Ridings Pre-School

INSPECTION DETAILS

Inspection Date 14/11/2003 Inspector Name Ros Church

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SETTING DETAILS

Day Care Type Sessional Day Care Setting Name Ridings Playgroup, The Old School Setting Address Flood Street Ockbrook Derbyshire DE72 3RF

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REGISTERED PROVIDER DETAILS

Name Ridings Pre-School Playgroup 1044234

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ORGANISATION DETAILS

Name Ridings Pre-School Playgroup Address Flood Street Ockbrook Derbyshire DE72 3RF

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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

Ridings Pre-School Playgroup opened in approximately 1967, it operates from the old village school in Ockbrook, near Derby. The accommodation consists of two play rooms, kitchen, toilet facilities and an enclosed outdoor play area which has safety surfacing. There are currently 35 children from two to five years of age on roll. This includes 13 funded three-year-olds and four funded four-year-olds. Children attend for a variety of sessions. The setting supports children with special needs. The group opens five mornings a week, Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday 08:50 until 11:30, and Wednesday and Friday 08:50 until 12:30, term time only. The group is managed by a parent committee who employ six staff. The majority of staff have childcare qualifications. The setting receives support from the Derbyshire Early Years Development and Childcare Partnership.

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How good is the Day Care?

Ridings Pre-School Playgroup provides good quality care for children. Staff work well as a team to provide a welcoming environment for children and their parents. The rooms are bright and colourful, with children's work displayed on all walls. A good selection of toys and activities are set out both indoors and outdoors, with additional equipment easily available for children to choose. Staff take into account children's individual needs and group children well for most activities. Good ratios of staff to children are provided. Staff are committed to training and development and have attended childcare courses to update their knowledge. There are good procedures for keeping records, most are kept as required. Staff have a good awareness of safety, they ensure children are safe whilst within the setting and on outings. They have good hygiene practices and encourage children to learn about these during the daily routine. Staff provide a good selection

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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 of nutritious snacks throughout the week and take into account children's individual dietary requirements. Drinks are provided at snack time, although children do not have immediate access to drinking water at other times. Staff provide good support for children with special needs. A good range of stimulating and interesting activities are planned and provided which take into account children's individual developmental needs. Staff interact well with the children at the activities, they show an interest in what they say and do, have conversations with children about their experiences. Staff encourage children to take turns and share the equipment, praise and encouragement is constantly offered throughout the session. Children relate well to staff and to one another, they

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How good is the Day Care?

are beginning to form friendships within the group. The staff work in partnership with the parents and carers, they communicate well with them regarding children's care and progress. There is good information about the setting and what it provides.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

Since the last inspection the child protection and medication policies have been updated and include all the required information; vetting procedures are in place for all staff and volunteers; staff have attended training and now more than half the staff have childcare qualifications; the operational plan has been reviewed and now includes the information required regarding policies and procedures; the content of the first aid box has been revised; the hand washing facilities have been improved, there are now wash hand basins within the toilet areas with thermostatically controlled hot and cold water. These improvements have had a positive impact on the safety, health and hygiene of the children's care.

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What is being done well?

• Staff work well together to provide a warm and welcoming environment for children and their parents. The staff are friendly and the rooms are bright and welcoming with children's art work displayed on the walls which helps them to feel valued. • A good variety of activities are planned and provided which support children's learning, they encourage all areas of development including opportunities for children to develop their imagination and creativity. • Staff have good methods of dealing with children's behaviour, this is done positively and takes into account children's individual levels of maturity and understanding. • Staff have good relationships with the parents and work in partnership with them. They keep parents well informed of children's progress through daily communication and by organising opportunities for development records to be shared with parents.

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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?

• grouping of children at story time. • fresh drinking water to be accessible to children at all times. • documentation regarding the procedures to be followed in the event of a child being lost.

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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 2 Ensure there are clear procedures to be followed in the event of a child being lost. 2 Organise the grouping of children at storytime to benefit all children. 8 Ensure fresh drinking water is available to children at all times.

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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?

