Happy Days Pre-School

Happy Days Pre-School Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number 139172 Inspection date 15/11/2011 Inspector Caren Carpenter

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Setting address United Reformed Church, Swakeleys Road, Ickenham, Middlesex, UB10 8BE Telephone number 07752479750 07752702873 Email Type of setting Childcare - Non-Domestic 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

Happy Days Pre-school was registered in 2002. It operates from the main hall of Ickenham United Reformed Church within the London Borough of Hillingdon. The pre-school is open each weekday from 9.15am to 12.15pm, term time only. All children share 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. There are currently 35 children in the early years age group on roll. The setting supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children who speak English as an additional language.

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Description of the setting

The setting is registered on the Early Years Register, the compulsory Childcare Register and the voluntary part of the Childcare Register. The setting employs six members of staff; four staff hold 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 are making good progress in their learning and development because the setting provides a caring and nurturing environment where children settle well and feel safe and secure. The setting is inclusive and each child is valued and respected. Overall, staff establish and maintain good partnerships with parents and outside agencies to ensure that the individual needs of the children are well met. There are systems in place to monitor and evaluate the practice within the setting, to ensure that continuous improvement is sustained.

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further?

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

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further?

 develop ways in which parents are supported and encouraged to share, contribute and update information, to become fully involved in their child's continuous learning and assessment records  develop further the use of ongoing observational assessment to inform planning for each child's continuing development.

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the early years provision

Children are protected because all staff have recently updated their safeguarding training, so they have a secure knowledge of the possible signs of abuse and the procedures to follow if they have concerns about a child in their care. Recruitment This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 procedures are in place to ensure that all adults working with the children are suitable to do so. Risk assessments are conducted regularly to keep children safe. Staff are vigilant in supervising children to ensure they remain safe in their indoor and outdoor environment.

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the early years provision

The setting is well led and managed. Staff deployment is well organised, ensuring that children's learning is supported by a generous staff ratio. The management team have a well-defined vision for the setting. They work well together, involve staff in the evaluation of the setting and continually strive for continuous improvements in all areas. Recommendations set at the last inspection have been met successfully. For example, children's safety is promoted well because they participate in regular fire drills and parents are provided with regular news letters with ideas of how they can extend and support their children's learning at home. Comprehensive policies and procedures and records required for safe and efficient management to meet all children's needs are well maintained. Good quality resources are suitably organised and available to the children, supporting and encouraging them in making decisions about the activities they want to participate

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the early years provision

Effective systems are in place to support children with special educational needs and/or learning disabilities. For example, staff work well with parents in identifying any additional help required for their children. They seek appropriate support from a wide range of professional agencies such as a speech and language therapist and the Area Special Educational Needs team to ensure that children individual needs are well met. Children's understanding of diversity and difference is enhanced as they celebrate festivals from around the world. In addition they access a selection of resources that reflect positive images of people from different cultures. This ensures that children learn to value aspects of their lives and the diverse society in which they live.

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the early years provision

Partnerships with parents and carers are good. Parents are provided with regular new letters to keep them well informed about future plans and events. The key person is effective in keeping parents well informed of their children's progress and the informal friendly approach enables parents to verbally share their knowledge of their children with the staff. However, parents are not yet supported to contribute and update information, to become fully involved in their children's continuous learning and assessment records. Parents are very supportive of the setting and speak highly of the staff team. They comment on how well their children have settled and value the care and education that is offered to them. The nursery have established links with a local school and transitional achievements profiles are shared effectively to ensure continued progression of children's care, learning and development. 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 provided with exciting opportunities to help them make good progress across all areas of learning and development. The learning environment is arranged to promote children's choices and decisions about their play and to enable them to adapt activities to enhance their own learning. The planning is flexible, responding to the children's interests and ideas. Staff observe children as they play, assessing their progress and using this information to inform the planning of activities, thus supporting children's individual development. However, this is not fully promoted because the assessment and planning procedures do not clearly show how each child's next developmental steps are consistently fed into the overall planning.

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and outcomes for children

Children lead and direct their own play, make choices and grow in confidence. For example, they instigate their own imaginative play and spend their time socialising and chatting to their friends whilst playing in the role play area as they dress up in their favourite costumes. They excitedly arrange a picnic on the floor using a selection of role-play equipment and thoroughly enjoy themselves pretending to be eating their picnic food. Children enjoy playing their musical instruments, this encourages them to respond to music, explore and learn how sounds can be changed. Children enjoy designing and creating their ideas using a range of recycling materials such as, boxes to make their models. Staff encourage children to think critically and solve problems. For example, they complete simple jig-saw puzzles and sort out objects by colours shapes, and sizes during many practical activities. Children have good opportunities to use new technology to support their

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and outcomes for children

learning, and they find out how things work, developing skills for the future. Children are developing their early writing skills, they have good opportunities to write for different purposes and have good access to a range of writing resources which they select independently. Children enjoy looking at a wide selection of quality books which they choose independently for pleasure in the book area.

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and outcomes for children

Children are developing a good understanding of personal hygiene and are encouraged to wash their hands before eating and after using the toilet. Parents provide their children with a selection of fresh fruits daily which they enjoy eating at snack times. Children have good access to fresh drinking water which they can help themselves to when they are thirsty. Regular access to the outdoors and fresh air fully promote the children's health and well-being.

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and outcomes for children

Children take part in regular fire drills and are gently reminded about safety issues whilst playing. Children's emotional well-being is well nurtured. They learn to share and take turns and are considerate of each other as they build friendships with their peers and share warm and caring relationships with staff. Children know what is expected of them because boundaries are consistently and sensitively applied by caring and supportive staff. 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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