Meadows Early Years Practitioners

The Meadows Pre-School Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY410574 Inspection date 09/11/2010 Inspector Seema Parmar

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Setting address The Scout HQ, Taylors Meadow Hill, End Road, Harefield, Middlesex, UB9 6LD Telephone number 01895820163 Email liz.swatton@blueyonder.co.uk Type of setting Childcare on non-domestic premises to achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children's social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, work-based learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for looked after children, safeguarding and child protection. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk.

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You may copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as you give details of the source and date of publication and do not alter the information in any way.

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T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Introduction

This inspection was carried out by Ofsted under Sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 on the quality and standards of the registered early years provision. ‘Early years provision’ refers to provision regulated by Ofsted for children from birth to 31 August following their fifth birthday (the early years age group). The registered person must ensure that this provision complies with the statutory framework for children’s learning, development and welfare, known as the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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Introduction

The provider must provide a copy of this report to all parents with children at the setting where reasonably practicable. The provider must provide a copy of the report to any other person who asks for one, but may charge a fee for this service (The Childcare (Inspection) Regulations 2008 regulations 9 and 10).

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Introduction

Please see our website for more information about each childcare provider. We publish inspection reports, conditions of registration and details of complaints we receive where we or the provider take action to meet the requirements of registration. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Description of the setting

Meadow Pre-School has been registered since 2010. It operates from a scout's hall in Harefield, within the London borough of Hillingdon. Children have access to a main hall, a smaller room and an enclosed outdoor play area.

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Description of the setting

The pre-school is open each weekday from 9.30am to 1.30pm during school term times. A maximum of 30 children under eight may attend the pre-school at any time, of which, none may be under two years of age.

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Description of the setting

There are currently 28 children in the early year's age range, on roll.

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Description of the setting

The pre-school supports children with special needs and/or disabilities and also English as an additional language.

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Description of the setting

The pre-school employs five staff including the manager to work with the children. Three staff hold relevant early year's qualifications and two are unqualified.

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Description of the setting

The pre-school is registered on the Early Years Register.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Overall the quality of the provision is satisfactory.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Staff demonstrate a satisfactory understanding of the learning, development and welfare of the Early Years Foundation Stage. Children are provided with a varied range of play resources and enjoyable activities. However, the organisation of large group activities does not sufficiently meet all the children's learning and development needs. Partnerships between parents and carers work well, they regularly share information to ensure all children are included and their individual needs are met. Self-evaluation is in the early stages. The provider/manager is beginning to evaluate the effectiveness of the provision and has identified areas for future development to improve outcomes for children.

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further?

To meet the specific requirements of the EYFS, the registered person must:

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further?

 keep a record of the risk assessment for outdoors clearly stating when it was carried out, by whom, date of review and any action taken following a review or incident 03/12/2010

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further?

 ensure that all records relating to pre-school activities are well organised, meet with the specific legal 03/12/2010 This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 requirements of the EYFS and are readily accessible and available for inspection at all times. This includes staff's proof of qualifications

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further?

To further improve the early years provision the registered person should:

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further?

 develop and use observations of children's achievements to identify learning priorities and plan relevant experiences for the next stages in their development base on their needs and interest.  strengthened partnership with parents by providing opportunities for them to meet with staff regularly to discuss their children's achievements and contribute in planning the next steps in their children's learning  involve parents more effectively in assessing children's starting points, their interests and capabilities to plan for their learning.  continue to develop the planning and evaluation of activities to further enhance children's learning experiences towards the early learning goals.  gain and update knowledge and understanding of the local Children's Safeguarding children's board procedures  review group time activities to ensure each child's individual needs are catered for

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the early years provision

Safeguarding procedures ensures that children are protected. The provider/manager is aware of possible signs and symptoms of abuse and is able to respond appropriately, if she has any child protection concerns. However, not all staff have updated their knowledge and understanding of child protection procedures, to fully safeguard children.

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the early years provision

There are suitable systems in place for the safe recruitment and selection of staff, working directly with the children. All the required checks have been carried out to ensure staff are suitable to look after children and have appropriate experience or qualifications. Risk assessments and safety checks are carried out and cover most aspects of the setting used by the children, to ensure all potential risks are identified and their safety assured. However, the record of risk assessment, for outdoors, lacks the required details to fully promote children's safety.

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the early years provision

The provider/manager demonstrates a sound commitment to developing the pre- school practice and is beginning to identify priorities for further development, some of which improve outcomes for children.

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the early years provision

The premises is well organised in order to meet the needs of the children and to ensure it is secure and welcoming. However, the organisation of both the older and younger children together, during large group activities, does not meet the needs of all the children. For example, at the cooking activity taking place, not all children participate and there are lost opportunities for staff to fully engage and This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 extend the older and more able children's learning. Policies and procedures and all records required to meet all children's needs are generally well maintained. However, these were not all readily available, as required during the inspection, for the safe and efficient management of the setting.

