Harrow Lodge Primary School

INSPECTION DETAILS

Inspection Date 11/05/2004 Inspector Name Marnie Downes

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SETTING DETAILS

Day Care Type Sessional Day Care Setting Name HOOK PRE-SCHOOL Setting Address HOOK PARISH HALL HOOK ROAD CHESSINGTON SURREY

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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

Hook Pre-School opened in 1970. It operates from one main area in Hook Parish Hall in Chessington. The pre-school serves the local community. There are currently 66 children from 2 to 5 years on roll. This includes 34 funded 3 year olds and 12 funded 4 year olds. Children attend for a variety of sessions. The setting supports children with special needs and who speak English as an additional language. The group opens 5 days a week during school term time. Sessions are from 09:15 until 12:15. Ten part/full time staff work with the children. Four have early years qualifications to NVQ Level 2 or 3. One member of staff is currently working towards a recognised Early Years qualification. The setting receives support from the Early Years Development and Childcare Partnership. The methods of teaching include following the Foundation Stages of Learning.

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How good is the Day Care?

Hook Pre-School provides satisfactory care for children. Procedures are in place to enable staff to contribute towards the running of the group. Regular discussions take place between the staff team, who are clear about their daily roles and responsibilities. Staff recruitment procedures are out of date. Space is well organised to meet the needs of the children. The premises are maintained to a sufficient standard. The group have health and safety policies which are followed by staff, however the risk assessments relating to the children's safety when playing outside needs further development. Staff promote children's awareness of hygiene and encourage children's independence, especially at snack time. Staff give good attention to meeting the individual needs of all the children, however there is no key worker

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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 system in place to help new children settle into the group. The pre-school provides a good range of resources and play materials, with good emphasis on children's physical development. Equipment and resources are organised so that they are easily accessible to all of the children. Activities are age appropriate, fun, interesting and keep children occupied. Staff interact well with the children and give positive acknowledgement for their good behaviour. Good channels of communication are in place with parents. Verbal communication and notice boards are used to share information. Policies and procedures are in place, although parental consent is not obtained before giving medication to children and medication records do not have regard to confidentiality.

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What is being done well?

• The staff team interact well with the children, encouraging their independence and good behaviour. They manage children's behaviour in a calm and positive manner, providing consistency in their approach. • Snack time is organised in an excellent way. Children are actively involved in the preparation, are free to access a drink and a healthy snack throughout the main session and are very familiar with the routine, including hand washing. • Children with special needs are well supported at the pre-school. Staff, in conjunction with parents devise individual plans for children, and parents are well informed of their children's learning and development. • The pre-school operates a good level of partnership with parents. They encourage parental involvement, offer parent workshops, organise parent groups with guest speakers and have a book club. Parent questionnaires state that they are very happy with care provided for their children.

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What needs to be improved?

• The organisation of settling new children • Risk assessments and security • Obtaining parental consent • Confidentiality of medication records.

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Outcome of the 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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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 14 Obtain written permission from parents before administering medication to children and ensure that all information relating to individual children is recorded in a confidential manner. 13/05/2004

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by the time of the next inspection

Std Recommendation 1 Ensure that there are effective procedures in place for appointing and vetting staff to work with children. 2 Implement a key worker system to help new children settling. 6 Conduct a risk assessment on the outside area security, identifying action to be taken to minimize identified risks.

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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?

Hook pre-school provides good quality education overall which enables children to make generally good progress towards the early learning goals. The quality of teaching is generally good with staff acting as good role models to the children. Staff manage children well and form good relationships with them and their parents. Children participate in a variety of practical activities and staff have an understanding of what children learn from them. They organise the indoor space well and create an interesting learning environment in which children increase their independence. The outdoor area is used well to promote children's physical skills. The curriculum has no formal planning beyond long term, and no learning intentions or evaluations are made of the activities. Although staff do written observations on children, this information is not used to plan daily activities for children's individual needs.

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How effective is the nursery education?

The leadership and management of the setting is generally good. Staff feel supported by their manager and she is committed to staff development that is aimed at improving teaching. She ensures parents are kept informed of the topics, activities and events that are happening in the pre-school, and maintains a good relationships with parents. The manager is committed to the improvement of the care and education of all children. There is no evidence that medium and short term planning have been given any attention and curriculum planning relies on verbal instructions to staff. The partnership with parents is very good. Parents spend time talking informally to staff about their children and are well informed about forthcoming events. They are advised that the manager is available for one to one sessions with parents between certain hours each morning. When a child is about to start pre-school, parents are

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How effective is the nursery education?

encouraged to share information about their child with staff.

