Trinity School, Belvedere

INSPECTION DETAILS

Inspection Date 07/06/2004 Inspector Name Miriam Sheila Brown

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SETTING DETAILS

Day Care Type Sessional Day Care Setting Name Brimpsfield & Birdlip Playgroup Setting Address The Village Hall Birdlip Gloucestershire GL4 8JH

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REGISTERED PROVIDER DETAILS

Name The Committee of Brimpsfield & Birdlip Playgroup

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ORGANISATION DETAILS

Name Brimpsfield & Birdlip Playgroup Address The Village Hall Birdlip Glos GL4 8JH

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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

Brimpsfield and Birdlip playgroup operates from Birdlip village hall. The hall is adjacent to the village primary school. Birdlip is a rural village just off the main Gloucester to Cirencester road. Children attending the playgroup either live in Birdlip or travel from surrounding villages. The playgroup children are cared for in the main hall. They use the female toilets adjacent to the hall and staff accompany them to and from the toilet. The playgroup use the enclosed, school playing field and they also have their own bark surfaced play area within the field. The playgroup is open on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday mornings from 09.00 to 11.30. The Monday session is for pre-school children aged three to five; Tuesdays is for children from the age of two years nine months to five years and on Thursdays two year olds may also attend if they are accompanied by their parent or guardian. Daily there are three members of staff present plus a rota parent. Two of the staff

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Information about the setting

are childcare trained to level 3 or equivalent; one holds the National Nursery Education Board certificate and the other a National Vocational Qualification in Child Care and Education. There are currently 33 children on role, of these 21 are funded 3-year-olds and 5 funded 4-year-olds.

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Information about the setting

The playgroup receive support from the local authority Early Years Advisor.

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How good is the Day Care?

Brimpsfield and Birdlip Playgroup provide good care for children overall. The village hall is clean and welcoming and offers a well planned and exciting play area for children. Staff are well trained and experienced. The range of toys and resources meet the children's needs effectively and offer appropriate play opportunities to the ages of children present. Safety issues are well addressed, staff have a good awareness of potential hazards and are vigilant about children's safety. Hygiene is effectively maintained. Accident

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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 and medication records are well kept although permission for emergency medical treatment has not been sought from parents. Staff encourage children in developing their independence throughout the sessions. Individual dietary requirements are clearly recorded and snacks are nutritious. Staff have a good awareness of child protection issues. Staff organise a broad range of activities based on themes such as colours and growth, to support children in all areas of their development. Staff have a very good knowledge of the children enabling individual needs to be well met. Children enjoy exploring and experimenting through a well balanced choice of free and structured play activities. The playgroup resources support all aspects of equal opportunities

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How good is the Day Care?

and children are encouraged to take part in all activities. The staff have a good awareness of methods to support children with special needs. Children's behaviour is very good and staff are calm and consistent in their approach. Parents are offered good information about the setting, although some group policies are not sufficiently detailed to offer clear information about particular procedures used by the group. Yearly reports, parent rota system and informal chats with staff are used to inform parents about their children's progress. Parental feedback sheets strongly support the group and parents are invited to join the committee and take an active role in all aspects of the group.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

At the last inspection staff agreed to conduct risk assessments, implement any actions and to provide suitable washing facilities for the children. Daily visual checks by staff in all areas, including those outside, now help to ensure a safe play environment. Staff have highlighted potential risk times such as children moving from the playing field to the hall, and adjusted their practice accordingly. The committee responsible for the premises also conduct risk assessments on the building and have taken action to improve the facilities. Staff ensure the children wash their hands before eating and after messy activities and have effectively overcome the restrictions of the premises by providing a regularly changed bowl of water, anti-bacterial soap and paper towels.

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What is being done well?

• Planned play opportunities for all ages of children offering them a broad range of experience which is appropriate to their age and assists them effectively in their development. • The organisation, planning and use of resources to enable children free choice from a wide range of child-led activities. • The management of children's behaviour which is well supported by staff who use assessments and observations effectively to support the children. Staff also work closely with parents to ensure that methods are consistent and appropriate.

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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 • There is a strong emphasis on equal opportunities. The group provide a broad range of resources reflecting different cultures and plan a range of topic work to raise children's awareness of different communities and the wider world.

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What needs to be improved?

• the policies for child protection, complaints and special needs to offer clearer information about procedures • the seeking of permission from parents for emergency medical advice or treatment.

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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 7 Request written permission from parents for seeking emergency medical advice or treatment. 14 Ensure the policies for complaints, child protection and special needs give parents and staff clear information about the procedures followed by the group.

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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?

