St Andrews Preschool

St Andrews Pre School Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number 254195 Inspection date 21/01/2011 Inspector Kath Beck

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Setting address St. Andrews C of E School, The Street, North Lopham, Diss, Norfolk, IP22 2LR Telephone number 07549 154473 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

Children only attend this setting before and/or after the school day and/or during the school holidays. The judgements in this report reflect the quality of early years provision offered to children during those periods.

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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

St Andrew's Pre-School is run by a committee and has charitable status. It is situated on the site of St Andrew's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, in the village of North Lopham, Norfolk. It has served the local community for many years, but has operated on this site since 2002. The pre-school has the use of an adapted school building with an enclosed outdoor area. The pre-school is open Monday, Thursday and Friday from 8.45am until 11.45am, term times only. On Thursday there is a lunch club from 11.45am until 12.45pm and an afternoon session from 12.45pm until 3.15pm. Children attend for a variety of the sessions on offer.

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Description of the setting

The pre-school is registered to take a maximum of 18 children, from two to five years. Currently there are 10 children on roll, all of whom are within the early years age range. It is in receipt of funding for early education places. The pre- school is able to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who speak English as an additional language. There are two members of staff who work with the children. The manager has a degree in Early Childhood and Behavioural Studies and the other member of staff is qualified to level 2. The pre-school has links with the host school and receives support from the local authority. It is registered with Ofsted on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare 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

Warm and trusting relationships ensure that children are happy and confident while attending the pre-school. Children's well-being is mostly supported by adequate safeguarding arrangements. This, together with a range of activities, means that children enjoy their time, make satisfactory progress and their needs are appropriately met. Staff promote positive attitudes well, so that all children make a good contribution to the community and are involved in all that it has to offer. Parents are supportive but they are not provided with all the information they are required to receive. The new manager, staff and committee are determined to improve the provision. They have indentified key areas for improvement and action taken so far is proving successful. The pre-school's capacity to improve is sound.

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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  improve the quality of the outdoor provision so that it supports rich, challenging experiences and adds to children's enjoyment This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006  provide additional opportunities for children to use information and communication technology and programmable toys to support their learning.

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the early years provision

Staff take reasonable steps to safeguard the children in their care. They ensure that they behave well and move around the room sensibly. Most policies and procedures to safeguard children are in place. The implementation of annual and daily risk assessments that make sure the premises, furniture, toys and other equipment are suitable and in good condition limit the risks to children. However, risk assessments do not cover everything with which a child may come in to contact. This specifically refers to trips and outings. Procedures to vet staff for their suitability meet current regulations. Most staff are aware of their responsibilities with regard to child protection, although the new manager has yet to attend up-to-date training. Good levels of staffing mean children are supervised effectively indoors and outside. Regular fire drills, held at different times when the pre-school is open, are recorded and areas for improvement acted upon.

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the early years provision

Procedures to follow should an allegation be made against a member of staff, a child go missing or not be picked up are clear. Useful information for parents is displayed on the notice board. However, the registration certificate and information about how to contact Ofsted to make a complaint are out of date. The pre-school is required to supply these details to parents as set out in the Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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the early years provision

The new manager, staff and committee are determined to improve the quality of provision and increase the number of children attending the pre-school. They have an idea about future developments and have taken action to improve the quality of the provision. Good teamwork and partnership working with the local advisory service has resulted in the award of a grant so that there is now a good range of toys and equipment that are relevant to the ages of the children. These are attractive to the children and extend their opportunities to play imaginatively and creatively. Other developments have led to the successful establishment of booklets that monitor children's progress and the next steps in their learning. These are used to plan activities and involve parents in their children's learning. Formal procedures to evaluate and record the effectiveness of the provision are at an early stage of development, which means that staff do not have a full picture of

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the early years provision

the pre-school's strengths and weaknesses. However, they are determined to progress, as demonstrated by the improvements made so far.

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the early years provision

While the building is old, staff make it welcoming and colourful with displays of children's artwork and make good use of the resources they have at the pre- school. The indoor environment is well organised so that children can find the resources they need easily. However, the outside area is small, uninviting and has no shelter from the weather and because of this there are limited opportunities for children to move easily between indoors and outdoors or link their creative play. This hinders the opportunities for staff to provide children with greater challenge and choice. New resources have recently arrived but can only be used in good weather. Staff are really skilled at using the resources on hand to stimulate This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 children's curiosity and keep them interested in their play. They pay close attention to children's personal needs and give them support, comfort and reassurance as

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the early years provision

needed. As a result, children often invite adults to join them in their play, enjoying the one to one attention.

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the early years provision

Staff value their partnership with parents and talk to them about their child's likes and dislikes. They welcome them into the pre-school and provide a useful newsletter explaining forthcoming events and describing what the children have been doing. Partnerships with other early years settings are good. The pre-school is strengthening links with the school further to ensure that when children transfer they do so happily. In addition, links with other provisions that children attend are strong, enabling good continuity of care and learning.

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and outcomes for children

Children are confident and happy in the pre-school because they enjoy good relationships with the staff. They know that staff are interested in them and in what they have to say. They are provided with a range of play and learning opportunities that stimulate their interest and curiosity and help them to make satisfactory progress. For example, the new 'dark den' helps children to gain positive feelings about being in the dark, as well as to explore the effects of different coloured flashing lights. Children role play at being in a camper van, play with jigsaws and construction toys, cut out shapes in dough and paint creatively. They talk easily to one another and to adults, responding well to questions that challenge their thinking skills. Art work enables children to use a variety of media and techniques to express their own ideas. Children enjoy cooking, making shape pictures and building model aeroplanes, cars and spectacles with construction toys.

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and outcomes for children

These activities add to children's sense of fun, as well as their knowledge of shape and numbers. Outings to a local farm develop children's knowledge and understanding of the world and add variety to their routine. However, children's access to information and communication technology resources and programmable toys are more limited.

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and outcomes for children

Planning is based on themes, such as 'Harvest', 'Autumn' and 'Me'. The related activities that staff plan around these topics link the different areas of learning adequately. The pre-school has established a thorough process to identify individual children's progress and what they need to learn next. Important milestones are noted and occasionally photographs are taken to accompany explanatory comments that are included in a book to show each child's development. The allocation of a 'key person' means that each child has someone who knows them really well.

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and outcomes for children

Children make a good contribution to the community. Their ideas are used to plan activities and they play happily together, behave well and assist when it is time to tidy up. At snack time, a positive social occasion, children help to set the table by putting out the cups and plates. They pour their own drink and serve their own snacks. Staff use this time well to engage children in conversation about what they have been doing or matters of interest to them. They also ensure that children This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 have a growing awareness of the importance of healthy eating and sensible food choices. Children are beginning to learn how to stay safe. They know that red lights at traffic crossings mean danger or 'stop' to cars when crossing the road. Overall, children are acquiring satisfactory skills, which will help them in their future learning.

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and outcomes for children

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 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 2 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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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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