Oakenshaw Kindergarten

INSPECTION DETAILS

Inspection Date 01/02/2005 Inspector Name Julie Kim Davies

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SETTING DETAILS

Day Care Type Sessional Day Care Setting Name Oakenshaw Kindergarten Setting Address Oakenshaw Community Centre Castleditch Lane Redditch Worcs B98 7YB

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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

Oakenshaw Kindergarten is a privately owned pre-school. It opened in 1980 and operates from one large main base room, with an integral kitchen area, in a multi purpose community building. It is situated on a large residential estate on the outskirts of Redditch, Worcestershire. A maximum of 26 children may attend the Kindergarten at any one time. The Kindergarten is open each weekday from 09:00 to 12:45 term time only. All children share access to a secure enclosed outdoor play area and limited use of a large hall for physical activities. There are currently 41 children aged from 2 to under 5 years on roll. Of these, 21 children receive funding for nursery education. Children come from the local residential area. The Kindergarten currently supports children with special educational needs, and is also able to support children who speak English as an additional language. The Kindergarten employs five staff. Four of the staff, including the managers, hold

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Information about the setting

appropriate early years qualifications. One member of staff is working towards a qualification. The Kindergarten receive support from an Early Years Teaching Mentor.

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How good is the Day Care?

Oakenshaw Kindergarten is providing a good quality and standard of care for children. Children are supported well to develop and learn in an interesting and child orientated environment. There are effective procedures in place for appointing and vetting staff to care for children. Staff training is given a high priority. Children have access to a range of well planned, age appropriate resources and activities that help them learn and develop in all areas. Staff provide a safe, well organised play space, which creates a friendly, child-focused environment, including a secure outdoor play area. There is a good range of documentation to support the setting, but the child protection policy lacks some detail. The setting's equality policy is positively implemented, with all

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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 children treated as individuals. Staff ensure children's needs are sensitively assessed and staff demonstrate a good understanding of supporting children with special needs. The staff team are particularly good at settling new children and invite parents to stay and encourage the use of comforters to support children’s emotional well being. Attention to safety is good with effective procedures in place, i.e. escorting children to the bathroom. Children learn about relevant safety issues through topics such as road safety. Children are supervised at all times. Good routines help children learn about hygiene practices i.e. hand washing after the toilet. The premises are well organised, bright, attractive and inviting to children and their carers.

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How good is the Day Care?

There are very good systems in place to keep parents informed verbally and through a range of documentation to foster good working relationships. However, parents do not have access to the complaints procedure. There is a clear and effective behaviour management policy, which is reflected, in the children's positive behaviour. Staff and children have good relationships, which promote a caring and supportive learning environment.

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What is being done well?

• There is good use of the space within the nursery, which creates a comfortable, bright and inviting environment for children and parents. • There is a comprehensive range of activities, play experiences and resources provided daily for the children. The experiences provided stem from effective planning and the staff's understanding of children's individual needs. • The maintenance of a good range of parental consent and other documentation supports and fosters the positive partnerships with parents. • The nursery maintains a good range of up to date health and safety risk assessments, which support the well being of children and staff. • There are good nappy changing facilities and arrangements in place for the personal care of children. • The staff team are interested in what children have to say, they talk and listen to them and respond to their interest with praise and encouragement. This results in positive and caring relationships between the staff and the children.

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What needs to be improved?

• parents' access to the complaints policy • the child protection policy to include procedures to adopt if allegations are made against a member of staff and how and when to inform Ofsted.

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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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by the time of the next inspection

Std Recommendation 12 Ensure the complaints procedure is available to parents at all times. 13 Develop the child protection policy to include procedures to adopt if allegations are made against a member of staff and for informing Ofsted.

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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?

