Wellfield Methodist and Anglican Church School

Kingsway Pre-school Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number 119492 Inspection date 11/03/2011 Inspector Tina Mason

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Setting address Chalkwell Park Methodist Church, Eastwood Lane South, Westcliff on Sea, Essex, SS0 9XH Telephone number 07757164206 Email kingswayps@tiscali.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

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

Kingsway Pre-school is run by a parent committee. It has been established for many years and operates from a church hall on the first floor of the Methodist Church building in Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex. A maximum of 25 children may attend the group at any one time. The pre-school is open five days a week during school term times. Sessions are from 9am to 3pm Monday and Wednesdays and 9am to 12pm on Tuesday, Thursday and Fridays. All children share access to an enclosed outdoor play area.

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Description of the setting

There are currently 50 children aged from two to five years on roll. Of these, 35 children receive funding for early education. Children come from the local and surrounding areas. The pre-school supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and supports children who have English as an additional language.

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Description of the setting

The pre-school is registered by Ofsted on the Early Years. The pre-school employs nine staff. Seven, including the manager, hold appropriate early years qualifications. The setting receives support from the local authority.

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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 enjoy a good range of stimulating activities in a safe, supportive environment which is conducive to learning, managed very well and carefully looked after. Staff demonstrate a good understanding of the Early Years Foundation Stage. They ensure that each child has appropriate care and attention to meet their needs, thereby creating an inclusive provision. Most systems and documentation in place are very well organised. Excellent partnerships with the local schools and parents are key strengths of the provision and all work exceptionally well together to support the children's learning and development. Staff have a good understanding of how to evaluate the provision and are well supported by the manager and parent committee.

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further?

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

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further?

 develop further systems to ensure the next steps in children's learning are consistently supported  consider methods of storage to further promote children's independence and provide children with the ability to make greater choices in their play. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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the early years provision

Effective procedures are in place to protect children. There is a clear written policy which outlines the procedure for reporting any child protection concerns. This includes the process to be followed should an allegation be made against a member of staff. Robust recruitment procedures ensure appropriate checks are carried out on all staff and volunteers to confirm they are suitable to work with children. This helps safeguard children's welfare. Staff are appropriately qualified and induction procedures, appraisal systems and staff meetings ensure they know policies and procedures and can implement them in practice. The setting maintains required written records of risk assessments, which include, annual detailed assessments of the setting and daily risk assessments which ensure children remain safe and secure at all times.

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the early years provision

The range of resources and equipment provided for all children is wide-ranging and of good quality. In addition, the equipment promotes all areas of children's learning and development. Many children are given opportunities to develop their independence as they are able to ask for additional toys and recourses to be set out for them. Children less confident or without the language skills are not afforded the same opportunities to freely choose due to the lack of child-height storage. The manager, staff and management committee work together very effectively and are committed to maintaining continual improvement. Good levels of reflection and self-evaluation takes place between the manager and staff. The care and attention taken to identify and address children's individual likes and dislikes and developmental needs enables the staff team to provide an inclusive environment. Children are free to join in activities, express their views and opinions

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the early years provision

and learn respect and tolerance of others. Toys, wall displays and activities promote positive images of different people from the community and wider world.

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the early years provision

Partnerships with parents and carers is outstanding. Parents receive excellent information about the pre-school before children start. A wealth of information is provided for parents, in the form of policies and procedures, newsletters and children's developmental profiles. There is also an excellent two-way flow of information at the end of each session about individual children and their continually changing needs. Parents meet with staff to discuss their children's progress; they are also invited to contribute to their child's developmental profile. In addition there is a designated member of staff who is the 'Parents Project Leader'. This member of staff is responsible for helping the pre-school build up links with the parents and carers of the children at the setting. She has organised many different classes, coffee mornings and information sharing, as well as, 'stay and play' sessions, where the parents are able to stay and play with their children.

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the early years provision

As a result the parents are extremely well informed and there are excellent links. Parents and carers speak very positively of the service offered. They feel the staff are very approachable and helpful, they like the sense of community spirit and feel very confident that their children are being left in very capable hands. Effective systems have been developed to forge good partnerships and support working together with other practitioners to support transition, both between other settings and between the pre-school and local school. Staff work with parents to obtain This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 additional support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. They also understand the importance of working with other settings children attend.

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and outcomes for children

Staff support children's learning well. They offer them praise and encouragement and talk with them about what they are doing. Children make good progress in their learning and development as staff have a clear understanding of the Early Years Foundation Stage requirements. Staff obtain information about children's starting points from parents initially and then make their own assessments from the observations undertaken throughout the sessions. Staff plan activities based on their observations of the children's interests. Written observations are clear and informative about children's achievements. However, systems to ensure that all staff consistently promote the next steps in individual children's progress is not fully in place.

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and outcomes for children

Children build good relationships with each other and with adults in the setting. Children and staff have fun and the atmosphere is warm and caring. Staff plan a daily routine that is flexible for the children and is in accordance with their individual needs and requests. Children have access to a dedicated outside play area where children are able to use a range of equipment, such as, stilts, hoops, balls and trikes which promotes their physical development. They also enjoy digging in the dirt looking for worms to place into their compost bin, as the children know how important worms are in the composting process. Staff organise the outdoor area to provide experiences across all areas of learning. Children have good opportunities to develop their knowledge and understanding of the world as they grow a large selection of fruits and vegetables in the garden. Children are also encouraged to care for and tend to this area. Children are provided with

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and outcomes for children

opportunities to investigate objects and materials as they use torches, binoculars and have daily use of the camera. A good range of planned activities, displays, toys and resources depicting positive images of people from different cultures, races and those with disabilities help children to learn about the wider world.

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and outcomes for children

There are many signs and labels used around the pre-school which helps children recognise that print carries meaning. Both children and staff make good use of the book corner to sit quietly and look at books and listen to stories. Children are given opportunities to mark-make with pencils, paints, crayons and chalks and many of the older children can write and recognise their own name. Many of the children demonstrate a good awareness of position, size and shape as they play with the compare bears. Also, when cutting up the play dough using the scissors they discuss with each other whose piece of play dough is bigger or smaller than the others. A strong focus is placed on providing a healthy environment for children to play and learn. Children demonstrate awareness of excellent hygiene routines as they wash their hands and use soap and paper towels. Their awareness of healthy eating is encouraged through growing their own fruit and vegetables. Children are

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and outcomes for children

also extremely aware of the importance of recycling, as they sort the pre-schools rubbish into their different recycling bins. Children are also taught the importance This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 of not throwing away any leftover food and how to turn it into compost. Each day they place their leftover snacks in the compost bin, the children are able to see the change from left over food to compost which is then used as fertilizer on their fruit and vegetable patches. Children demonstrate an awareness of safe behaviour as they move around the setting with gentle reminders from the staff to walk and look where they are going. The good role-modelling provided by adults helps the children learn appropriate behaviours and gain the most from the opportunities the setting offers. Children are given excellent opportunities to develop skills that contribute to their future economic well-being. Routines are organised to ensure

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and outcomes for children

that each child is encouraged to make as much progress as they can in communicating, literacy, numeracy and information and communication technology. Children develop good habits as active, inquisitive and independent learners, develop collaborative skills and problem solving attitudes. They are able to demonstrate through their play and communications that they understand increasing features of the wider world. 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 1 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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