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What is being done well?

• Children are confident to speak in a familiar group and can sit quietly and concentrate when appropriate. They form good relationships with adults and peers, are well behaved and polite. Children are encouraged to be independent, to show concern and toleration for others. They respond with enjoyment to stories and are able to use books to locate information. They attempt to write simple words and can link sounds to letters. Children have opportunities to say and use numbers, to re-create simple patterns, to compare shape, size, position and quantity, and to explore addition and subtraction through songs and practical activities. Children explore living things and ask questions to find out why things happen. They construct using a wide range of objects and techniques and use programmable toys to support their learning. Children are able to explore their physical skills on a

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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 range of equipment and handle a variety of tools and malleable materials with increasing control. They explore colour, texture and shape, are able to recognise how sounds can be changed and ideas and feelings expressed using musical instruments, songs and imaginative play. • Staff act as good role models to children, they lead by example and work well together as a team. They establish professional and friendly relationships with parents and give children clear and consistent boundaries that help them understand the impact of unacceptable behaviour on others. • Communications with parents are clear and they are well informed about the setting. There are regular opportunities for parents to speak to staff before

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What is being done well?

and after sessions about their child's progress, and parents are encouraged to share information about their children with staff. • The manager ensures parents are kept informed of activities and events and maintains good relationships with them. She encourages staff to embrace training opportunities and is committed to the improvement of the care and education for all children.

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What needs to be improved?

• opportunities for children to gain an awareness of varied beliefs and cultures outside their immediate experience. • opportunities for children to recognise the importance of staying healthy. • learning intentions and evaluations of the activities children participate in. • the use of written observation notes of children's achievements to inform planning. • medium and short term planning.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

Very good progress has been made since the last inspection. The staff have attended training and now ensure opportunities for maths are introduced daily in the role play area with plastic crockery that is put away by counting how many cups, saucers, and plates fit into each section. At tidying up time children count the items they are putting into boxes and an egg timer is used to show how much time tasks are taking. Adult led activities have been introduced that encourage children to match, compare and sequence. Staff have also had behaviour management training and this has resulted in group rules being introduced to the children and explained with the use of photographs. Children are divided at circle time into younger and older groups, which has improved concentration and behaviour skills. Staff duties now give clear guidelines for observing children during sessions. Management have created opportunities for free expression during sessions where

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What has improved since the last inspection?

children can enjoy making junk models, play musical instruments and act out stories.

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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 Children explore role play in the home corner, which is sometimes changed to become a hospital. This results in children acting out roles as nurses and doctors and patients.

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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 to speak in a familiar group and can sit quietly and concentrate when appropriate. They form good relationships with adults and peers, and are well behaved and polite. Children have regular opportunities to work independently and to develop personal independence skills and are encouraged to show concern and toleration for others.

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COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERACY

Judgement: Very Good Children respond with enjoyment to stories, rhymes and songs and explore their imaginations by helping staff make up stories. They have regular opportunities to write simple words, link sounds to letters and begin to write simple captions using phonic knowledge of spelling. Children understand that print carries meaning and some children are able to use books to locate information. They write recognisable letters, many of which are correctly formed.

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MATHEMATICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Children have opportunities to say and use numbers in a familiar context and can recognise numerals from 1-9. They have regular opportunities to compare shape, size, position and quantity, recognise and re-create simple patterns and to explore addition and subtraction through songs and practical activities.

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

Judgement: Generally Good Children have regular opportunities to explore living things and are encouraged to ask questions to find out why things happen. They construct using a wide range of objects and techniques to assemble and join materials, and use programmable toys to support their learning. There are too few opportunities for children to gain an awareness of varied beliefs and cultures outside their immediate experience.

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PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good Children have regular opportunities to travel around, under, over and through balancing and climbing equipment. They show an awareness of space for themselves and others, and can use a range of small and large equipment. Children use malleable materials and can handle a variety of tools such as scissors, pencils, paintbrushes, glue sticks and rolling pins with increasing control. There are too few opportunities for children to recognise the importance of staying healthy.

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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 have regular opportunities to explore colour, texture, shape, form and space in two and three dimensions. They can recognise how sounds can be changed and can match movement to music. Children explore their imaginations through art and design and role play, and express ideas and feelings using musical instruments, songs and imaginative 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

• make sure attention is given to medium and short term planning to ensure activities are devised that meet the needs of all children, and that written observations on children are used to inform future planning. • ensure a range of beliefs and cultures are explored to broaden children's appreciation of their sense of community. • make sure children have regular opportunities to recognise the importance of keeping healthy and those things that contribute to it.

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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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