Sunshine Pre-School

INSPECTION DETAILS

Inspection Date 28/02/2005 Inspector Name Mark Evans

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SETTING DETAILS

Day Care Type Sessional Day Care Setting Name Sunshine Playgroup Setting Address The Pavillion Recreation Ground, Dunkirk Avenue Desborough Northamptonshire NN14 4RG

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ORGANISATION DETAILS

Name Sunshine Playgroup Address The Pavillion Recreation Ground, Dunkirk Avenue Desborough,Kettering Northamptonshire NN14 2UB

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ORGANISATION DETAILS

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of 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 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

Sunshine playgroup opened in 1992. It operates from the pavilion community centre located within the recreational ground in the town of Desborough. The playgroup serves the local area. Children have access to a main group room, toilets and a small enclosed outdoor area. The playgroup is registered to provide 26 places for children aged between two years and five years. There are currently 51 children on roll. This includes 25 funded three and four-year-olds. The setting currently supports one child with special educational needs and has no children for whom English as an additional language. Children attend a variety of sessions each week. The playgroup opens five days a week during school term times. Sessions are from 09.15 to 11.45. The group also opens from 12.30 to 15.00 on a Monday and Thursday afternoon. Six staff members work with the children. One has an appropriate level three early years qualification, one is working towards a level three qualification and one other

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Information about the setting

has a level two qualification. All staff attend various short courses. The group are members of the Pre-School Learning Alliance and they receive support from the Early Years Development and Childcare Partnership. They have good links with several local schools and nurseries.

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Information about the setting

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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How effective is the nursery education?

Sunshine Playgroup provides good quality nursery education where the children are making generally good progress towards the early learning goals. Very good provision is made for children's personal, emotional and social development. The quality of teaching is generally good. More experienced staff use their knowledge of the Foundation Stage to support children's learning, however some staff have limited knowledge of the Foundation Stage. Planning does not clearly indicate the areas of learning and there is sometimes insufficient clarity for the learning intentions and extension opportunities for older and more able children. Observations are made, although there are no assessments showing children's progress and achievements to help plan for what children could usefully do next. Staff have warm, supportive relationships with children and act as good role models. They set consistent boundaries and manage the children's behaviour very well. They

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How effective is the nursery education?

work directly with the children and provide some one to one attention. Key staff have good regard to the Code of Practice for the identification of children with special educational needs and provide very effective support for children identified with special educational needs. Leadership and management are generally good. The well-motivated managers are very committed to the progression of the educational programme, its service delivery and improvement, with support from the advisory team. Although there is no formal appraisal system, staff training needs have been considered and some proposed training opportunities to develop knowledge and practice. The partnership with parents is generally good. Parents have written and verbal communications about the educational programme. There are some opportunities to be involved in monitoring children's progress, although this is limited as there are no assessments showing children's achievements. The team has developed positive

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What is being done well?

• Staff provide very good effective opportunities for children to develop their personal independence and self confidence, encouraging children to work together, take turns, communicate and socialise within groups. • The setting special educational needs coordinator and key staff have very good understanding of and commitment to the procedures and support needed in providing an effective programme for children identified with special educational needs. • The staff group works very well as a team; they are effectively deployed to assist children engaged in activities and provide good support for each other

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What is being done well?

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 when involved in group activities.

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What needs to be improved?

• staff knowledge of the Foundation Stage and awareness of the learning objectives for children's learning within planned activities • the system for monitoring children's progress so that there is clear indication of their achievements linked to the stepping stones and share this with parents. Use this information to plan for what children could usefully do next • planning, to give clear indication of the learning intentions and area of learning and differentiation for varying abilities of children to offer sufficient challenge • planning for children's mathematical development and communication, language and literacy development.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

Generally good progress has been made in tackling the key issue identified in the previous inspection report. This required that the setting develop the planning format to show learning objectives linked to the stepping stones towards the early learning goals.The setting has developed its planning to show the activity, resources, group size and adult input and this also includes information indicating the learning outcomes for children. However, some of these learning outcomes describe the activity rather than the intended learning intention and some staff are not fully aware of the objectives, which limits the effectiveness of activities and therefore the progress children are making towards the early learning goals.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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PERSONAL, SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Children show good levels of concentration and involvement in activities. They interact co-operatively within groups and behave well. Children are gaining confidence in being separated from their main carer and in their ability to communicate within group situations. Children's personal independence is progressing very well, using opportunities within routine activities. They are gaining awareness of their own community through some local visits and contact with various agencies.

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COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERACY

Judgement: Generally Good Children choose books for enjoyment and use them appropriately. Most children can recognise their name; more able children are linking sounds to letters and are able to form recognisable letters. However, children do not always have opportunity to mark make, practise meaningful writing and recognise that print has meaning. They use language to express imaginative thoughts in role-play and have good understanding of the elements of stories using story language when recalling the narrative.

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MATHEMATICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good Children are using mathematical language, for example, big/little, heavy/light, and they recognise numbers of small groups of items. They can count confidently to five and some beyond this. However, children are not recognising numbers as labels. They are able to follow simple subtraction, for example, within songs and rhymes and are gaining some knowledge of positional language. Children do not often engage in activities that specifically target solving simple mathematical problems.

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

Judgement: Generally Good Children are developing knowledge and skill to use tools effectively and they have ability to operate simple programmable equipment and information/communication technology. They study living things and patterns of change. Children learn about their local community and about people from other cultures. They discuss past and significant events and experience the outdoor environment regularly. Children select materials to design, join and shape, although less often investigate how things work.

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good Children use resources and engage in activities for their physical development. They choose various tools, and use them with good control to make changes to materials, to form and construct. Children use opportunities to climb and slide with large apparatus. They engage in healthy practices, including healthy eating and outside exercise, although do not look at changes to their bodies when active. When involved in physical activities children show good balance and spatial awareness.

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CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good Children use role-play settings to enact their imagined experiences and also express their imagination within other activities, although this is sometimes restricted by adult direction to achieve an end product. They enjoy singing familiar songs with actions. Children explore colours and use them in a variety of mediums. They respond in a variety of ways to their senses. Children use musical instruments to explore sounds and rhythm and experience different types of music.

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Children's spiritual, moral, social, and cultural development is fostered

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of 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

• Improve staff knowledge of the Foundation Stage and increase their awareness of the learning objectives for children's learning within planned activities. • Develop the system for monitoring children progress so that there is clear indication of their achievements linked to the stepping stones and share this with parents. Use this information to effectively plan for what children could usefully do next. • Develop planning to give clear indication of the learning intentions and area of learning and ensure that activities differentiate for varying abilities of children to offer sufficient challenge • Improve the planning for children's mathematical development and communication, language and literacy so that the programme comprehensively covers all aspects of learning linked to the stepping stones.

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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 Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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