Brimpsfield and Birdlip Playgroup offers good quality nursery education overall which enables children to make generally good progress towards the early learning goals. Provision for their personal, social and emotional development, communication, language and literacy, knowledge and understanding of the world and physical and creative development, are all very good areas. The quality of teaching is generally good. Staff have a good understanding of the early learning goals and provide activities which offer play opportunities in all areas of learning. However, planning is not linked to the stepping stones so does not ensure that all aspects are covered systematically. The challenges set for children are generally good and staff use very well planned topic work to promote all round development. There is scope to develop the programme for mathematical development. Staff know and support all children well and provide positive role

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How effective is the nursery education?

models for them. They manage all aspects of behaviour very well. Use of time and resources planned effectively to offer children a good variety of play experiences. Staff observe and regularly assess children's learning and use the information to help plan for their progress. Leadership and management are generally good. The group leaders, committee and new chairperson provide a strong, positive team who are committed to the development of the group. At present there is no formal staff appraisal system in place to assist in the identification of strengths and weaknesses within the group. The partnership with parents is generally good. They receive good information about the setting, their role as rota parents and general topic work. However, information about the Foundation Stage of learning is not readily available to them. Parents are offered good information about their children's progress from written reports and

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How effective is the nursery education?

informal exchanges with staff. Parental feedback offers strong support for the group.

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What is being done well?

• Children's personal, social and emotional development is very good. They are confident and independent in their choice of activities, play well together and are considerate and caring of each other and their environment. • Planned topic work within the programme for knowledge and understanding of the world is very good. Elements of many other areas of learning are effectively included and one-off opportunities taken to develop children's knowledge. • Children benefit from well planned activities that enable them to play using their imaginations in many different ways, for example, in construction, art and a wide variety of role play.

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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 • Staff management of children's behaviour is very good. They are calm, consistent and positive and know the children very well enabling them to direct behaviour effectively on an individual basis. • Children have many and varied, good opportunities to make marks in their play which assists them effectively in the development of their early writing skills.

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What needs to be improved?

• the linking of planning to the stepping stones to ensure that all areas of learning are covered systematically • the information offered to parents about the Foundation Stage and the stepping stones • the staff appraisal system.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

The group have made generally good progress since the last inspection. The staff have introduced a number of effective procedures to improve assessments, information for parents about children's progress and the programme for knowledge and understanding of the world. Assessment procedures have been developed and children's progress towards the early learning goals is now recorded regularly. These assessments are then used to write the end of year reports and provide parents with ongoing information about their child's development. All aspects of the programme for knowledge and understanding of the world are now included in the planning. However, planning does not link with the stepping stones to ensure that coverage of all areas of learning are systematically addressed.

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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: Very Good Children are confident and well supported by staff to develop independence and self esteem. They are starting to make positive friendships and relate well to staff and visiting adults. Children choose activities, select resources and take care of their personal needs such as handwashing, confidently. They show concern for each other and their immediate environment, assisting in routine activities such as tidying up times. Their behaviour is very good.

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COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERACY

Judgement: Very Good Children join in enthusiastically with group circle and story times and enjoy playing observational games. They speak confidently about their own experiences and staff offer good opportunities to increase children's vocabulary through planned topic work. Children enjoy practising their early writing skills in many different ways and they are starting to identify initial sounds. Some children recognise familiar words and are beginning to form letters in their names correctly.

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MATHEMATICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good Children use effective strategies to develop their counting skills and some identify numerals to ten. They enjoy singing rhymes using numbers backwards and forwards and are confident in their knowledge of simple addition and subtraction. There is scope to develop their problem solving in daily routines such as snack time. Children enjoy matching and copying patterns using two criteria, and have a good awareness of basic shapes. They use appropriate mathematical language in their play.

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

Judgement: Very Good Planned activities such as painting from still life, growing beans, bulbs and cress are developing the children's sense of wonder of the natural world and their awareness of time. They enjoy visits from people in the local community and well planned topic work assists them in their awareness of the wider world. Their knowledge of everyday technology is developing well through play with electronic games, cooking, and using a telescope to view the recent passing of Venus across the sky.

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PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Children move safely and confidently in all areas. Regular physical activities help them to develop skills in using a range of small and large equipment such as climbing frames, wheeled toys and balls. Staff assist them in a good awareness of keeping healthy, for example explaining why sun hats should be worn outside and why hands need washing. Children are dexterous using small tools such as scissors, felt tips and chalks. Children use their senses in their play.

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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: Very Good Children enjoy a wide variety of painting and craft techniques. They listen to a variety of music and have a good repertoire of songs. Children's sense of rhythm is developing through clapping the syllables in their names and copying musical beats. They enjoy using musical instruments in their play and for planned concerts for parents. Children have good opportunities to use their imaginations in play, for example, construction, drawing and role-play.

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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

• Link planning to the stepping stones to ensure that all areas of learning are covered systematically. • Develop and assist parents understanding of the Foundation Stage and the stepping stones. • Put in place a staff appraisal system to enable staff to identify personal and group strengths and weaknesses.

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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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