Kingsley Infants' School

INSPECTION DETAILS

Inspection Date 14/07/2003 Inspector Name Nigel Lindsay Smith

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SETTING DETAILS

Day Care Type Sessional Day Care Setting Name Kingswood Village Playgroup Setting Address Village Hall Wickwar Road,Kingswood,Wotton under Edge Glos GL12 8RF

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REGISTERED PROVIDER DETAILS

Name The Committee of Kingswood Village Playgroup 1005514

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ORGANISATION DETAILS

Name Kingswood Village Playgroup Address Village Hall Wickwar Road,Kingswood,Wotton under Edge Glos GL12 8RF

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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

Kingswood Village Playgroup opened in 1969. It operates from two rooms in the village hall in Kingswood, Gloucestershire. The playgroup serves the local area. There are currently 30 children from two years to five years on roll. This includes nine funded three-year-olds and ten funded four-year-olds. Children attend for a variety of sessions. The group opens four days a week during school term times. Sessions are from 09.15 until 11.45. Two full time and three part time staff work with the children. Three have early years qualifications; one is currently on a training programme. The setting receives support from a teacher from the Early Years Development and Childcare Partnership (EYDCP).

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How good is the Day Care?

Kingswood Village Playgroup provides good quality care for children. The staff are experienced, and deployed well and there is a strong commitment to training. Staff organise the premises and equipment to provide children with a welcoming environment. They have a good range of equipment for indoor and outdoor play. They maintain an appropriate range of records, policies and procedures, although some policies would benefit from adjustments. There is an induction system for new employees, although it does not contain a written checklist. Staff have effective procedures to ensure children's safety. They promote good hygiene and take steps to avoid children catching infection and illness unnecessarily. They have satisfactory arrangements for ensuring that the children have a snack. They have an appropriate awareness of the need to protect children. Staff interact positively with children and provide them with an appropriate range and

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How good is the Day Care?

variety of activities within a relaxed environment. The children are happy and

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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 interested in the activities. Staff take account of any cultural or religious needs that children have and provide a good range of equipment and activities to familiarise all children with their wider community. Staff manage children's behaviour effectively and consistently. Staff make a range of written information available to the parents, including policies and newsletters. Parents can contribute to the running of the playgroup through membership of the management committee. They are able to assist with the playgroup sessions through participation in the parent helper rota.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

There were no Actions made at the previous inspection.

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What is being done well?

• Staff provide an imaginative programme of activities, for example the children make maps of the local area and then travel by bus to observe the area from the top floor. • Staff manage children's behaviour very well. The children are cooperative and confident. • There is a strong commitment by staff to increase knowledge by taking training opportunities. • There is a good range of resources and activities that reflect positive images and familiarise children with their wider community.

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What needs to be improved?

• the information in the policy for uncollected children • the arrangements for the induction of staff • the Special Needs policy • the Child Protection policy.

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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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CONDITIONS OF REGISTRATION

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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by the time of the next inspection

Std Recommendation 2 Extend the policy for “uncollected children” to reflect the role of the Social Services Department. 2 Develop a written checklist for the induction of staff. 10 Develop the Special Needs policy to emphasise how children can be included in the playgroup and the activities 13 Include a statement about the management of allegations against staff in the Child Protection policy.

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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?

Kingswood Village Playgroup is providing very good nursery education. The children are making very good progress towards all six Early Learning Goals: Personal, Social and Emotional Development; Communication, Language and Literacy; Mathematical Development; Knowledge and Understanding of the World; Physical Development and Creative Development. Teaching is very good. Staff understand the Early Learning Goals well. They all contribute to regular planning sessions which result in an effective programme. The programme links the activities to themes such as exploring the local area. Children enjoy and recall things that they learn, for example they drew maps when devising an imaginary game of crime detection. Staff tell stories well, involving all the children. They use a good variety of methods to teach, such as whole group sessions, and individual work with the children. They contribute effectively to the

