North Bushey Pre-school

North Bushey Pre-school Highwood Primary School, Bushey Mill Lane, BUSHEY, WD23 2AW

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 11/01/2013 Not Applicable

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early years provision

This inspection: 2 Previous inspection: Not Applicable How well the early years provision meets the needs of the range of children who attend The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children 2 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 2

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This provision is good

 Staff are highly motivated and work exceptionally well together as a team, creating a secure and safe learning environment for children.  Children establish close bonds with their key person and settle happily in the pre-school environment with the support of the kind and caring staff.  Staff value working in partnership with parents and effective relationships between staff and parents ensure children's individual needs are met and a welcoming environment is provided to all.  Staff act as positive role models, helping children to demonstrate kind and considerate behaviour towards each other.  Children are actively engaged in a broad range of activities and play experiences which are developmentally appropriate and which help them to make good progress in their learning.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 The organisation of resources, to encourage children to make independent choices in their play, is not developed to the optimum.  Self-evaluation arrangements do not routinely take into account the views of parents.

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Information about this inspection

Inspections of registered early years provision are scheduled:  at least once in every inspection cycle. The current cycle ends on 31 July 2016  more frequently where Ofsted identifies a need to do so, for example where provision was previously judged as inadequate  brought forward in the inspection cycle where Ofsted has received information that suggests the provision may not be meeting the legal requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage; or where assessment of the provision identifies a need for early inspection  prioritised for inspection where we have received information that the provision is not meeting the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage and which suggests children may not be safe  at the completion of an investigation into failure to comply with the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector observed activities in the indoor and outdoor learning environments.  The inspector held discussions with the registered person, the manager and staff.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at children's assessment records, planning documentation, the self-evaluation form and a range of other documentation, including a selection of policies and children's records.  The inspector took account of the views of parents spoken to on the day.

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Information about the setting

North Bushey Pre-school is privately owned and was registered in 2012 on the Early Years Register. It operates from a purpose built, single storey building set within the grounds of Highwood Primary School in Bushey, Hertfordshire. The setting is accessible to all children and there is a fully enclosed outdoor play area.

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Information about the setting

There are six members of childcare staff, the majority of whom hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 3 or above. This includes the manager who has Early Years Professional Status. North Bushey Pre-School opens Monday to Friday during term times. Morning sessions are from 8.45am to 11.45am with a lunch club that runs until 12.15pm. Afternoon sessions are from 12.15pm to 3.15pm. Children attend for a variety of sessions. There are currently 64 children attending who are in the early years age group. The pre-school provides funded early education for three- and four-year-old children. It supports children who speak English as an additional language and children with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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To further improve the quality of the early years provision the provider should:

 extend opportunities for children's independence to be optimised through reviewing the environment to ensure resources are easily accessible and children can make independent choices in their play

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To further improve the quality of the early years provision the provider should:

 build on self-evaluation by extending how the views of parents are incorporated, to further assist in identifying areas for further enhancement.

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who attend

Children's learning and development needs are promoted well and the quality of the teaching is good. Staff are confident in their approach to children's learning and provide interesting and challenging experiences that meet the development needs of all children. Activities cover the seven areas of learning and staff closely monitor children's learning through regularly observing and assessing children. Individual development books show children's achievements and progress over time. Staff then use this information to identify the next steps in children's learning so they then can effectively plan future play experiences. Consequently, activities and play experiences are planned which identify the developmental needs of individual children to ensure they make good progress in their learning. All children, including those with additional needs or English as an additional language, have their learning needs supported well.

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who attend

Staff are skilled at providing activities that engage children as they are aware of children's interests and build on these. For example, the home corner was made into a hairdressers following the interest shown by some of the children and this has proved a great success. Children use their imaginations as they keenly take it in turns to 'wash and style' each other's hair and then take payment. Their communication and language skills are promoted as they talk about their experiences when they have visited a hairdressers. Staff support children well as they ask questions and effectively engage children in conversation. Children's early literacy skills are also promoted as they are beginning to understand how print carries meaning, such as when they 'book' hair appointments for satisfied customers.

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who attend

Children arrive happy and quickly settle and engage in activities. Overall, children are encouraged to make choices and to develop independence. For example, there is a rolling snack time so children can decide when they want to eat. Children also benefit from regular opportunities to play outside and at times there is a free flow system so children can decide if they play inside or go outside. However, the organisation of the pre-school environment gives children limited opportunities to make choices when selecting resources to fully promote their independence so they become keen and active learners.

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who attend

A key person system is effectively used and key persons establish close relationships with children and their families. This creates security for children which encourages them to be confident in their play and enables them to develop good attitudes to learn effectively. For example, children are encouraged to concentrate and persevere in their learning and this helps to develop the essential skills required to ensure a smooth transition when moving on to school. Positive relationships with parents ensure children's learning needs are met well. Parents are kept fully informed about their children's progress and achievements with children's individual development books regularly shared with them. Parents are also encouraged to be actively engaged in their child's learning through sharing 'wow' moments from home to fully promote children's learning.

