Colmworth CofE VC Lower School

INSPECTION DETAILS

Inspection Date 10/05/2004 Inspector Name Mary Daniel

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SETTING DETAILS

Day Care Type Sessional Day Care Setting Name Twin Oaks Pre-School Setting Address Waterloo Youth Centre Kitchener Crescent Poole Dorset BA17 7HX

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ORGANISATION DETAILS

Name Twin Oaks Pre School Address Waterloo Youth Centre Kitchener Crescent Poole Dorset BH17 7HU

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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

Twin Oaks Pre-School operates from the main room of Waterloo Youth Centre, situated in the Hillbourne area of the main town of Poole. Children have use of the main play room and adjoining toilet facilities. There is an enclosed outdoor grassed play area at the front of the premises. Twin Oaks Pre-school has been established for over 13 years and is registered to care for 26 children aged 2 - 5 years. There are currently 36 children on register. The pre-school is open from Monday to Friday, from 09:00 - 11:45, with a lunchtime session from 11:45 - 12:45. There is an afternoon session on a Monday and a Thursday for younger children aged two - three years from 13:00 - 14:30. There are seven staff employed, the majority of whom have an early years qualification, and all are trained in first aid. Twin Oaks pre-school is in receipt of government funding for three and four-year-olds, and there are currently nine funded

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Information about the setting

three-year-old children and five funded four year old children on roll. The group cater for children with special needs and for those with English as an additional language. They receive support from the Early Years Advisory teacher and the Early Years Development and Child Care Partnership.

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How good is the Day Care?

Twin Oaks Pre-School is providing satisfactory care for children. The play area is well laid out to look bright and inviting for children. There is a wide range of attractive toys and resources available, which are used well in play to support children's needs. There are suitable management procedures in place, and the overall routine is well planned, but there are times during the session, which are not so effectively organised and children become restless. Most safety prevention in place is appropriate, although some fire procedures are not clear and drills have not been regularly completed. Children are encouraged well in washing their own hands, and general hygiene procedures help in preventing the spread of infection. Children are able to access fresh drinking water and they learn

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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 about healthy eating through professional visitors and their planned activities. Organisation of mealtimes does not fully promote all children's independence and social skills. Staff are clear on procedures for caring for children with special needs and have good liaison with parents. Staff have a satisfactory understanding of child protection procedures and are updating their awareness through further training. Staff show an understanding of children's developmental needs and provide interesting and exciting activities to encourage their individual progress. Children learn to respect one another and learn about diversity through various activities and use of play resources reflecting positive images. Children are praised regularly and

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How good is the Day Care?

are confident, but some become restless in some longer group times, and do not respond as well to the management strategies used, which are not always appropriate. Most required records are in place, although some are not fully detailed and current formats do not give regard to confidentiality in use. Parents are kept well informed of daily activities provided through discussion with their child's key workers.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

At the last inspection actions were set to introduce a group operational plan, to implement safety issues, to enable children to access fresh drinking water and to develop staff awareness of child protection issues. Most of these actions have been addressed effectively by forming suitable group management procedures supporting the basic routines. Children can now help themselves to drinks of fresh water from the jug and cups kept on a low table in the playroom. Staff keep a log book of fire drills, although these have not been completed regularly. The heater in the toilets had been replaced, however, the current heater is now also damaged. Staff attended a course on child protection, but will also be updating their understanding of relevant issues and procedures to follow concerns arising through additional training this year.

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What is being done well?

• There is a warm, welcoming play environment for children and parents. Staff use space effectively to create different areas of play and children are happy to explore the interesting activities provided. • A good range of toys and resources are available. These are clean and in good condition and are used well to support the variety of appropriate play activities provided and to promote children's overall developmental progress. • Children with special needs are supported effectively within the group. Staff work well together to integrate all children appropriately, and they are all encouraged in their awareness of disability through good use of resources reflecting positive images.

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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 • the organisation of some daily routines to ensure learning opportunities for children to develop their social and independence skills are maximised and to develop group situations to allow for appropriate behaviour management strategies to be used at all times • the safety procedures for fire drills, to ensure these are clearly understood and completed regularly, and to ensure the toilet area is safe and free from hazards, particularly relating to the heater • system for recording administration of medication to ensure that all required details are included and the regard given to ensure that confidentiality is maintained.

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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 System for recording administration of medication to ensure that all required details are included and the regard given to ensure that confidentiality is maintained. 2 Review organisation of some daily routines to maximise children’s learning opportunities and maintain their concentration in group situations to allow for appropriate behaviour management strategies to be used at all times. 6 Ensure that all fire procedures are clearly understood and fire drills are regularly completed, and that the toilet area is safe and free of hazards.

