Bunyan Playgroup

Bunyan Playgroup Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number 219101 Inspection date 28/01/2011 Inspector Lynne Talbot

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Setting address Kempston West Methodist Church, High Street, Kempston, BEDFORD, Bedfordshire, MK42 7BT Telephone number 01234 300532 & 07944 630369 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.

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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

The setting also makes provision for children older than the early years age group which is registered on the voluntary and/or compulsory part(s) of the Childcare Register. This report does not include an evaluation of that provision, but a comment about compliance with the requirements of the Childcare Register is included in Annex B.

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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

Bunyan Playgroup was registered in August 1996. It is managed by a committee of parents. The provision operates from the church rooms of the Kempston West Methodist Church, Kempston and serves the local area. The building is accessible to all children. Children have access to a secure outdoor play area.

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Description of the setting

The provision is open each weekday during school term-time only. Sessions are from 9.15am to 11.45am with a lunch club from 11.45am to 12.30pm. The provision also opens Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 12.30pm to 3pm. Children are able to attend for a variety of sessions. A maximum of 24 children may attend the provision at any one time. The provision is registered on the Early Years Register and the compulsory part of the Childcare Register. There are currently 33 children on roll, all of whom are within the early years age group. The provision provides funded early education for two-, three- and four-year-olds. The provision is also registered to offer care to children aged over five years. Children occupying these places share the same facilities as the children in the early years age range. There are currently no children on roll in this age range.

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Description of the setting

Some children attend other settings such as the early years unit of the local primary school or childminders. The provision supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, and children who speak English as an additional language. The provision employs six members of child care staff. All staff hold appropriate Early Years Qualifications Level 2 and Level 3.

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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

Planning for the Early Years Foundation Stage is adaptable to children's interests and supported by planning which shows generally good range and detail. This ensures that children receive experiences that foster good progress overall. Staff create a welcoming environment, using firm safeguarding procedures and regular risk assessments. They have good knowledge of each child's needs to ensure that every child is fully included. Partnerships with other child care agencies, parents and carers are strong whilst those with other settings that children attend are beginning to develop. The manager communicates drive and ambition to ensure development but this is yet to be fully developed to enable reflection on the overall care and continued outcomes for children.

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further?

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

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further?

 ensure that there is a balance of adult-led and freely chosen or child-initiated activities, delivered through indoor and outdoor play; this refers to offering increased opportunities for them to be active outdoors and to encounter This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 creatures, people, plants and objects in their natural environments and in real-life situations  develop links with all other settings providing for children in the Early Years Foundation Stage to ensure continuity and coherence to support outcomes for children  gain further understanding of reflective practice in order to confidently identify aspects of the childminding service that are done well, and those aspects that might be improved, so as to continue to promote good outcomes for children  update the record of risk assessments to include any assessments of risks for outings and trips.

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the early years provision

Comprehensive safeguarding procedures ensure that children are fully protected. Staff attend regular training courses to update their knowledge. The provider ensures that all required persons undertake the appropriate checks to safeguard children with regular review and evaluation of practice within the provision. Additional procedures such as the induction of visitors with regard to fire procedures and the securing of all mobile telephones in a secure container during sessions add to the safety measures that protect children. The provider implements thorough recruitment and induction processes and is developing appraisal systems to ensure that the staff group remains effective at all times. Risk assessments are effective and completed daily and annually. However, the record of risk assessment for outings is incomplete which means there is potential for the assessment actually undertaken when leaving the premises to fail to fully protect

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the early years provision

An accident log is maintained with record slips provided to parents which show full detail of any accident helping to ensure that children are protected. The provider and staff are enthusiastic and have clear expectations for progression. There is commitment to ongoing professional development throughout the staff group with all staff working towards the next stage in their professional development. This results in a positive impact on the care and learning provided. Self-evaluation processes are underway including an evaluation of sessions and activities, input from the parent committee, work with the local authority development advisors and the use of action plans. However, the processes initiated and the resulting written self-evaluation are insufficiently reflective to form the basis of internal review to focus on the outcomes for children. Children's individual learning styles are respected. Staff learn key words and phrases in languages such as Polish and

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the early years provision

Italian, and display words to enable children to share each other's home language and to help children to be secure in the setting. New children and parents have settling-in procedures which include detailed summary assessments of children to form a baseline learning and development outline from which staff can build personalised learning. This helps to establish personal, social and emotional well- being from which an initial next step plan is developed.