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How effective is the nursery education?

assessment of children's progress, although the layout of the final report could be improved. Leadership and management of staff is very good. The joint leaders ensure that they work cooperatively together. Parents are asked to complete questionnaires to assist the staff to effectively monitor the playgroup's strengths and weaknesses. Staff members are encouraged to undertake additional training in order to improve the care and education for all children. The partnership with parents is very good. Staff give good written information about the setting. They issue an open invitation to parents to discuss their children's progress at any time. Parents are actively involved in the assessment process by being asked to contribute their initial assessment of their child. Parents are given information about the programme themes and are encouraged to continue with them at home.

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What is being done well?

• Children's personal, social and emotional development is very good. They are confident, interested in learning and well-behaved. • Staff understand the Early Learning Goals well, and plan and assess effectively. • Staff provide a wide range of activities which involve all the children, and they support them well in the programme. • Staff liaise well with parents concerning their children's needs and progress.

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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 information for parents in the final assessment report.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

Generally good progress has been made since the last inspection. At the last inspection the playgroup was asked to: "Strengthen the programme for children's language and literacy by increasing staff confidence in the correct formation of letters. The staff have worked together as a group, and have attended external courses. "Strengthen child's records of assessment by dating entries, in order to show clearly when achievements have been made and to identify children's progress. Further promote these records to parents." There has been good progress. Records are dated and the "Partnership with Parents" policy invites parents to discuss their child's progress with staff at any time. The final assessment report, however, although containing a general paragraph about the child at the playgroup, indicates whether they have "achieved" the Stepping Stones in each Learning Area. This could be experienced by parents as an

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What has improved since the last inspection?

indication of failure if areas are not ticked. "Provide more opportunities for children to use musical instruments." The group provide regular opportunities in the programme for children to use musical instruments.

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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 making very good progress in personal, social and emotional development. They enthusiastically join in activities, for example initiating a game about detection and utilising map-making skills. Children confidently tackle new activities. They share equipment well, for example handing over musical instruments to other children when asked. Children behave well and are familiar with their routines. They are able to make choices in relation to the activities.

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COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERACY

Judgement: Very Good Children are making very good progress in communication, language and literacy. They have a good command of language and use it to initiate conversations with others. Children organise their thoughts well in snack time to talk about what they were doing in the previous session. They make use of the "Letterland" table. They pay good attention to story-telling. Children handle books appropriately. Older children can form letters and write their names.

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MATHEMATICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Children are making very good progress in mathematical development. They enjoy frequent opportunities for counting, for example counting children at registration time. Children take part in a good variety of activities to develop their problem-solving skills. These include using scales and comparing prices in the "cake shop" and a "frog" game to add and subtract. Children enjoy exploring shapes such as with shells in the sand and making patterns with peg-boards.

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

Judgement: Very Good Children are making very good progress in knowledge and understanding of the world. They investigate well, for example placing shells on a water wheel as an experiment. Children use a range of equipment to construct, for example building a house with large blocks and pretending to paint it. Although they do not have a computer, children use other technology, such as tape recorders. Children have opportunities to find out about themselves, their community and a range of cultures and religions.

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

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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PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Children are making very good progress in physical development. They move confidently through games and songs. Children learn to balance well, by using a beam. They achieve a good sense of space and awareness of others by activities such as negotiating tunnels and manipulating a parachute together. They become aware of keeping healthy and understanding their bodies. Children confidently use both large equipment, such as a climbing frame, and small equipment such as knives to prepare a stir-fry.

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CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Children are making very good progress in creative development. They use a range of materials creatively, for example jelly with raisins to resemble frog spawn. They sing well and enthusiastically play musical instruments. Children use their imagination very well to initiate play, for example in their "crime-solving" game. They choose materials and colours. Older children confidently use hammers, nails and sandpaper with wood.

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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 significant weaknesses to report, but consideration should be given to improving the following: • The format of the final assessment reports. 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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