Plough Green Pre-School

Plough Green Pre-School Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number 131805 Inspection date 05/12/2010 Inspector Amanda Tyson

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Setting address 411 Malden Road, Worcester Park, Surrey, KT4 7NY

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Telephone number 020 8337 1295 Email 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. You may copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as

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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

Plough Green Preschool was registered in 1996. It operates from a church hall on the main road leading into Worcester Park, close to local bus routes and the main line railway station. The group has sole use of the premises while they are operational which consists of a large hall, kitchen, a small room, and a secure outdoor play area, as well as toilets and storage cupboards.

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Description of the setting

The setting is registered on the Early Years Register for a maximum of 32 children aged from two to the end of the early years age group at any one time. They are in receipt of nursery education funding for children aged three and four years. The setting supports children with special educational needs, and those who speak English as an additional language. There are currently 36 children on roll.

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Description of the setting

The group opens five days a week during school term times. Sessions are from 9.30am to 12.30pm, Monday to Friday. Eight staff, including the manager, are employed to work with the children. In addition there is a stand-in member of staff who covers absences. Six staff hold recognized and relative qualifications; two are qualified to Level 3, including the manager; three to Level 2, of whom two are working towards a Level 3; and one has Qualified Teacher Status. Six staff hold valid first aid certificates. Parents help out on a rota basis, and children are taken on regular trips within the community.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Overall the quality of the provision is good.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Children's welfare is effectively safeguarded and very well supported. They are happy and, based on their age, ability and starting points for learning, are making good progress towards the early learning goals. Equality and diversity is effectively promoted. Most children's individual needs are comprehensively understood and highly supported. The setting's well established procedures for working in complete partnership with parents; to support children's individual pathways to learning, is inspirational, highly effective and a key strength of the setting. Strong leadership encourages a culture of reflective practice and collaborative learning. As a result, priorities for improvement are, in the main, clearly identified and very successfully targeted. The setting's capacity to maintain continuous improvement is good.

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further?

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

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further?

 update the record of risk assessment to include any assessments of risks for outings and trips  analyse the developing interests of boys and use this information to help This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 inform and guide planning; consider the resources that are available to them and find ways to encourage more dynamic and sustained play and learning.

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the early years provision

Rigorous recruitment and induction procedures ensure that children are cared for by fully vetted adults, who have a complimentary range of qualifications and experience. References are interrogated and qualifications are verified. Criminal Record Bureau checks are carried out on all staff prior to appointment, and new staff are carefully mentored throughout their probationary period. Adult to child ratios are maintained above the minimum requirements and children benefit greatly from the individual adult support that this commitment enables. Child protection training is mandatory for all staff. The designated safeguarding officer completes advanced training which, for example, informs of the outcomes of local authority Serious Case Reviews. The team are highly secure in their knowledge and understanding of the procedure to follow if they become concerned about a child. Comprehensive risk assessments, which include daily checks on the

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the early years provision

premises, ensure that children are cared for in a safe and secure environment. For the premises, these are recorded as required. However, although carried out prior to any outing, for example the potential for a lost child situation to occur is carefully considered, these are not included in the written record.

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the early years provision

The premises is used by members of the community outside of preschool hours and this means that the team has to set up and clear away each day. This is not easy and staff make a fantastic effort to create a warm and welcoming environment for the children. The setting is equipped with a good range of play and learning resources which promote equality and diversity. Low level shelving provides for children to independently access selected resources. However, this well intended aim has yet to prove successful for all children. The setting makes excellent use of local training opportunities, regular team meetings, and INSET days to develop staffs knowledge and skills. The Safeguarding Officer and Special Educational Needs Coordinator roles are effectively designated.

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the early years provision

The level of parental involvement in children's learning is exceptional. They are provided with comprehensive information to explain the Early Years Foundation Stage and the assessment process. They contribute to this with regular high- quality documented observations. A weekly newsletter enables them to support the topological theme and phonic focus. Formal parental consultations take place yearly, and in-between they are provided with written progress reports. Parents agree children's next steps for learning in partnership with their child's key-worker and, as a result, children receive consistent learning, and behavioural, support. Parents are highly supportive of the preschool and particularly appreciative of the guidance for documenting observations. Strong partnerships with external agencies and professionals involved with individual children, such as speech therapists, ensure that any additional needs are consistently supported. The

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the early years provision

setting communicate with other settings that children attend via a daily diary, although they have yet to share specific information to support children's learning This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 journey.