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the early years provision

Children's individual needs are extremely well met. Staff work very closely with This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 other professionals seeking and adhering to learning programmes. They work closely with parents when seeking assessment and support some children with individual staff members. These methods ensure that every child is supported to achieve. Staff are generally deployed well throughout sessions moving between areas. The environment is conducive to learning, safe and well cared for. A broad range of quality play provision is used to achieve the planned goals. The provision has a highly positive relationship with parents and carers. A high percentage of parents form the management committee and as such contribute their views and feedback during meetings. They arrange events and fundraising for the group and are involved in open days to continue their involvement in their children's learning.

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the early years provision

Parents receive monthly newsletters which are supplemented by white boards on which each day's activities and themes are shared with parents. These methods ensure that there is strong support for each child to learn and develop in a consistent and positive way. The managers and staff actively promote equality and diversity and tackle unfair discrimination. They are committed to working in partnership with others and establish effective working relationships with other provisions. For example, they meet regularly with the local Children's Centres and are part of a network group meeting to address issues of inclusion. They invite school teachers to visit children during their final term but as yet have not fully developed the partnerships with other settings that children currently attend to ensure continuity and coherence to support outcomes for children. The manager and staff invite parents to visit to help them to explore other cultures. For

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the early years provision

example, children enjoy cooking Indian and Italian foods such as naan breads and minestrone soup which they enjoy at snack time. They explore festivals carrying out craft works and observing differences. This helps children to appreciate the wider society around them.

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and outcomes for children

Children are offered planned activities that help them to make good progress overall in their learning and development. Detailed assessment through recorded observation is in place and the information gained is used to identify clear next steps. Spontaneous observation is gathered through photographs and post-its which are added to progression charts. Staff record children's emerging interests with possible lines of development and links to the areas of learning. These feed into the planning sheet within which specific areas of focus and are recorded for individual children. The staff group meets regularly to evaluate sessions and ensure that planning meets every child's next objective. All children have daily opportunities to become physically active, developing good health. Children enjoy the compact outdoor play area where they ride sit-and-ride toys, match them to numbered bays, dig and explore in soil, sand and water and use a range of

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and outcomes for children

equipment. However, the outdoor experience is not fully explored to enable children to discover and learn more about nature, experience planting and growing, observe mini-beasts, feed and observe birds and use the outdoor environment for extending their understanding of size, growth and measurement. Children begin to understand more about the world around them when they become involved in raising funds for projects such as the Barnardo's Toddle completing sponsored events. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 Children share singing, stories and books in groups. They contribute ideas and use their developing knowledge. For example, children count the number of children present during group story sessions. The provision is currently engaged in the 'Every Child A Talker' (ECAT) scheme following outlined schemes and monitoring progression within language and literacy. They are beginning to complete simple

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and outcomes for children

calculation, subtracting numbers from five to one during songs. Children enjoy rhymes and anticipate the endings to simple songs and stories such as 'We're going on a bear hunt' showing good recall and rhythm as they clap and pat their legs in time. Children use some technology and explore keyboards, telephones and calculators. They use materials to create collages and help themselves to painting materials. Electric race car tracks offer further opportunities to develop control and understand direction. Children move freely between activities selecting and completing tasks. Generally children's behaviour is good and they are beginning to understand turn taking with support. Children enjoy working with real tasks such as making dough. They persist with the task as they mix flour, water and colouring together, passing the bowl to one another to take turns. They enjoy creative works such as painting. Children understand colour mixing telling staff delightedly that

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and outcomes for children

they have mixed blue and yellow to make green. They extend creative works by freely selecting materials from the open craft trolley, such as glitter, and spending long periods of time creating pictures before placing them on the drying rack. Free access to such materials encourages creativity and self-initiated learning. Children enjoy many areas of role play including small world figures, home corners, offices and dressing up. They invite others to join them as they sit and become engrossed in play. For instance, children relax together in the soft play area with blankets, dolls and pillows inventing games with the dolls. Children build with blocks making structures such as houses or lining pieces up telling staff that they have used all the straight pieces to make a long snake.

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and outcomes for children

Children regularly discuss keeping themselves safe when they carry out emergency evacuation routines. Staff challenge children to consider what they do and to think about why their actions may be unsafe. Role play using traffic signs, zebra crossings, cones and traffic lights helps children to consider road safety. Personal hygiene routines are followed with some children showing independence in personal care. Healthy eating and nutrition is incorporated into the daily care with children helping themselves to water from the dispenser when they are thirsty and taking part in themed works planned routinely to support their developing knowledge. Children are clearly learning the skills and attitudes necessary for future learning and taking their places as part of the community. 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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Annex B: the Childcare Register

The provider confirms that the requirements of the compulsory part of the Childcare Register are: Met

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Annex B: the Childcare Register

The provider confirms that the requirements of the voluntary part of the Childcare Register are: Met

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