Ridgewood Community High School

Ashmore Pre-School Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number 135013 Inspection date 09/06/2011 Inspector Martha Darkwah

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Setting address St. Lukes Church Centre, Fernhead Road, London, W9 3EH

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Telephone number 0208 968 6225 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

Ashmore Pre-school is run by a parent committee. It opened in 1992 and operates from a twin room with access to a hall, on church premises in the City of Westminster. There is a secure garden available for outdoor play, toilet facilities, and a kitchen. It serves families within the local community.

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Description of the setting

The nursery is registered for a maximum of 20 children from two to five years. There are currently 36 children on roll. The setting is in receipt of funding for children who are three or four years old. Children attend for a variety of sessions. The setting currently supports a small number of children who speak English but hear other languages spoken at home. The setting welcomes children with learning difficulties and/or disabilities.

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Description of the setting

Children attend Monday to Friday from 9am to 12noon and 12.15pm to 3.15pm, some children stay all day. The nursery operates during term time only for 38 weeks in the year.

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Description of the setting

There are five members of full and part-time staff working directly with the children throughout the day, which includes one lunch time assistant. Four staff have Early Years qualifications; the manager has a level four qualification and currently working towards a foundation degree.

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Description of the setting

The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and both 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 good.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

The dedicated staff team effectively support children's needs in a safe and secure child centred pre-school environment. Partnerships with parents is robustly emphasised in the nursery to help children feel secure. The information that the adults share helps the staff to provide continuity of care for the children. Children are making good progress in their learning given their age and individual starting points. The whole staff team contributes to the evaluation of the nursery's provision which is good overall. There is a good capacity for improvement and the management team and staff have a positive vision to ongoing development of the pre-school. Although risk assessment systems are in place, they not fully secure to protect children.

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further?

To further improve the early years provision the registered person should: This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006  improve the risk assessment to include anything that children may come into contact with  improve children''s access to battery operated information technology and programmable toys and create an access to a listening corner  develop visual number and letter provision in the outdoor play area to give children further opportunities to explore, experiment within the areas of learning.

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the early years provision

Outstanding attention is given to safeguarding children. The setting has well established and strong links with the relevant agencys to ensure any safeguarding concerns are dealt with promptly and in the best interest of the children, when ever there is a need. All staff members are rigorously checked for suitability at the time of their employment. Comprehensive risks assessments are made for outings undertaken with children to keep them safe. Although a record is kept of the risk assessments indoors and outdoors, they are not in sufficient detail to include everything that children may come into contact with. Children learn to keep themselves safe in a well organised environment that allows them to move around freely between two intercommunicating play rooms. Their safety is further promoted as they participate in regular fire drills; put their educational materials away tidily before moving on to the next activity and readily push their chairs under the tables after

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the early years provision

each activity. Evaluation of the programme of activities, the use of the indoor and outdoor space and record keeping systems is doing well overall and is ongoing. There is a good aptitude for continuous improvement. The management team work well together to help staff progress their professional development and to maintain the ongoing improvement of the pre-school's provision. Both playrooms in the pre-school are very well resourced and attractively presented with child focused displays. Children eagerly explore natural materials, such as water, and sand, explore books and appropriate small world educational playthings indoors. Resources include a selection that promotes positive images of diversity, disability and linguistic differences. Staff show respect for the diverse cultural backgrounds of all children. They engage very well with parents and carers to find out about languages spoken at home, cultural matters and each child's

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the early years provision

particular needs and achievements. Staff plan and provide a range of multi-cultural activities which are carefully chosen to reflect the background of the children they care for and some which link to celebrations enjoyed in the wider community. The promotion of inclusive practice is good. Partnerships with parents are intensely highlighted in the nursery by a number of effective systems. For example, newsletters are sent out regularly if the need arises and there is a notice board with good childcare information. Key persons pass on daily information about their key children to parents. There are clear systems in place to ensure parents are involved, monitor and contribute to their children's learning. Parents say that they are delighted with the progress their children are making in the pre-school. Partnerships with others are good. The pre-school has established close links with This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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the early years provision

the local authority which ensures that expert guidance and support can be accessed rapidly if any children have need of it. The pre-school is beginning to establish secure links with other practitioners where children will move to help with continuity and progression of their learning. A full range of policies and procedures are well maintained, confidentially stored. The staff team effectively implements these to meet requirements and promote the children's overall welfare.

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and outcomes for children

Children show that they feel safe and secure in the nursery in their relaxed body language, good relationships with staff and their peers, their curiosity and eagerness to play and explore. There is a good balance between adult-led activities and those the children choose for themselves. Therefore, children's learning is effective staff intervene when appropriate; to re-focus children's attention or unobtrusively support their learning and have meaningful participation. The staff team provides many opportunities for children to repeat and consolidate their learning. Children's health needs thrive due to the outstanding practices within the nursery. The children learn about good health at snack time as enjoy fruits and vegetables. Parents provide a packed lunch for children staying for the extended day provision. Staff share healthy options for lunch boxes with parents and have excellent systems in place to meet children's ongoing health and medical needs. Children

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and outcomes for children

use the outdoor space daily for climbing, wheeled toys, ball and running games which they enjoy in the fresh air. Children recognise that they feel thirsty after physical activities and readily help themselves to drinks provided outdoors to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Observations of the children, and their records of achievement, show that they are making good progress in most aspects of their learning. Sensitive observations and assessments are made in different ways, through written observations, photographs and examples of children's work. Information from these is used to plan for individual children. Effective tracking systems enable staff to identify the next steps in children's learning and use this in the planning of their future activities. Staff members promote the development of speech through talking to the children throughout the day. Children sometimes take a book to look at independently in

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and outcomes for children

the reading area and they show that they know how pages turn and pictures tell the story. The staff members focus their attention on the children at all times so that they are on hand to talk about children's play, extend their vocabulary and help them to benefit from the activities in hand. A good example of this is the beneficial support given to children in their exploration of the 'forest' area in the outdoor play area. They explore the outdoor environment, for example look for insects under logs and examine them and move small logs to create imaginary 'camp fire'. Staff members extend their experience by engaging children in animated songs and rhymes to their delight. Number and literacy provision indoors is adequate however; this is not consistent in the outdoor play area. Additionally, the equipment and resources in the outdoor area is limited in its coverage of areas This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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and outcomes for children

of learning. Children play with non working phones and have access to toy cash tills and calculators in role play. However, provision for young children to experiment with programmable and mechanical toys, for older children to use resources that really work and to engage in scientific exploration and experimentation is not prominent enough within the educational programme. Taken overall, the children are developing good skills for future learning and activities contribute effectively to children's future economic wellbeing. Children can access paper and writing materials and they enjoy making marks knowing that text have meaning. Some of the older children make plausible attempts at labelling their own paintings and creative materials. Children are learning to count in other languages. Children enjoy trips to places of interest such as the theatre to extend and support their learning about the uniqueness of

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and outcomes for children

characters in their favourite series of books. Staff members are principally accomplished in managing children's behaviour. They are firm but very kind towards the children and they help them to consider the needs and feelings of others. 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 1 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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