Oakenshaw Kindergarten provides very good nursery education. Children are making very good progress in all six areas of learning. The quality of teaching is very good. Staff have a very good understanding of how children learn and plan balanced practical activities based which link into the Foundation Stage early learning goals. Staff act as good role models and have realistic expectations of what children can achieve so that they succeed and progress well. Children behave well due to clear expectations and caring relationships with the staff team. Effective assessment procedures link with the early learning goals and inform the planning and activity development. Staff are able to clearly explain and demonstrate their understanding of how to vary activities to meet children's individual needs and this is reflected in the planning documents. Staff have regular training opportunities to support the delivery of the Foundation Stage

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How effective is the nursery education?

curriculum. Leadership and management are very good. The provider and managers work along side staff and so daily monitor and support staff and the delivery of the curriculum provided. Staff time, teaching methods and resources are effectively organised around teaching principles, which promote children's learning through practical learning experiences. Partnership with parents is very good. There are systems for promoting working with parents, which include sharing information through parents meetings, newsletters, details of the nursery education systems, activities and topics related to early learning goals. Parents receive a very warm welcome and their comments indicate a high degree of satisfaction with all aspects of the service.

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What is being done well?

• The staff plan and provide a good range of play experiences and activities which children enjoy and supports their learning, for example road safety. This includes good opportunities for self initiated activities and access to resources. • The staff are knowledgeable about the children, and have realistic expectations of their abilities. • The children are secure, confident and very well behaved. Staff are calm, polite and their consistent manner is a good example for children to follow. They develop warm and trusting relationships with each other and the staff. • The children are active talkers, listeners and communicators. They count readily and recognise and use numbers in play experiences and daily routine situations.

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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 • The learning and play environment is attractive, well organised and welcoming to parents and children.

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What needs to be improved?

• the use of appropriate lettering for labelling used around the Kindergarten to support children's developing letter recognition.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

At the last nursery education inspection no significant weaknesses were reported. The staff were asked to continue to use the effective ways already in place for monitoring and improving teaching to ensure they maintain the high standard of the provision. Very good progress has been made, with the further implementation of a staff appraisal system to build upon monitoring systems already in place.

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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 eagerly approach learning with interest. Three and four year olds display a high level of involvement in activities. Children behave well and have a good awareness of the boundaries set for behaviour. They develop good relationships with adult and peers and show a strong sense of self as well as growing respect for others. They have opportunities to work in small and large groups, or individually with staff.

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COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERACY

Judgement: Very Good Children are becoming very active communicators and listeners. All children are interested in books and listen intently to stories and action rhymes. Most children make suggestions and predict what might happen next e.g, when mixing together coloured dough. Children are able to recognise their names and some are able to write these with increasing confidence. All children are displaying increasing ability in using and recognising letter sounds.

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MATHEMATICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Children learn about number, space, shape and volume through a wide range of planned and spontaneous practical play activities. All children match shapes well in board games and craft sessions. They are confident at recognising numbers on a number line up to ten. Children are becoming skillful at cutting out shapes to match spaces. They talk about size in their play and are learning about adding and subtracting through enjoyable action rhymes and songs.

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

Judgement: Very Good Children have very good opportunities to explore and learn about the natural world and how things grow and change e.g. planting seeds and watching them grow and observing seasonal changes. Children see positive images of diversity in their resources and take part in cultural celebrations. They build confidently with a wide range of materials and construction toys. They are competent with equipment such as the computer.

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PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Children are learning to move with confidence and skill. They are developing a good awareness of space and control of their bodies both in and out of doors e.g. standing and sitting still at group times or when sitting in the play cars on the paper road and negotiating the traffic signs and zebra crossing play props. All children use a wide range of tools and equipment e.g. propel balls outdoors, spread glue and use pencils with increasing control. They learn how to keep their bodies 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 very good opportunities to explore, create and respond to music sounds and rhymes. They move expressively and spontaneously. They learn about colour, forms and shapes through spontaneous and planned activities. They examine different textures e.g. through use of natural materials such as sand and clay. They express their individuality using a variety of materials including paint and collage materials.

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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 high quality. Children are making very 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

There are no significant weaknesses to report, but considerations should be given to improving the following: • There are no key issues to report, however consideration should be given to • ensuring appropriate lettering is used for labelling around the Kindergarten to support children's developing letter recognition.

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WHAT THE SETTING NEEDS TO DO NEXT

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

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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