St. Christopher's Pre School

INSPECTION DETAILS

Inspection Date 15/09/2004 Inspector Name Karen Ann Byfleet

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SETTING DETAILS

Day Care Type Sessional Day Care Setting Name St Christopher's Playgroup Setting Address St Christopher's Church Hall Convamore Road Grimsby DN32 9HR

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REGISTERED PROVIDER DETAILS

Name The Committee of St Christopher's Church

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ORGANISATION DETAILS

Name St Christopher's Church Address Convamore Road Grimsby North East Lincolnshire DN32 9HR

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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

St Christopher's Playgroup operates in St Christopher's Methodist Church, which is situated in the Heneage area of Grimsby, and serves the local community. It has been established for several years and is run by a voluntary management committee. There are currently 19 children from three to five years on roll. This includes 10 funded three year olds and one funded four year old. Children attend for a variety of sessions. There are no children with special needs or who speak English as an additional language. The group opens five days a week during school term time and sessions are from 09:00 to 11:45 and 12:45 to 15:30. Two full time and three part time staff work with the children. Three staff hold early years qualifications to level two or three. Two staff are currently working towards a recognised early years qualification. The playgroup receives support from the Early Years Development team and they are members of the Pre-school Learning

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How good is the Day Care?

St Christopher's Playgroup provides good care for children. It has a warm, welcoming environment where children are valued. Good use is made of the available space and children are able to move freely around the play areas. Staff interact well with the children, they manage behaviour well, offering praise and encourage the children to co-operate. Most documentation is in place. However, not all health and hygiene procedures are in place. An emergency evacuation plan is displayed and practiced with the children. A well resourced provision, provides opportunities for children to explore and investigate and planning clearly highlights the learning intentions. An effective key worker system is in place. Children have access to an enclosed outdoor play area

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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 and staff take them on visits to the local park and shops. Staff have a good understanding of children's individual dietary requirements and they encourage the children to be independent at snack time. Equal opportunities are promoted well through the curriculum and the resources, which reflect positive images of a diverse society. Partnership with parents is good. Information is exchanged on a daily basis and parents have access to their child's development records at their request. However, although parents are verbally informed about the provision, they do not have access to written information about the activities provided or of funded education.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

No actions raised at the last inspection.

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What is being done well?

• Staff make good use of available space. They have defined areas for creative, imaginative, table top and physical activities. Children are able to move around in safety and comfort and to freely access the activities. • An extensive range of toys and resources are well planned. They are presented attractively, encouraging the children to participate. Through an effective key worker system, children's development is observed, ensuring they are appropriately challenged. Good questioning techniques are used by staff to encourage children to think and to support their language sevelopment. For example when children are drawing themselves using a mirror, staff ask; who they can see, how many eyes they can see and what colour are they? • Through visits to the local parks and shops children are able to learn about their local community and the natural environment. • The environment is warm and welcoming. Children's work is attractively

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What is being done well?

displayed and labelled, giving them a sense of pride in their achievements. • Staff are pro-active in ensuring safety measures are in place. The premises are kept secure and regular risk assessments of both the premises and resources ensures any hazards are identified and addressed. Regular fire drills are practiced with the children, ensuring they are familiar with the sound of the alarm and the safety procedures.

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What needs to be improved?

• the procedures for health and safety by ensuring that non hazardous solutions are used for cleaning toys and equipment, that all recorded accidents are dated and that children are able to wash their hands in clean water • the behaviour policy to include anti-bullying procedures

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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 available to parents about the provision, including information of activities and funded education.

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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 6 Ensure toys and equipment are cleaned with a non-hazardous solution. 7 Ensure all recorded accidents are dated. 7 Ensure that water for hand washing is clean for each child. 11 Ensure the behaviour policy includes an anti-bullying procedure. 12 Ensure all parents have access to written information about the provision including types of activities and funded education.

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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?

St Christopher's Playgroup provides good quality nursery education overall which enables children to make generally good progress towards the early learning goals. They are making very good progress in mathematical, physical and creative development. The quality of teaching is generally good. A variety of activities are planned and a key worker system is in place. Staff observe and assess the children in their play and they use these observations and assessments to inform future planning to ensure the children are progressing through the stepping stones, towards the early learning goals. The local environment is effectively used and provides experiences for the children. Established boundaries and the expectations of staff result in well behaved children. The staff ask appropriate, open ended questions, to develop children's language skills and make them think. However, staff do inhibit children's independence in some areas.