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The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children

Children behave well as they are encouraged to take responsibility for themselves as they learn to listen, share, take turns and be kind to others. This results in an environment where children quickly learn what is expected and cooperate with each other. Effective behaviour management strategies teach children how they can play together harmoniously and at the same time learn how share in a productive manner. For example, when children are playing outside staff use a sand timer as a visual indicator to children when their turn on a favourite bike has finished and children happily organise whose turn it is next. Praise and encouragement from staff ensure children develop high levels of self- esteem. Children develop a good understanding of how to behave safely and kindly towards others because staff teach them to be thoughtful and considerate. They offer children reassuring support if they hurt themselves or upset others and this helps children

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The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children

Children learn how to keep themselves safe with gentle reminders from staff, such as talking about why running indoors could result in them falling or tripping and hurting themselves. Children also learn about safety through their play. For example, when playing outside on bikes and sit-on cars they talk about traffic signals and learn that red means stop and green means go. Children demonstrate a strong feeling of security as the effective key person system supports children in developing a sense of belonging and secure attachments away from their parents. This is also beneficial as it helps to ensure children are confident and prepared for their transitions, both within the setting and when moving on to nursery or school.

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The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children

Children's good health is promoted well. They are learning about the importance of personal care routines, such as hand washing before eating, through discussion and the daily routine. Children are offered a variety of nutritious foods at snack time which encourages them to eat a healthy diet. Children develop self-confidence in their physical skills as they participate in a variety of indoor and outdoor activities with an emphasis on fresh air and the importance of exercise. For example, in the outside play area children move with coordination as they keenly participate in an assault course, while inside they improve balance, coordination, and rhythm through dance and movement activities which they thoroughly enjoy.

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provision

The management team are highly motivated and strive to provide a quality service. This is the pre-school's first inspection since registering and the management team have worked extremely hard to ensure all staff have a good understanding of their responsibilities to meet the requirements of the revised Early Years Foundation Stage. They work well together as a team and are all fully focused on the needs of the children. They successfully provide a stimulating, safe environment where children enjoy learning and make good progress.

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provision

Effective recruitment and induction systems ensure staff are suitable and clearly understand their roles and responsibilities. Annual appraisals and regular supervisions are used as ways to closely monitor staff performance. Ongoing professional development is encouraged and all staff undertake regular training. Arrangements for safeguarding children are highly effective and staff have a secure knowledge of how to safeguard children. Children are closely supervised and the premises are secure. Effective staff deployment and the maintenance of the premises and the management of safety systems keep children safe.

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provision

The staff team are committed to the continuous evaluation and improvement of their practice. Although the pre-school has not been in operation for very long, self-evaluation highlights the settings key strengths and the areas they wish to develop further. For example, the pre-school currently have limited access to their outside play area because of building work that is being carried out. However, all of the staff team are enthusiastic about the outdoors and understand the importance of outdoor learning. They have clear plans in place as to how they can maximise play and learning opportunities with the available outside area and this works well to promote children's learning. They also have plans to show how they intend to use the new area to enhance children's learning further once it is ready for use. All of the staff team actively contribute their views and opinions to the evaluation process. However, no systematic process is in place to input parents' views,

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provision

for example, through the use of a parent questionnaire. This means the evaluation process is not yet optimumly effective in driving the highest levels of achievement for all children over a sustained period of time.

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provision

Staff promote effective relationships with parents. Displays, noticeboards, a web site and newsletters are just some of the ways used to keep parents informed. Staff are forthcoming in exchanging information with parents and children quickly settle into the pre-school environment as their individual needs are fully met. Parents spoken to on the day of inspection say staff are friendly and approachable and they are confident that staff know their children well. The pre-school liaises closely with the main school and has begun making links with other local schools to promote the full integration of care and learning and to support children's transition when moving on to school.

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Grade Judgement Description

Grade 1 Outstanding Outstanding provision is highly effective in meeting the needs of all children exceptionally well. This ensures that children are very well prepared for the next stage of their learning. Grade 2 Good Good provision is effective in delivering provision that meets the needs of all children well. This ensures children are ready for the next stage of their learning. Grade 3 Satisfactory Satisfactory provision is performing less well than expectations in one or more of the key areas. It requires improvement in order to be good. Grade 4 Inadequate Provision that is inadequate requires significant improvement and/or enforcement. The provision is failing to give children an acceptable standard of early years education and/or is not meeting the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. It will be inspected again within 12 months of the date of this inspection.

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Grade Judgement Description

Met The provision has no children on roll. The inspection judgement is that the provider continues to meet the requirements for registration. Not Met The provision has no children on roll. The inspection judgement is that the provider does not meet the requirements for registration.

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Inspection

This inspection was carried out by Ofsted under Sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 on the quality and standards of provision that is registered on the Early Years Register. The registered person must ensure that this provision complies with the statutory framework for children’s learning, development and care, known as the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY443089 Local authority Hertfordshire Inspection number 808735

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 5 Total number of places 30 Number of children on roll 64 Name of provider Sarah Louise Purser Date of previous inspection Not applicable Telephone number 0783 4081455

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Type of provision

set out in the guidance ‘raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk.

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Type of provision

For the purposes of this inspection the following definitions apply:

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Type of provision

Full-time provision is that which operates for more than three hours. These are usually known as nurseries, nursery schools and pre-schools and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage. They are registered on the Early Years Register and pay the higher fee for registration.

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Type of provision

Sessional provision operates for more than two hours but does not exceed three hours in any one day. These are usually known as pre-schools, kindergartens or nursery schools and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage. They are registered on the Early Years Register and pay the lower fee for registration.

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Type of provision

Childminders care for one or more children where individual children attend for a period of more than two hours in any one day. They operate from domestic premises that are usually their own home. They are registered on the Early Years Register and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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Type of provision

Out of school provision may be sessional or full-time provision and is delivered before or after school and/or in the summer holidays. They are registered on the Early Years Register and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage. Where children receive their Early Years Foundation Stage in school these providers do not have to deliver the learning and development requirements in full but should complement the experiences children receive in school. 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,

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Type of provision

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Type of provision

T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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