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the early years provision

Self-evaluation is comprehensive; it is carried out by a number of different processes, and includes staff, parents, and children. The team is currently working through their second quality assurance accreditation, selected policies and procedures are reviewed each month by staff and parents, and the effectiveness of planning is evaluated at every staff meeting. Priorities for improvement are accurately identified and, in the main, very well targeted. These range from the simple; a digital photo frame to show parents on the day what children have been doing, to the ambitious; the development of the outdoor play area. The many modifications made to the systems for monitoring children's progress and development has been highly worthwhile as they are now excellent. The team is striving to improve planning and resourcing to meet the needs of older boys, for example they recently purchased a space ship and some dinosaurs to link with

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the early years provision

their specific interests. However, the success of this targeting has yet to be achieved. Nonetheless, the team is wholly committed to promoting equality and diversity for all children. They are determined to address this with the same vigour they applied to developing their partnerships with parents. They work very closely with the local authority early years consultants and demonstrate strong capacity to ensure continuous improvement.

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and outcomes for children

Children are cared for in a warm and welcoming environment. Procedures for settling-in new children are excellent and enable children to build a strong and trusting relationship with their key worker before they are left for their first full session without parents. Children are exceptionally kind and considerate. They demonstrate a very good understanding of right and wrong; negotiate rather than squabble, and apologize if necessary without adult promoting. When their friends are upset or injured, the strong bond between the older boys is clearly demonstrated as they provide each other with physical comfort.

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and outcomes for children

Children move freely between the indoors and outdoors, and the high-quality sail shade provides protection from the sun and rain. A play cottage provides for imaginative play, the sand trough is big enough to enable inclusive group play, and the growing area encourages a sense of belonging in children who proudly point out their sprouting tulip bulbs. Children's physical competence is further developed, and challenged, by occasional trips to the local play park which is equipped with a wide range of diverse climbing and balancing apparatus. Children are helped to understand how germs are spread through discussions about hand washing and sneezing during snack time and baking activities. Staff who sit with children during snack time encourage discussions about good nutrition. They show their understanding of this when they select healthy food pictures from catalogues and stick them onto paper plates. Road safety rules are reinforced when they are out

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and outcomes for children

and about in the community and by the local police and lollipop lady when they visit the preschool. Children learn fire safety rules, such as what not to play. Fire evacuation is regularly practiced and regular baking activities reinforce messages This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 such as how to minimise the risk of burning.

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and outcomes for children

Planning is based on a weekly theme, such as 'nursery rhymes', 'what feet are used for', or 'all about me'. Imaginative play, stories, and singing are linked to this. For example, role play is presented as a throne for a king or a queen to represent the nursery rhyme 'sing-a-song-a-sixpence', which children sing. A shoe shop encourages children to think about shoes for different activities and weather conditions, provides for them to measure their feet, and compare size. Overall the play and learning areas are utilized well by the majority of children. The book corner, which is particularly well stocked and presented with attractive drapes and comfortable cushions, is very popular; many children stay there happily sharing books with their peers and staff for lengthy periods. Children's interest in books is further encouraged by regular trips to the library. The creative workshop area is frequently visited, but more often by girls who are inspired by the rolls of ribbons,

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and outcomes for children

joining tape and other media. They build interesting models alongside each other, sharing ideas and helping each other to find solutions to practical problems, such as joining different shaped boxes, cartons, and cylinders.

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and outcomes for children

Children's awareness of diversity is raised as they take part in planned activities, For example, they draw and paint portraits of each other by looking in a two-way mirror, where they are helped to notice their similarities and differences, such as hair, skin, and eye colour. They learn how other cultures celebrate weddings, for example how money is pinned on the bride at a Greek wedding, which they acted out to Greek music before enjoying some Greek food at snack time. Children recognize their name in print, which is demonstrated when they register their attendance at the snack café. They learn to link letters to sounds through planned activities which encourage them to notice subtle sound differences, for example between instruments, and as they sing nursery rhymes. Children who speak English as an additional language are very well supported through the use of timelines and picture cards. Bilingual children are very well supported by staff who

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and outcomes for children

Children have access to a computer and some other working technology resources, such as a camera. However, this is not every day and sometimes they have neither. Magnifiers are provided to look closely at twigs and leaves indoors, but resources such as this are generally put out for specific activities and not always available for children to help themselves. Adult supported active games, such as What?s The Time Mr Wolf, clearly inspires boys because they then initiate these for themselves. They enjoy playing with the newly purchased space ship and dinosaurs, but these are not accessible to them all of the time. When activities and resources fail to interest them, they flit from one activity to another spending limited time at each. They have yet to make good use of the creative workshop area independently. In contrast though, when role play is set up as a village with a builder's yard, post office, and home, they become engaged in more worthwhile

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and outcomes for children

and dynamic play. 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 2 The effectiveness with which the setting promotes equality and diversity The effectiveness of safeguarding 2 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 2

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Stage

The extent to which children achieve and enjoy their learning 2 The extent to which children feel safe 2 The extent to which children adopt healthy lifestyles 2 The extent to which children make a positive contribution 2 The extent to which children develop skills for the future 2

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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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