Ridings Pre-School Playgroup offers good quality nursery education. It provides a happy, welcoming and stimulating environment, where children are making generally good progress towards the early learning goals. Teaching is generally good with some very good aspects. Staff work well together as a team, they plan an interesting and varied programme of activities for the children. There are a good range of resources which are accessible to children and promote independence, although the positioning of the alphabet line is not at children's eye level, and the re-organisation of story time would be of benefit to all children. Staff have a good knowledge of children's individual needs, they link the planning with the assessments to ensure all developmental needs are met. Staff have good methods for managing children's behaviour, they are consistent with their approach and take into account individual development and understanding. Good support is provided

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How effective is the nursery education?

for children with special educational needs. Leadership and management are very good. The committee and staff work well as a team. The staff are committed to improving the standards of the care and education, they are able to effectively monitor and evaluate the provision, and access training to update their knowledge and development. The partnership with parents and carers is very good. There is very good information about the setting, its provision and the early years curriculum. Staff provide good opportunities for development records to be shared with parents, through open evenings or at parents request.

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What is being done well?

• Children's language is developing well, they confidently talk to adults and their peers. • Children develop good relationships with adults and peers, they learn to take turns and share the equipment. • Children's independence skills are developing well, good opportunities are provided throughout the day. Children independently access the toilet, and wash area, they put on and take off coats and help themselves to drinks at snack time. • Staff work well with parents and carers, they provide good verbal and written communication about the educational provision and children's development. • Staff develop good relationships with the children. They have high expectations of behaviour, they manage this positively which helps to develop children's confidence and self esteem.

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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 organisation of storytime • the alphabet line so that children can see the shape and sequence more clearly • opportunities in mathematical development to learn about calculation.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

The group have made very good improvement since the last inspection. They have set up assessments and record keeping, these are carried out on each child every term, they follow the stepping stones to the foundation stage, and include the next steps of learning. Long term plans are now in place, they show how the early learning goals will be covered. Staff are now familiar with the Code of Practice for Special Educational Needs, and there is a designated Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator within the staff team. More regular activities are provided which include music-making and dance.

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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 interested in the activities, they are confident within the setting and are motivated to learn. They have good relationships with adults and peers, and four-year-olds are learning to make special friends, where they show concern for one another. Children are learning to have an understanding of what is right and wrong, they learn the rules of the group and remind others. They are learning to have good independence skills, through opportunities provided throughout the day.

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COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERACY

Judgement: Very Good Children have good communication skills, they confidently speak to adults and peers about their experiences, thoughts and feelings. They enjoy looking at books and listening to stories, they share their favourite books with adults and friends, pointing out pictures of interest and telling the story. Children are learning to recognise their own names and familiar words, and through good opportunities four-year-olds are becoming confident in writing their own names.

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MATHEMATICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good Many children show an interest in numbers and are able to count and recognise numerals up to nine and above. Children explore shape and pattern through various adult led and free play activities, and they use language to describe the size of different objects, using terms such as long and short, big and small. There are however few opportunities for children to develop calculation through play.

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

Judgement: Very Good Children learn about living things and how to care for them, through planting seeds and flowers, learning that they need light and water to grow. They use all their senses to explore a variety of objects. Children learn about and use everyday technology such as computers, cassette players, calculators and remote control cars. Through topic based activities they learn about the environment in which they live, and begin to differentiate between past and present.

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PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Children move confidently and safely around the environment. They move imaginatively around the playground pretending to be aeroplanes and trains whilst negotiating the space of themselves and others. They use a good range of large and small equipment both indoors and outdoors, where they practise skills such as climbing, steering, pushing, catching and throwing. Children learn to use a range of different tools such as scissors, glue sticks, crayons and computer mouse.

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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 use their imagination in a wide range of role play activities, and draw on their own experiences using resources to extend their play. Through practical activities they explore and use various different materials to learn about colour, texture, shape and space, they respond in a variety of different ways to these. Children enjoy singing familiar songs and learning new ones. They explore musical instruments and the sounds they make, and how these can be changed.

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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

• evaluate and improve the organisation of group storytime to benefit all children. • lower the alphabet line to the children's eye level so that they can see the shape and sequence of the letters more clearly. • provide more opportunities in mathematical development to learn about calculation.

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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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