Worthington Pre-School

Worthington Pre-School Worthington Primary School, Main Street, Worthington, ASHBY DE LA ZOUCH, Leicestershire, LE65 1RQ

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 18/02/2013 12/03/2012

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early years provision

This inspection: 2 Previous inspection: 2 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

 The thoughtfully planned playroom creates an enabling environment for children that promotes their independence and engages them in purposeful play. Children benefit from a wide range of play materials to support their learning and development.  Children are motivated and keen to learn in this inclusive and welcoming setting. They demonstrate positive relationships with their peers and staff.  The outdoor child-focused learning environment provides interesting and stimulating activities, which promote physical development well and provide exciting opportunities to learn about nature.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Children are not given consistent opportunities to develop their effective use of tools, with specific reference to their use of cutlery at snack time.  The use of pre-printed sheets sometimes prevents some children from exploring concepts and ideas through their own representations.

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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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Information about this inspection

The provision is also registered on the voluntary and compulsory parts of the Childcare Register. This report includes a judgment about compliance with the requirements of that register.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector observed activities throughout the pre-school in both indoor and outdoor spaces.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at documentation including children's records, learning and development information, staff records and a selection of policies and procedures.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took into account the views of parents through discussion and from written questionnaires sent out by the pre-school.  The inspector spoke to staff and interacted with children throughout the inspection.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke to the manager, deputy and other staff throughout the inspection.

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Information about the setting

Worthington Pre-School was registered in 2002 and is on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. It is a committee managed pre- school situated in purpose built premises within the grounds of Worthington Primary School in Worthington, Leicestershire. The pre-school serves the local area and is accessible to all children. It operates from one main room and there is a fully enclosed area available for outdoor play. The pre-school also have arranged access to the school outdoor facilities.

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Information about the setting

The pre-school employs three members of childcare staff and another staff member who covers during absences. Of these, all hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 2 and 3.

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Information about the setting

The pre-school opens Monday to Friday during term time. Sessions are from 8.30am until 11.30am. Children attend for a variety of sessions. There are currently 12 children attending who are in the early years age group. The nursery provides funded early education for three- and four-year-old children. It supports a number of 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:

 consistently teach children the skills they need to use tools effectively and safely and give them opportunities to practise them, with specific reference to their use of cutlery at snack time

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

 provide children with more opportunities to use their skills and explore concepts and ideas through their own representations.

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who attend

Children are supported by qualified and knowledgeable staff who understand how they learn through a balance of child-initiated and structured activities. Key persons know children well and make the most of opportunities to extend learning through play, discussion and group activities. Partnerships with parents, carers and other professionals are strong. Parent views are valued as they provide initial information about what children can do and play an active role in supporting learning at home. The pre-school liaises effectively with external agencies or services to ensure children receive any additional support they may need. Visual guides and an effective use of non-verbal communication support children in their language development. Planning is based on children's interests to effectively promote their learning and development. As a result, children make good progress given their starting points and are learning the necessary skills in readiness for

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who attend

school. Safety is supported in the secure and thoughtfully planned playroom to create an enabling environment where children move freely. They settle well and are confident to express themselves. During creative activities they fetch crayons and pencils from low- level cupboards to add to felt pens when practising their early writing skills. Older children talk about a current interest in super heroes as they colour on pre-printed sheets. Staff use open-ended questions to encourage children's language development. When asked, children explain that green and brown are used to represent 'army colours' and black so 'they cannot be seen in the dark'. Sometimes children are over reliant on pre-printed sheets, which prevent them from creating their own representations, which they are very able to do when encouraged. A child draws and colours a detailed figure, carefully adding intricate vertical and horizontal lines to represent spider webbing on the clothing. He talks

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who attend

about the circle for its head and ovals for its eyes, opening discussion relating to areas of mathematics. Children are very adapt in their use of tools. Older children have good pencil control, carefully colouring within the lines and cut skilfully with scissors. However, at snack time those who are capable of handling knives are not given the opportunity to spread their own toppings and so are not practising and consolidating these skills consistently.

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who attend

Children join together in the session and answer to an individual greeting during registration. Thinking and language development is effectively promoted as the staff member asks children how many are present and count as she touches individual heads. She asks 'How many fingers is that ?' and older children show the correct number. Adults are then counted and children are asked 'How many people altogether?'. A child counts these on his fingers successfully, combining numbers to reach the correct amount. Children then recite the numbers in French learning about different languages across the world. A chart is completed to depict the day, month and season. As this is the first session after a half-term break information is recorded from two weeks previously. Children know there are seven days in the week so count 14 from the previous date to correctly reach 18. They are asked which two numbers make this and when displayed as

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who attend

81 are asked if this is right. A child is swift to point out that they are 'the wrong way round'. All of these activities show that some children are able to calculate to solve simple problems.