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How effective is the nursery education?

The setting has a good 'settling in' procedure where they encourage parents to stay with their children until they are settled. They form friendly relationships with the parents and together they undertake an initial assessment of what children know and can do. Information is exchanged on a daily basis about what the children have been doing. However, parents are given no information about the foundation stage, the early learning goals or the stepping stones. Planning is available for parents, although this is not easily visible. Leadership and management is generally good. Staff work well as a team and are deployed well within the setting. Staff are able to access courses and workshops in order to enhance their professional development. Regular meetings are held with the committee in order to keep them informed of the playgroup's development.

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What is being done well?

• Children's behaviour is very good. They form good relationships with their peers and the staff. They are confident and they share and co-operate well. • Children have access to a range of written words within the environment and are able to link sounds to letters • Children use mathematical language to describe shape, size and quantity and they use number in familiar context. • Children are provided with opportunities to explore and investigate, asking 'why' and 'how' things work. They use information technology with confidence. • Staff provide a well planned curriculum which identifies learning outcomes for activities. They create a stimulating, bright environment, where children are

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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 valued.

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What needs to be improved?

• children's independence to self select tools and resources and to experiment joining objects with different materials • the attention given to increasing children's awareness of the different purposes of writing • the information provided for parents about the foundation stage • the location of the planning, to make it visible for parents.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

Generally good progress has been made since the last inspection with most key issues being addressed through the settings action plan. Planning has been developed to cover all areas of learning and includes learning outcomes for the children. Staff have established an effective assessment recording system. This highlights where children's learning is at and what needs to be done for them to progress further through the stepping stones. Staff have made effective use of the role play area, by adapting the layout to make it inviting to the children. Resources have been increased in this area with the addition of items, such as, a cash register and a telephone. However, they need to ensure that children have access to more mark making resources within the role play area to increase their progress in communication, language and literacy. Children still have few opportunities to work independently, use their initiative and

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What has improved since the last inspection?

select their own materials for cutting, sticking and in using tools and equipment.

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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: Generally Good Children are settled and form good relationships with their peers and the adults caring for them. They share, take turns and co-operate well. They freely choose from planned activities and take care of their personal needs, such as toileting, hand washing and putting on their own coats. However, they have few opportunities to be independent in selecting tools and resources. Children are well behaved, polite and considerate to others.

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COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERACY

Judgement: Generally Good Children communicate well. They talk about their families and use language well to describe real and imagined experiences. They listen and respond well to stories. Children recognise their first names and they use written words to locate information, such as, having telephone directories in the role play area. However, such activities are not extended to include opportunities to write for different purposes.

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MATHEMATICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Children benefit from individual support to help them count to 10 and to recognise shape and colour. Their understanding of number is extended as they learn the values of coins when buying items in the pretend shop. They use scales to weigh objects and ingredients in baking activities. They sort, match and make patterns, for example with jigsaws and playdough. Children are developing an awareness of weight and capacity through resources such as sand and water.

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

Judgement: Generally Good Planned activities help children to notice things which occur, for example bringing snow inside and watching it melt in the heat. They make models from construction sets and recycled materials. However, only glue is used as a joining material, they do not experiment with other items. Children are taken out into the local community to collect leaves and visit shops such as the pet shop. They use information technology, have good mouse control and follow on screen instructions well.

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PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Children negotiate space well and show an awareness of others and obstacles. They move with control and co-ordination both within the space and when using equipment for climbing and balancing. Children are able to ride trikes and sit-on-toys. They play ball games, throwing, catching and kicking and they handle small tools, such as pencils and paintbrushes with confidence. Staff are reluctant to allow children independent access to scissors, although children can confidently use these.

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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 explore colour, shape and texture and they create models and pictures in two and three dimensions. They respond positively to what they see, hear, taste and touch. For example, they comment on the weather and say if they do not like what is being served at snack time. Children enjoy music sessions, joining in with songs and playing musical instruments. They draw on their experiences and imagination as they play 'shop' in the role play area.

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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

• increase children's awareness of the different purposes of writing • improve the use of resources to develop children's independence and exploration • provide parents with information about the foundation stage, including the stepping stones and early learning goals.

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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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