Walpole Area Pre-School Limited

Walpole Area Pre-School Limited Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY424864 Inspection date 15/09/2011 Inspector Emma Bright

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Setting address The Community Centre, Summer Close Walpole St Andrew, Wisbech, Cambridgeshire, PE14 7JW Telephone number 01945 780 680 Email m.plume@btconnect.com 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

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

Walpole Area Pre-school opened in 2011 as a re-registration of an existing setting and is owned by a private provider. It operates from the community centre in Walpole St Andrew, Norfolk. The pre-school is open from 9am to 3.30pm, five days a week in school term times. All children have access to an enclosed outdoor play area.

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Description of the setting

A maximum of 26 children may attend the pre-school at any one time and there are currently 35 children on roll who are within the Early Years Foundation Stage. The pre-school is registered on the Early Years Register. The pre-school supports a small number of children with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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Description of the setting

The pre-school employs six members of staff, all of whom hold appropriate early years qualifications.

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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 activities and experiences which help them to make good progress in their learning and development. Good communication between staff and parents means children's individual needs are effectively met. Resources are appropriately deployed to ensure children's safety and enable most children to become active learners. Good systems for self-evaluation are in place in order to maintain continuous improvement.

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further?

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

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further?

 develop the use of information gathered about children's learning and provide additional opportunities for parents to become involved in their child's learning  maximise the use of the environment to further support children's learning so that they can confidently explore and make choices about their play in challenging indoor and outdoor spaces  improve security systems further with regard to the connecting door to the community centre.

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the early years provision

Staff demonstrate a good knowledge and understanding of safeguarding children procedures and they attend training to ensure their knowledge is up-to-date. Clear records demonstrate the effective systems that are in place for recruitment, and induction procedures for new staff ensure they are suitable to work with children. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 Thorough risk assessments are completed on a daily basis to ensure the environment remains safe for children. However, the connecting door to the community centre is not fully secure and this potentially affects children's safety. Staff are well deployed so children are safe and supervised at all times. All these factors contribute to the pre-school safeguarding children effectively.

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the early years provision

Systems are in place to effectively monitor and evaluate the provision to identify priorities for improvement. There is a strong emphasis on raising standards, continually improving the provision, and self-evaluation is good. The manager provides strong leadership and communicates clear expectations to staff. This enables them to work well together, with a common sense of purpose to promote good quality care and education for all children. Staff work well in partnership with others and share information to promote children's learning, development and welfare. Organisation of the provision is good. However, staff do not always make full use of the learning environment to effectively support children's learning, both indoors and outdoors.

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the early years provision

Children learn about their own cultures and those of others, and resources are in place that help children celebrate the diverse society in which they live. There are clear strategies in place to care for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Staff work well in partnership with parents and carers to ensure children's individual needs are fully met. Clear information is gathered from parents about their child before they start so that staff know children's individual interests and needs. This means they settle readily and feel secure. Written information and verbal feedback ensure parents are informed of their child's progress. Good settling-in procedures that are based around children's individual needs helps to support them in the transition between home and the pre-school.

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and outcomes for children

Staff establish a supportive atmosphere where children feel secure and they develop a sense of how to stay safe through play. For example, they put on safety goggles and reflective jackets as they pretend to be construction workers. Clear information is gathered about children's dietary requirements and they have independent access to drinks throughout the day to which they readily help themselves. All children enjoy healthy snacks which they competently help to prepare. They carefully cut up vegetables and pour their own drinks which promote their independence skills and confidence. Staff provide lots of opportunities for energetic play in the outdoor area and children readily access this throughout the day. Children practise a range of movements as they climb, slide and crawl, and they enjoy running around in the sunshine. This helps them to develop good muscle control, feel relaxed and develop a sense of overall well-

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and outcomes for children

Staff have a good knowledge and understanding of the Early Years Foundation Stage. This enables them to offer a range of activities and experiences to support each child's learning and development. Flexible planning is in place and is based on children's interests, which means staff can be responsive to children's changing This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 needs and interests. Staff record each child's achievements through a balance of photographs, examples of work, information from parents and others and observations. However, parents have fewer opportunities to contribute what they know about their child in order to help identify the next steps in children's learning.

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and outcomes for children

Children's behaviour is good because staff set clear boundaries and have high expectations for all children in the setting. Staff use positive language and actions to reinforce the rules of the setting. For example, staff help children to understand the benefits of sharing, and adult-led turn-taking games further promote respectful relationships. As a result, children develop good relationships with one another and work harmoniously together. Children are relaxed and confident and are developing good self-esteem because staff are attentive and value their contributions. Younger children's emotional needs are met as staff gently cuddle them when they are upset.

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and outcomes for children

Children have lots of opportunities to write for purpose, using clipboards in role play or attempting to write their name on their work. They enjoy drawing pictures, eagerly explaining 'this is my pushchair and that's me and that's the wheels'. Children show great interest in nature as they tend the pre-school garden, watering flowers, adding 'rubbish and sticks' to the compost bin or observing insects. They are fascinated by daddy longlegs, and look under plant pots, noting that 'the spider underneath doesn't want to come out'. Children are confident communicators and they readily initiate conversations with adults and each other. They have daily opportunities to share and enjoy books, rhymes and songs in the pre-school. Children count with confidence and differentiate between 'big' and 'small'. They examine the length of the tape measure and announce that 'it's 99 long'. These simple activities lay firm foundations for children's 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 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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