships with parents, their skills and time is valued by the group and parents help out on the parent's rota. They are kept informed of the pre-schools activities through regular newsletters, the notice board and through informal chats with staff on what their child

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What is being done well?

• Children use language to recall significant events in their lives and that of others, in their craft work and with unknown adults. • The more able child is encouraged to write their own names, staff help the children by using phonics in sounding the letters of their name. • The range of topics covered ensure that children's knowledge of peoples differences in the local and wider community is acknowledged and valued. • Staff question the children which extends their thinking, ideas and learning when exploring the topics covered. • Relationships and communication with parents is good which ensures that

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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 they are kept informed of the activities and topics that their children are doing.

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What needs to be improved?

• Opportunities for children to develop their problem solving through everyday practical activities. • Staff and parents knowledge and understanding of the Foundation Stage and the early learning goals. • Observations and assessment to ensure that records provide a clearer link to the stepping stones and early learning goals. • Monitoring and evaluations of the quality of teaching to plan children's next step.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

The improvement since the last inspection has been generally good. The pre-school have purchased additional physical play equipment to allow the children to develop large movement, climbing and balancing. Staff have received additional information that has developed their questioning skills so that children's thinking, ideas and knowledge is extended. Children have the opportunity to observe and explore natural and made objects through the range of activities and materials provided at each session.

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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 Personal, social and emotional development is generally good. Staff give children praise and encouragement and their work is valued. Children are given a choice of activities and sufficient time to complete their chosen tasks. Staff are good role models for the children and good manners is encouraged.

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COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERACY

Judgement: Generally Good Communication, language and literacy is generally good. Staff read stories to individual children when asked, talk and engage with the children to develop their speech and vocabulary. Children use language to recall significant events in their life and that of others, in their craft work and with unknown adults. More able children are encouraged to write their own names, staff use phonics to sound out individual letters in their names.

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MATHEMATICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good Mathematical development is generally good. Children enjoy counting rhymes and games, they can recognise numerals and count objects to ten and beyond. Shape and pattern is introduced as children use puzzles, matching cards and multi-link to compare size and similarity; children can name and describe simple shapes. Simple problem solving skills around everyday practical activities needs to be developed.

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

Judgement: Generally Good Knowledge and understanding of the world is generally good. The children cover a wide variety of topics that acknowledge and values peoples differences within the local and wider community where they live. A computer is an addition to the groups resources and for some children to gain more confidence this needs to be used more often.

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PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good Physical development is generally good. children are given good opportunities to develop large motor skills. The small equipment, resources and tools available promotes children's fine motor skills and their hand eye coordination. Children have good self care skills in personal hygiene, after using the toilet.

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PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

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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CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good Children are making generally good progress in creative development. Children have opportunities to explore colour by using and mixing paint with different tools. Individual children are given sufficient time to consolidate and progress in their imagination during craft activities. Children enjoy singing and movement to different songs and action rhymes. Small world items allow children to create a farm or zoo, or road and rail layouts to express their ideas and extend their vocabulary.

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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

• Develop opportunities for children to extend their problem solving skills through everyday practical activities. • Look at staff training needs with regard to the Foundation Stage and their understanding of the early learning goals. • Ensure that children's records of observation and assessment provide a clear link to the stepping stones and early learning goals. • Develop observations and evaluations by the key workers of the activities provided so that planning helps children progress to the next step.

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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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