Play Place Building Blocks Pre School

Building Blocks Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY429584 Inspection date 01/12/2011 Inspector Denys Rasmussen

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Setting address St. Barnabus Church, 69 Higher Drive, PURLEY, Surrey, CR8 2HR Telephone number 07985771045 Email hennischris@aol.com 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

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

Building Blocks registered in 2011. It is one of six settings owned and managed by Play Place Childcare Services Limited, which offers a range of day care services within Croydon and Bromley. Building Blocks operates from a large hall to the rear of St. Barnabus Church, Purley in the London Borough of Croydon. There are also separate toilet facilities and a kitchen. There is a secure garden for children to play outdoors. The pre-school is registered on the Early Years Register for a maximum of 32 children, of which 12 may be aged from two years. There are 35 children in the early years age range currently on roll. The pre-school operates from Monday to Friday, 9.30am to 3.00pm, term-time only. They presently offer morning sessions, with a midday lunch club. They intend to offer the afternoon session later in the year. The group supports children who speak English as an additional language. There are six members of staff working with the children. All have

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Description of the setting

appropriate early years qualifications. The pre-school receives support from an early years adviser from Croydon 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

The motivated and enthusiastic leadership has developed effective self-evaluation systems. This means areas for improvement are quickly identified and prioritised to enable continuous development of the pre-school. The staff value and respect all children and their families, successfully promoting children's welfare, learning and development. Overall, the pre-school provides an inclusive environment with stimulating and engaging activities. The good relationships fostered with the parents enables children's individual needs to be well understood. This supports all children to make good progress in relation to their starting points.

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further?

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

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further?

 develop children's awareness of communication systems such as signing and display lists of words from different home languages, inviting parents and other adults to contribute.

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the early years provision

There is a strong emphasis on safeguarding children. The robust policies and procedures are clearly understood by staff and parents and reflect the good practice. Children are protected because they are cared for by suitably qualified staff who have been appropriately vetted. Designated staff fully understand their This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 responsibilities and the procedures to follow if they were concerned about a child's welfare. All the required records are well maintained and the pre-school is well organised with effectively deployed staff. Staff work well together as a team. They share tasks and responsibilities to ensure that the pre-school runs smoothly and that children have appropriate adult support. The pre-school is well resourced with good quality equipment and play resources and exudes a professional, safe and caring atmosphere. The reflective self-evaluation enables the pre-school to

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the early years provision

continually improve their practice. Feedback from parents, children and the local authority is used to inform the self-evaluation helping the group to be more responsive to the needs of it's users. For example, parents wanted more daily communication about what their children are doing at pre-school. The staff have ordered a digital photo frame. This means parents can see a slide show of what their children do at pre-school at the end of each session. The pre-school have made improvements since registering such as introducing a snack bar, designating a drinking water area and developing their displays to include cultural events.

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the early years provision

The pre-school have been developing their resources and practice to actively promote equality of opportunity. There are rich displays depicting significant cultural events such as Mardi Gras, Wesak, Hanukkah, Eid-ul-fitr and Christmas. The children use skin tone pencils to enable them to portray themselves accurately. The staff are careful not to gender stereotype activities and equipment enabling all the children to participate happily. Themes such as 'all about me' help children to value each other and embrace diversity, sharing significant people and events with each other. Children with English as an additional language are well supported. The staff find out words in the child's home language and pronounce them correctly because the parent shows them how. Numerals are written in English and French; however, there are no other words displayed in home languages except for a 'hello' poster on the door. Communication is well supported

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the early years provision

through the use of visual aids; however, children have not as yet been introduced to signing. The manager is aware of the need to build effective partnerships with other providers when children attend other settings and has started to build links with local primary schools in preparation for this. Parents receive comprehensive information about all aspects of the pre-school. This is through newsletters, parents' notice boards and regular coffee mornings where they share information about their child's progress and agree on the child's future learning. Parents are 'very happy' with the pre-school and comment on the 'friendly and approachable staff'. They report that the 'consistent routines and structure' of the pre-school is 'good preparation for school'. They appreciate their suggestions being taken 'on board' and report their children are 'eager to attend' and have 'noticeably progressed'.

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and outcomes for children

From the start, the pre-school fosters extremely positive relationships with parents, encouraging them to share information about their child's needs, interests and skills. Along with very detailed and sensitive observations, the staff use this information to plan a good range of practical and engaging activities. This This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 encourages children to settle quickly and take a keen interest in their learning. Caring relationships are evident and children are confident and self-assured. Children make choices in their play and the free flow of movement between indoors and outdoors mean children widen their learning experiences and grow in independence. Children learn self-help skills when they put on their coat independently after deciding to go outdoors and pour their own drinks. They are kind to their friends and compliment their work. Children behave extremely well

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and outcomes for children

because of the realistic boundaries and skilful interaction of the staff. Children are involved in activities to raise their awareness of their own safety. For example, they learn about firework safety and regularly practise fire evacuation. Fresh air and exercise are an important part of the children's daily routine along with healthy snacks, encouraging healthy habits. The children are encouraged to adopt good personal hygiene routines such as washing their hands appropriately and putting dirty tissues in the bin.

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and outcomes for children

Children are happy, enthusiastic and eager to play with their friends and participate freely in the good variety of play opportunities on offer. Children engage in exciting role play experiences to increase their understanding of the world. For example, they wear hard hats and high-visibility jackets when digging with their tools in the garden. They discover nature when looking under a log in the garden with their magnifying glasses. They use writing for a variety of purposes when they tick off the bugs they find on their chart. Children take great pleasure in looking at books and listening to stories, cuddling up to staff reading the story. Children recognise their name when self-registering and are confident mark makers, some children can write their own name. They learn about size, shape and measure through good practical activities and sort, sequence and match with confidence. They use size language to describe and compare when building

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and outcomes for children

towers with construction bricks and experiment by filling the scales with pasta until they balance. Children play imaginatively making up their own games which others want to join. For example, pretending they are dogs that keep escaping and making a musical band with the drum, xylophone and microphone. Children thoroughly enjoy their time at the pre-school where the skills they need to secure future learning are well supported. 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 3 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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