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who attend

Children sound initial letters for days of the week and recognise Monday as the cards are shown. They then phonetically sound all letters of this day and match the card to the corresponding colour on the chart. This demonstrates children's good progress in their literacy skills. Children know it is still winter 'even though the sun is shining today'. During this time individual learning needs are acknowledged and when younger children lose interest they look out of the window with a staff member delighting as birds are observed in the outdoor area.

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who attend

Staff are sensitive to children's thinking and learning when deciding when to interact and when to value the child's independent play. For example, a new child ventures from the security of an adult towards independent play. The staff member respects this but stays close so that when the child has finished her play, she is able to return to the security of a reassuring adult.

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who attend

Physical development is fostered very well. A secure grassed area facilitates free-flow play in dry weather conditions. Access to the school outdoor facilities is agreed when not used by school children and occurs every day. Children know they must not use the large climbing frame unless they are in the rising four's group as they explain 'This is too high for little children'. Children eagerly balance on low-level beams, log stepping stones and a sectional swing bridge. Coordination is enhanced as children carefully step across sections, changing hands to hold onto the next rope supports. Large, static wooden and metal musical instruments are played with beaters and children delight in the different sounds they make. They jump and hop along wiggly patterns set into the playground surface and jump in and out of number and letter grids, which enhances learning while enjoying physical activity. A love of nature is fostered in the fenced secure area where children are

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who attend

closely supervised when observing pond life, planting and tending to home grown produce. Older children relay past experiences of the life cycle from spawn to frogs, observing newts and growing and taking home vegetables including sweetcorn. In open fields at the rear of the school children use observation platforms to view seasonal changes during growing and harvesting times as well as farm animals including horses.

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

Children are supported well in the transition from home to pre-school with settling periods sensitive to their differing needs and those of parents. This can include parents attending with their children until they are confident to leave them. Staff place a sharp focus on helping children to acquire communication and language skills, and on supporting their physical, personal, social and emotional development and children are happy and eager to attend. Care needs are sensitively met as children are valued as individuals. Relationships are fostered well between staff and parents and children and key persons. Staff are good role models. They are deployed well and provide clear guidance for children about what is acceptable behaviour. Praise and acknowledgement of children's efforts builds confidence and self-esteem as children learn to share and take turns, consider the needs of others and build meaningful friendships. Older children display caring attitudes as they help

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

younger children in the pre-school. Children learn about diversity and difference through positive images in resources and wall displays. Planned activities help them to learn about different traditions, customs and beliefs. Children enjoy both indoor and outdoor play to effectively develop their physical abilities.

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

Children are well prepared for the next stage in their learning because staff provide appropriate support to prepare them for their transitions. As part of this, children grow in independence as they learn to do things for themselves. They learn to express their feelings, use good manners and make decisions about their day. For example, they address their own personal needs and are able to put on their own outdoor clothes and footwear. Children know about personal hygiene and why this is important to prevent the spread of germs. They enjoy healthy snacks to maintain their health and discuss the benefits of milk to help build strong bones and teeth. The pre-school is safe, warm and welcoming and children learn to keep themselves safe. They know to walk inside and the rules in the nature area. Discussions take place about safety when out walking, especially road safety. Children's well-being is maintained through clear policies, provided to parents,

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

including about safety, illness and accidents.

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provision

Children's safety is given high priority. The staff and committee are fully aware of their responsibility to ensure the suitability of all staff and to ensure children are never left unsupervised with any person visiting or settling children who has not been subjected to vetting procedures. The pre-school installs a sense of well-being as children are safe and feel safe. This is maintained as all required records and documents are established and consistently reviewed. Policies and procedures support the safe and efficient management of the pre-school. Staff are knowledgeable of their responsibility to safeguard children. Designated staff attend training and ensure others are kept fully informed. Parents are aware of the policy and the Leicestershire Safeguarding Children's Board procedures are accessible to them.

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provision

There are strong partnerships with others who are involved in the care and learning of the children, which ensures that they receive relevant support and consistency to meet specific or identified needs. Partnerships with parents are effective and staff are committed to working together with them to ensure continuity of care and learning for children. They keep them well informed both through written and daily, verbal communication.

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provision

The delivery of the learning and development requirements, including planning and assessment, is monitored effectively by all members of the staff team, who work well together and agree best practice. There is a strong commitment to improve the pre-school through setting targets and action plans. Current priorities for improvement are well targeted to strengthen working practice. These include a continuing review of children's development records and ways in which the grassed area can be used to facilitate continuous free-flow play. The pre-school also wish to offer a full day for those children entering school, including parental provision of lunch, in preparation for the transition. Most children transfer to the school where the pre-school is situated. Links with other schools have been established and the pre-school is looking at ways to prepare children if visits cannot be arranged.

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The Childcare Register

The requirements for the compulsory part of the Childcare Register are Met The requirements for the voluntary part of the Childcare Register are Met

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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 EY222181 Local authority Leicestershire Inspection number 901513

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 20 Number of children on roll 12 Name of provider Worthington Pre-School Group Date of previous inspection 12/03/2012 Telephone number 01530 222319

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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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