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the early years provision

The pre-school promotes equality of opportunity by ensuring that children and their families are valued and respected. Staff promote children's understanding of similarities and differences through a range of activities, such as, festival celebrations. In addition, children have access to a selection of play resources that reflects positive images of the wider world. This creates an inclusive environment that encourages children to feel a sense of belonging and promotes their self- esteem.

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the early years provision

Systems for working in partnership with other professionals, who are involved in the care and learning of children, are prioritised very well. Children with learning difficulties and/or disabilities make suitable progress because staff work closely with relevant agencies, to produce and implement individual educational plans to ensure that they are very well supported in reaching their full potential. The provider/manager has established working links with the early year's team to improve the service for children and parents.

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the early years provision

Staff develop meaningful relationships with parents, as they are given daily verbal feedback about their children's welfare and activities that have taken place. Parents welcome the detailed account of their children?s day. Parents receive suitable information displayed externally and internally on notice boards and home link books, on aspects of the pre-school. However, staff have not consistently developed ways to gain, share, contribute and update information, for parents to become fully involved in their child's continuous learning and assessment records. Parents are provided with regular news letters to keep them well informed about future plans and events. Discussions with parents confirm that they are very happy with the care the pre-school provides. Staff and management are described as warm, welcoming and approachable.

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and outcomes for children

Children make suitable progress in their learning and development, as staff have a sound knowledge of the learning, development and welfare requirements and guidance for the Early Years Foundation Stage. Although staff plan interesting and exciting activities, they do not evaluate the activities, to ensure that the learning intentions have been achieved, to fully promote children's progress towards the early learning goals.

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and outcomes for children

Staff use a reasonable range of teaching methods and suitable resources to provide a sufficient range of activities and play experiences to meet children's needs. However, observations and assessments are not robust enough to identity and plan learning intentions that include individual children's interests, in their next This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 steps in learning. In addition, staff are not consistently using children's starting points, their interests and capabilities to plan for their learning.

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and outcomes for children

Children enjoy a balance of adult-led and child-led activities and have a positive attitude towards learning. They participate well in the range of activities and first hand experiences provided. Children are provided with sound opportunities to develop their communication and language skills during play activities, as staff extend their language skills by talking and asking questions during their activities, which helps them to think independently. Children are developing early writing skills, as they write and have access to writing materials, such as paper, pens, pencils, crayons and chalk. Children enjoy learning to count through action nursery rhymes, as they sing about "going to a shop with a penny one day and took an apple bun" and "how are many are left." Children enjoy using the computer to support their learning and are developing skills that contribute to their future. For example, they take pleasure in drawing and colouring their pictures as well as,

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and outcomes for children

counting numbers, identifying letters and number recognition. Children participate in a range of creative activities, such as painting, play dough, sand and water play. Children enjoy designing and creating their own pictures, as they make prints with apples, that have been cut up and dipped in paint. Children enjoy playing a range of musical instruments to explore different sounds and rhythm, as staff support them and join in enthusiastically.

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and outcomes for children

Suitable hygiene procedures are in place to prevent the spread of infection, such as, hand washing before and after mealtimes and after using the toilet. Children learn about keeping safe, as they practice fire drills learning about what to do in an event of a fire. Additionally, staff give gentle reminders to children to be careful, as they play, keeping them safe. Children enjoy healthy snacks as they enjoy a selection of fresh fruits and are given a choice of milk or water. Children have good access to fresh drinking water, as cups and a jug of water is made easily available. Children enjoy outdoor play gaining fresh air and exercise. They run, climb and cycle developing their large motor skills.

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and outcomes for children

Children learn to share, take turns and interact positively with their peers, as they play. The staff are calm and consistent as they deal with minor children's disagreements, in a way that is appropriate to each child's age and stage of development. For example, staff reinforce, "sharing is caring". Consequently children are well behaved. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Annex A: record of inspection judgements

The key inspection judgements and what they mean

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Annex A: record of inspection judgements

Grade 1 is Outstanding: this aspect of the provision is of exceptionally high quality Grade 2 is Good: this aspect of the provision is strong Grade 3 is Satisfactory: this aspect of the provision is sound Grade 4 is Inadequate: this aspect of the provision is not good enough

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children in the Early Years Foundation Stage?

The capacity of the provision to maintain continuous improvement

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Early Years Foundation Stage

The effectiveness of leadership and management in embedding ambition and driving improvement The effectiveness with which the setting deploys resources 3 The effectiveness with which the setting promotes equality and diversity The effectiveness of safeguarding 3 The effectiveness of the setting’s self-evaluation, including the steps taken to promote improvement The effectiveness of partnerships 2 The effectiveness of the setting’s engagement with parents and carers

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Stage

The quality of the provision in the Early Years Foundation Stage 3

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Stage

The extent to which children achieve and enjoy their learning 3 The extent to which children feel safe 3 The extent to which children adopt healthy lifestyles 3 The extent to which children make a positive contribution 3 The extent to which children develop skills for the future 3

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Stage

procedures set out in the guidance available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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