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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?

The nursery education provided by Twin Oaks Preschool is generally good with children making good progress in all areas of learning, especially knowledge and understanding of the world and mathematical and physical development where progress is very good. Quality of teaching is generally good. Staff have a solid understanding of the early learning goals. Planning is clear and identifies the aims and the role of staff. Staff use effective questioning to challenge the children's thinking and make good use of language to extend the children's vocabulary and mathematical development. Staff support the children well in their free play. However, children are not always supported appropriately in large group situations and access to creative resources is restricted to planned themes throughout the week. Children with special educational needs are supported well in the group. Generally, staff manage children's behaviour

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How effective is the nursery education?

in most situations appropriately. They make good use of praise and encouragement and give clear explanations of what is expected and why. Assessment systems to monitor the children's progress are reliable and clearly identify what stage a child is at and the next steps for learning. Leadership and management is generally good. Management are clear on their roles and support the staff well. Systems for assessing the quality of provision provided are verbal, relying on parents and staff to voice any concerns and ideas. This makes it unreliable to monitor successfully the effectiveness and impact of what they aim to achieve. Partnership with parents is generally good. Parents value the daily verbal exchange of information. However, systems for sharing written records of children's individual progress with parents are not effective.

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What is being done well?

• Staff use effective questioning to challenge the children's understanding and develop their curiosity. Children show an interest in what is going on around them and why. • Children benefit from the effective use of mathematical language used by staff throughout the session. They use this in their play and explore concepts of size and position, for example, to determine how many boys and girls are present and which line is longer and shorter. • Staff make good use of language in daily routines and activities. The children are confident speakers and use their language well to communicate with others. • Children are making very good progress in physical development. They show increasing skill and ability when using both large and small resources.

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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 children's introduction to distinguishing one sound of a letter from another • the staff deployment in large group situations and children's access to creative resources • the sharing of children's written records of progress with parents.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

Generally good progress overall has been made in addressing the key issues raised at the last inspection. Staff have made good progress in introducing new vocabulary to the children on a regular basis throughout the session and daily routines. The children's confident use of vocabulary is evident in their play, who question what is going on around them and why. Limited progress has been made in developing the children's enjoyment of whole word and syllable sounds. There is no evidence of children distinguishing one sound of a letter from another in their activities or daily routines. Good progress has been made in improving planning. Activity plans are now used and link to the long and medium term plans. They clearly identify the learning outcome and most activities are now evaluated to assess the impact on the children's learning and their effectiveness.

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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 learners and have a positive approach to new experiences. They are building positive relationships with each other and staff. Their personal independence is developing. They choose their own activities and some use toilet facilities unaided. Children are developing an understanding of agreed codes of expected behaviour within the group and the need to consider others and to share and take turns. However, they do not always benefit from some large group situations.

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COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERACY

Judgement: Generally Good Children use their language well to communicate their thoughts, ideas and needs, such as, 'I can run super fast in these football boots! Watch!' They enjoy books and understand the way stories are structured and that print carries meaning. Children are developing their mark making skills to draw recognisable pictures and some can form recognisable letters to write their own names. They are not introduced to distinguishing one sound of a letter from another in their activities or daily routines.

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MATHEMATICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Children have a very good understanding of simple mathematical concepts and language and confidently recognise and use taller/shorter, heavier/lighter than in their activities and daily routines. They can confidently count up to ten and some beyond this to identify the number of boys and girls present. Children are learning simple calculation through meaningful activities, such as identifying the number of buns sold and how many is left from the total of five.

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

Judgement: Very Good Children show a natural curiosity and interest in what is happening and why, such as considering the changes to the sand if water is added. They build and construct using a range of fitting and fixing techniques and do so with developing skill and a sense of pride. Children are gaining a very good understanding of the environment in which they live through a variety of meaningful activities and topics, such as growing. They use modern technology with confidence to complete simple tasks.

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PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Children use the indoor space well avoiding furniture and others at play. They move with control and co-ordination and use a range of large and small scale equipment with increasing skill to kick, balance, climb, catch and throw. Children are developing good hand-eye co-ordination and fine motor skills through regular use of tools and materials, such as, play doh, clay, scissors and threading activities.

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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 use their imagination well in role play to act out familiar and imagined situations. Children are beginning to explore texture, shape and form through the variety of planned activities set up by staff. However, opportunities to extend these skills are limited due to the lack of children's access to creative resources to enable them to initiate their own art and design. Children enjoy singing songs and rhymes and are able to explore sounds using instruments and music.

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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

• provide opportunities for children to distinguish one sound of a letter from another • improve staff deployment in large group situations and children's access to creative resources • develop systems for sharing children's written records of progress with parents.

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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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