Station Road Pre-School

Station Road Pre-School Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY435393 Inspection date 06/03/2012 Inspector Julie Neal

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Setting address The Beachley Walk Centre, Beachley Walk, BRISTOL, BS11 9PU Telephone number 07757547193 Email stationrdpreschool@hotmail.co.uk 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.

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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

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

Station Road Pre-School was registered at its current premises in 2011, although it has been established since 1971. The setting is run by a voluntary committee. It operates from rooms within the Beachley Walk Community Centre in Shirehampton, Bristol. There are enclosed outdoor areas suitable for children's use.

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Description of the setting

The setting is registered on the Early Years Register, and on the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. A maximum of 24 children under eight years may attend at any one time, all of which may be in the early years age range. There are currently 27 children in the early years age group attending at different times. The setting operates during term times only. Opening times are from 9.15am. to 2.45pm Monday to Thursday, and 9.15am to 11.45am on Fridays.

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Description of the setting

There are five members of staff employed to work with children, all of which have 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's individual needs are met well overall. Strong partnerships contribute to the staff team's good knowledge of each child's requirements. Staff make very effective use of their observations of children to plan activities that are stimulating and challenging. Overall, routines and procedures that keep children safe and secure are good. Self evaluation within the setting is good and results in well focused action plans for future development. The setting demonstrates a strong capacity to make ongoing improvements to achieve and sustain good quality outcomes for children.

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further?

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

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further?

 practise regular evacuation drills with children so that they learn how to conduct themselves safely in the event of an emergency  review how languages used by children are displayed in the setting in order to help children to recognise their home language is fully valued.

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the early years provision

Staff have a good understanding of the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. This is demonstrated in the effective implementation of procedures and This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 routines that help to safeguard children. Staff attend training to keep their safeguarding awareness up to date, and as a result, they are confident in their knowledge of local procedures to report any concerns. Recruitment procedures are robust and there are systems in place to check that staff are suitable to work with children. Risk assessments in the setting are good. These are supported by extremely thorough daily health and safety checks. For example, when the setting is not open, other community groups make use of the premises. Therefore, staff carry out stringent checks of all areas before opening to make sure that all remains suitable for young children's use. All required documentation that supports

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the early years provision

children's welfare is in place and, overall, this is maintained well. Parents have access to all policies and procedures. There are minor weaknesses in some of these. However, the main content is informative and, overall, gives parents a good awareness of how the setting supports children's well-being.

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the early years provision

Good leadership and management results in all staff being actively involved in evaluating the effectiveness of the setting. Weekly team meetings are used most effectively to review progress. For example, staff have comprehensively reviewed the way they monitor children's progress towards the early learning goals. Staff have reorganised routines to allow more time for recording observations of children. They have also developed their systems of involving parents in their children's learning. As a result, children's learning records are extremely good, and include parents' feedback on their child's progress. As part of settling into new premises, there has been a strong focus on making the best use of space and resources to provide children with an interesting and stimulating learning environment. Observations of how children used space were analysed by staff and led to simple changes that resulted in children making better independent use of

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the early years provision

resources. For example, re-organising art and craft equipment has led to an increase in spontaneous creative play, with children making more imaginative use of materials. Current action plans are mainly centred on improving the outdoor areas and children's ideas have actively influenced this. For example, developing a 'bugs habitat' with logs and, and including a den making area.

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the early years provision

Staff promote an inclusive environment where children's individual needs are understood and met very well, overall. Children who have special educational needs and/or disabilities, benefit from the extremely good partnership working with parents, and with other agencies providing individual support. As a result, activities are very well organised to meet the needs of these children. Therefore, they make very good progress in relation to their starting points. Staff develop very good relationships with parents, and as a result, information about individual children is shared well. Staff encourage parents to share information about their home cultures and languages, so that these aspects of their children's lives can be supported in the setting. However, there is little in the setting to show children that their home languages are valued equally with English. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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and outcomes for children

Overall, children's welfare, learning and development are promoted very well. Children of all abilities make very good progress towards the early learning goals, relative to their individual starting points. Activities equip children very well with the skills they need to secure future learning. Children's progress towards the early learning goals is monitored very well. Staff make very good observations of children and these are used well to identify individual achievements and when each child is ready to progress to the next stage. Adult-led activities stem from children's ideas. Staff encourage children to use their skills in helping to plan these. For example, children want to make finger puppets. Staff encourage them to think about the materials they will need. Children help to make a list and talk about how they will go about creating their puppet. Children consider the time needed to complete their task and timetable the activity so they can show their parents what

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and outcomes for children

Children are happy and confident learners. They take pride in developing new skills and using these. For example, children are thoroughly enjoying making models from recycled materials and decorating these. When glitter is spilled across the table, a child remembers how to scoop this up to be reused. The child shows the others how to fold a piece of paper and carefully sweep the glitter onto it so it is easily poured back into the tub; children proudly show staff what they can do. Children are curious and keen to investigate how things work. For example, children explore the patterns they can make with torches to cast shadows, and want to know where the light comes from. Staff encourage them to look at the batteries in the torch; they take these out and see that the light no longer switches on. Children are fascinated to learn that the batteries must be placed a certain way or the torch will not work. Children move freely between indoors and outside as

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and outcomes for children

they play. They are physically active and they use their imaginations very well. For example, a group of children immensely enjoy playing pirates together. They run and leap as they have imaginary sword fights and they explore all areas of the garden as they look for buried treasure. Children use their problem-solving skills well in a variety of projects. For example, children use large blocks to create the shape of aeroplane that is big enough for them to sit inside so they can 'fly to the zoo'. Children carefully construct guttering and adjust it the angle they want, to make water pour through it. Children communicate well and confidently talk about what they have enjoyed doing when they gather together at group time. Overall, children's behaviour is good and they listen well. Occasionally, they become distracted, for instance, being over-eager and interrupting at group time. However, they quickly respond to reminders from staff that everyone will have a turn.

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and outcomes for children

Children's self esteem is good and they benefit from high levels of praise and encouragement from staff. Children receive 'Wow' cards for being kind or helpful, and for individual successes and achievements. Children are extremely proud of these and eagerly show these to parents. This is also a very effective way of letting parents know about special moments as they happen.

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and outcomes for children

Children show a good understanding of the importance of good hygiene routines. For example, children know that even when their hands look clean, they may not This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 be. Children talk about germs that cannot be seen and that washing hands properly helps to stop illnesses spreading. Children enjoy healthy snacks. Mealtimes are used well to encourage sharing and good manners. Children are encouraged to pour their own drinks and to help prepare their snacks. Overall, children demonstrate good safety awareness and recognise potential hazards in their environment. For example, they make sure there are no objects in the way as they prepare to have a race on their bikes and scooters. Fire drills are practised with children. However, these are not organised so that all children have opportunities to take part. Therefore, some children do not have awareness of

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and outcomes for children

what they should do to remain safe if there is a fire. 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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