Wyedean School and Sixth Form Centre

INSPECTION DETAILS

Inspection Date 10/02/2004 Inspector Name Liz Margaret Caluori

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SETTING DETAILS

Day Care Type Sessional Day Care, Out of School Day Care Setting Name Busy Bees Kids Club & Busy Bees Pre-School Setting Address c/o Spitfire Centre, Church Road Biggin Hill Kent TN16 3LD

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REGISTERED PROVIDER 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

Busy Bees pre-school and Kids club is a privately owned childcare service operating from a youth centre in the semi-rural area of Biggin Hill in the London Borough of Bromley. The pre-school accepts children from 2 to under 5 years. Sessions take place in two adjoining rooms which can be opened to create one large area. The sessions run from 9:30-12:00, Monday-Friday during the school term. In addition, extended sessions are offered until 14:30 on Mondays and Thursdays. There are currently 32 children on roll including 12 funded 3 year olds and 9 funded 4 year olds. The group supports children with English as an additional language and children with special needs. The Kids club is an after school and holiday scheme which accepts children from 4.5 to 11 years old. This group also has access to an annexe building directly next to the main premises. Staff collect children by car and on foot from a number of local

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Information about the setting

primary schools and accompany them to the premises. The group opens from 15:30-18:00 Monday-Friday during the school term and 08:00- 18.00 during the school holidays. The service as a whole has a team of 12, full time and part time staff, of whom 10 work in the pre-school and 8 work in the Kids club. During all sessions over 50% of staff hold a recoginised childcare qualification equivalent to NNEB or NVQIII and others are currently working towards qualifications. The group works closely with Bromley Early Years Development and Childcare Partnership and had strong links with the Pre-school Learning Alliance. Both the pre-school and the Kids club also link closely with local schools.

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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?

Busy Bees pre-school offers very good quality nursery education. Children enthusiastically take part in a wide range of interesting activities and are making very good progress towards the early learning goals. Teaching is very good and staff have a sound knowledge of the foundation stage, which is reflected in the well planned programme of activities provided. They competently build on children's curiosity and have a very good understanding of each child's individual needs. Many effective strategies are used to engage children and re-enforce learning. Children's personal, social and emotional development is very good. They are confident in their interaction and work well in groups, enjoying many opportunities to make choices and decisions. Children are caring and behave well in response to the high expectations and sensitive support of staff. They are making very good progress in their knowledge and understanding of the

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How effective is the nursery education?

world and in communication, language and literacy. Children speak confidently and enthusiastically on a wide range of subjects. They are also making very good progress in mathematics, developing a good understanding of number as well as addition and subtraction. They regularly take part in a wide range of imaginative activities, aimed at enhancing their physical development. Opportunities for creative development are also very good. Children enjoy role-play and arts and crafts. The leadership and management of the setting is very good and there is a commitment to ongoing staff development. The individual skills of staff are recognised and effectively used to benefit the children. Partnership with parents and carers is very good. Whilst minor improvements have been identified in some of the written information provided, very effective procedures are in place to ensure that they are well informed of their child's progress and are

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How effective is the nursery education?

encouraged to become involved in their child's learning.

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What is being done well?

• Children enjoy and benefit from a wide and interesting range of activities. Staff skilfully use their individual knowledge of children's abilities to ensure that their needs are reflected in the planning and that they are provided with an appropriate level of challenge. • Staff form good relationships with children. They supervise in a flexible manner, allowing children to make choices and responding promptly, when needed, to provide additional resources as support.

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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 • Children are friendly, caring and very well behaved as a result of the high expectations and positive, warm support from staff. • Parents and carers are provided with good information about the setting and are regularly informed of their child's progress.

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What needs to be improved?

• the presentation of some written information available to parents and carers.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

The setting has made very good improvements since the last inspection. All areas identified for improvement at the previous inspection have been very successfully addressed. Pictorial representations are used to help children develop an understanding of the daily routine and to encourage them to develop a sense of time and independence. A focus letter of the week has been introduced to help children learn all the letter sounds.

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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 behave very well and form good relationships with both their peers and adults. They effectively take part in both small and large group activities and are able to contribute with growing confidence. In addition, they take advantage of many opportunities to make choices and develop their independence. They are enthusiastic in their learning, express opinions clearly and are developing good concentration.

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COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERACY

Judgement: Very Good Children are confident and articulate in their speech. They often instigate and take part in many interesting and complex conversations. They have very broad vocabularies and are able to link sounds to letters confidently. They enjoy looking at books and, supported by the shared reading scheme, are developing a good understanding of the use of text to carry meaning. They enjoy practising writing and are able to form recognisable letters.

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MATHEMATICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Children are developing a good knowledge and understanding of mathematical concepts and are beginning to apply these in everyday situations. Most are able to count to ten and beyond and many are able to recognise written numerals up to nine. Children enjoy many opportunities to explore shape, patterns and sequencing and are also learning to weigh and measure.

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

Judgement: Very Good Children are learning about their local environment and also enjoy a wide range of activities aimed at introducing them to different festivals and cultures. They demonstrate a genuine interest in nature and enjoy studying living things. They are developing good problem solving skills and are able to effectively design and construct simple models using a range of resources. They enjoy regular opportunities to use computers and are able to use the mouse and keyboard to play a number of games.

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PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Children engage in both indoor and outdoor physical play very regularly and are able to move with control and co-ordination. They run, climb and balance confidently. Children are able to use a range of tools, and many are able to dress themselves confidently. They are developing a good understanding of issues relating to health and bodily awareness, through a range of adult lead projects.

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PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

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

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CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Children are very imaginative in their role-play and make good use of the resources provided to extend their play. They take part in art and craft activities enthusiastically and confidently use of wide range of materials. Children take advantage of many opportunities to express themselves freely and produce interesting and expressive artwork.

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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 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: • Point for consideration • Review written information available to parents and carers to ensure that it is clearly presented.

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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 Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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