Wymeswold Pre-School

Wymeswold Playgroup Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY231720 Inspection date 17/05/2011 Inspector Esther Darling

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Setting address Wymeswold Memorial Hall, Clay Street, Wymeswold, Loughborough, LE12 6TY Telephone number 07796240908 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

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

Wymeswold Playgroup is managed by a voluntary committee and was established in 1973. It operates from the Memorial Hall situated in the village centre of Wymeswold, Leicestershire. The group has access to the main hall, a small room, a small kitchen and toilet facilities. Children also have access to outdoor play facilities. The setting has a car park and access is gained via double doors leading from the level car park area. The playgroup is registered on the Early Years Register, and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register.

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Description of the setting

The playgroup is open Monday to Friday, during school term times, from 09:15 to 12:15 and on Mondays and Thursdays provides a session from 09:15 to 13:00 for two to four-year-olds which includes a lunch time club for those who wish to attend. There are currently 45 children from two to five years on roll. Of these, 31 are funded from nursery education. Of these 22 children receive funding for nursery education. The playgroup serves the local community and surrounding villages. Children attend for a variety of sessions. The setting is able to support children with learning difficulties and/or disabilities and children who speak English as an additional language.

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Description of the setting

The setting employs eight members of staff, of whom over half hold appropriate early years qualifications. The setting receives support from the local authority and is a member of the Pre-School Learning Alliance.

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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

Wymeswold play group provides a safe and stimulating environment for children. The pre-school is committed to ensuring every child feels safe and secure which provides a firm basis for children to make good progress in their learning and development. Children's individual needs are met well as staff are pro-active in ensuring they have a good knowledge of the differing needs of the children in their care. Strong relationships with parents and others support this effectively. The playgroup leader and deputy work closely together and have assessed the setting's strengths and areas of the service that would benefit from improvement.

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further?

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

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further?

 use the Ofsted self-evaluation form and quality improvement processes as the basis of ongoing internal review, assessing what the setting offers against robust and challenging quality criteria  extend awareness of positive ways to help challenge children's thinking about diversity and help them to embrace individual and cultural differences from an early age. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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the early years provision

Children are cared for in a safe, secure setting, where staff deploy themselves effectively to ensure children are well supervised. Spacious play areas along with a good selection of interesting toys and resources, and a warm and welcoming staff team help to create an accessible, stimulating environment where children learn through play. The building that the play group operates in means that children cannot freely access all of the toys and resources that they want to use. However, staff are helpful in getting what is asked for, such as, pushchairs. The setting's clear practices, procedures and policies, which are yearly reviewed and clearly understood and implemented by the staff team, contribute to the safe and efficient management of the setting. This ensures that children are safeguarded and their needs are met. A comprehensive risk assessment supported by effective daily checking procedures, ensure that potential hazards are identified and minimised.

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the early years provision

The very thorough written safeguarding procedures include raising staff's awareness of ensuring children are sufficiently robust, in order to furnish them with the ability to resist abuse. Staffs' good understanding of child protection procedures, results in children being fully protected. The staff team work well together, supporting each other to ensure consistency of care for individual children. They demonstrate a commitment to promoting positive outcomes for children by developing their own knowledge through ongoing training, such as, 'Every Child a Talker' which promotes communication, language and literacy. The system of self-evaluation is not yet formally recorded, although there are plans for this to be implemented. However, it currently ensures all aspects of the provision are monitored and evaluated, therefore supporting ongoing improvement.

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the early years provision

Staff have established positive relationships with parents, carers and other providers. A good level of information is gathered from parents at the outset to support children to settle in and to enable staff to respond well to their care needs. This information includes some information relating to what children can do in relation to their learning and development which means that clear starting points for learning are swiftly established. Parents have opportunities to look at and discuss their children's progress records during termly play and stay sessions. They are actively encouraged to participate in pre-school activities, further promoting the link between home and pre-school. Each child is recognised for their uniqueness and play provision ensures that all children have access to activities that are not gender stereotyped. Children and parents are encouraged to have as many settling in visits as they feel they need, and this helps build up a good

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the early years provision

rapport with the staff at the playgroup. Effective systems are in place to support children with special educational needs, resulting in them making good progress. Strong relationships have been established with other providers, particularly the local school and childminders, to promote consistency and continuity of children's care and learning. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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and outcomes for children

Children are motivated to learn and enter the pre-school with buzzing enthusiasm. Staff develop good relationships with the families and children so that they soon feel confident in the environment. Clear plans are in place to support children's learning. Staff observe each child regularly and use these observations to assess each child's progress towards the early learning goals. These observations are used well to identify children's next key steps and to provide appropriate challenges for them. Group times are also well planned to be adapted to meet the differing needs of the children. Children have good opportunities to consolidate their understanding and express their creativity through the continuous provision of a role-play area, an art and craft table and various messy activities. Children soon recognise their names through finding their name card at registration and this is repeated at the rolling snack time to reinforce their understanding. They develop

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and outcomes for children

their language and speech through joining in with rhymes, listening to stories and independently selecting books. Children also have access to drawing materials and scissors set out for them to use at any time to 'mark-make'.

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and outcomes for children

Children's independence is promoted well. They are able to make decisions about their play. The creation of learning zones supports children well because they know where to find activities of their choice. Good levels of support from staff and effective use of questioning whilst children play encourages children's developing language skills. Children particularly enjoy digging in the large compost border outside or free painting, and have ample opportunities to explore different media, such as, clay and water in the large tray, and to produce their own individual creations. Children use some resources that teach them about the differences in society.

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and outcomes for children

Warm and caring relationships with the staff help children to feel safe and secure in their surroundings. The provision of a few resources help children to learn about the differences in society; however, these at present are limited mainly to books and dolls. They behave in ways which are safe for themselves and others and learn to calculate their own risks when cutting up their snack. Good hygiene practices across the provision help to minimise the risk of spreading infection. Children learn the importance of good personal hygiene habits, such as, using tissues to wipe their noses and disposing of them appropriately. They follow routines well, such as, washing their hands before meals and after using the toilet. Children are offered well balanced and healthy snacks, they learn about foods that are good for them as they talk about and the variety of fruit and vegetable available. Children are proud to dig up and try the radishes that they have grown and enjoy playing

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and outcomes for children

outside regularly. Children behave very well; they receive high levels of attention and are engaged in interesting activities. Children establish friendships and show support and affection to others. Staff provide good opportunities for children to explore and discover things for themselves, such as, insects, and they interlace numeracy with every day occurrences, thereby supporting the development of skills they will need for the future. 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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