Great Bentley Pre-School

Great Bentley Pre-School The Village Hall, Plough Road, Great Bentley, COLCHESTER, CO7 8LD

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 18/03/2013 Not Applicable

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early years provision

This inspection: 1 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 1 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 1

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This provision is outstanding

 Children are extremely confident and self-assured as they have excellent relationships with the staff.  The staff use their robust knowledge of the Early Years Foundation Stage to provide children with exciting and innovative activities and experiences, which enhances all aspects of their learning and development.  The staff fully support children to develop a robust understanding of the importance of leading healthy lifestyles through plenty of fresh air and healthy, balanced snacks.  The staff have developed outstanding partnerships with parents, which ensures continuity of care for children in all their routines.  Children's safety is given utmost priority as staff take all the necessary steps to keep children healthy and safe.

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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

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Information about this inspection

 scheduled more frequently where Ofsted identifies a need to do so, for example where provision was previously judged 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 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  scheduled 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 compulsory part 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 in the main hall and the outdoor learning environment.  The inspector held meetings with the two managers and spoke to staff and parents.  The inspector looked at children's assessment records and planning documentation.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector conducted a joint observation with one of the managers of the pre- school.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector checked evidence of suitability and qualifications of staff working with children and the provider's self-evaluation plan.

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Information about the setting

Great Bentley Pre-school re-registered under new ownership in 2012 and is situated in the village of Great Bentley, Essex. It is registered on the Early Years Register and the compulsory part of the Childcare Register. The pre-school operates from a large hall and an enclosed outdoor area within a village hall. It is run as a Community Interest Company. The pre-school serves the local area and is accessible to all children, including wheelchair users.

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Information about the setting

The pre-school is open from 9.15am to 3.30pm, Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday and from 9.15am to 12.15pm on Tuesdays, during term time only. The pre-school provides funded early education for two-, three- and four-year-old children. The pre- school employs 11 members of childcare staff, including the joint managers. Of these seven hold appropriate early years qualifications to level 3.

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

 enhance the book area to create a cosier space for children to sit and enjoy books with an adult or by themselves.

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who attend

Children make consistently high progress in their learning and development as staff demonstrate a first class knowledge of the Early Years Foundation Stage. Regular, meticulous observations on what children can do, enables staff to maintain excellent records of the progress children are making. Staff use this information, as well as children's interests, to guide individualised planning. This ensures that activities and experiences are relevant to children's interests and supports their next steps in their learning and development. This enhances all aspects of children's learning and enables them to make excellent progress in relation to their starting points. Highly comprehensive tracking systems enable staff to identify children who need additional support early on. This allows staff to ensure that all children are able to enjoy and achieve in their learning through activities, which support all children's needs. As a result, children are

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who attend

exceptionally well prepared for school or the next stage in their learning.

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who attend

High quality teaching motivates children to actively contribute to their learning and development. The enthusiastic staff offer children an excellent range of exciting activities, resources and experiences daily. For example, the staff have enrolled in a highly innovative project run by an external company. This allows children to see real chicks cracking open and emerging from their eggs. Once hatched, the children will then have opportunities to handle the chicks. This superb opportunity for children enables them to develop a significantly enhanced understanding of the world around them, and to observe chicks change over the fortnight. Staff use their first class imaginative skills to enhance activities in the pre-school. For example, staff add popcorn to a range of plastic dinosaurs laid out in a large tray. Children quickly discover that banging the dinosaurs makes the popcorn jump. This results in lots of laughter, as they try to see who can make the

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who attend

popcorn jump out of the tray. Children use the popcorn in a variety of ways throughout the session; they move and combine the popcorn with other resources to create new games. For example, some children use the popcorn as ballast for their trucks, and transport it around the room, while other's mix the popcorn with dough to create new textures.

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who attend

Staff support children's language and communication development exceedingly well. They use a range of techniques to help children to learn new words rapidly. For example, they repeat words back to children correctly, which enables them to hear the correct pronunciation. Staff use every opportunity available to them to enhance children's language. For example, as staff support children to learn how to use scissors to cut paper, they use related vocabulary and continually talk to the children about what they are doing.

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who attend

Children learn to develop a love of books as they finish off the session, by sharing story sacks with staff. Children go off in small groups to share their favourite stories, enhanced with the vibrant and exciting props in the story sacks. This supports children's early literacy skills and helps them to develop skills for the next stage in their learning. The pre- school also has a dedicated book area, which provides a quiet area for children to enjoy looking at books, with adults or by themselves. However, there is scope to improve the appearance of the area to encourage children to spend time in it enjoying their favourite books.

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

Children arrive at the pre-school, happy and very eager to begin playing. Time spent talking to the parents at the start of any new care arrangement, enables staff to support new children exceedingly well. This helps them to settle easily into pre-school as they develop excellent bonds with their key person. A buddy system means that children have another adult to support him or her, should their key person be absent. This enables children to form supportive relationships with adults, and enhances their well-being and self-confidence. Children play very well together as staff support their understanding of turn taking and sharing resources effectively. Staff consistently model exceptional social manners, ensuring that they use please and thank you when interacting with the children. This ensures that children's understanding of politeness is exemplary. For example, when a group of children are asked if they would like to play outside, they reply, "No, thank

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

you". Children are well supported learn how to protect themselves in the event of an emergency, as regular fire drills are practised. Staff make clever use of parents who work within the emergency services, and invite them into the pre-school. They arrive with Fire Engines and Police Cars, which enables children to spend time looking at real fire engines and police cars. This also enables the parents to talk to children about stranger danger and fire safety.

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

Meticulous hygiene routines and plenty of fresh air support children's good health and well-being. Children freely access the exciting outdoor space, which means that many of them are outside for long periods of time. An imaginative selection of resources provides a wealth of opportunities for them to develop an understanding of the importance of physical exercise. Children enjoy a range of healthy and nutritious snacks, which includes toast, fruit and raisins from the rolling snack bar. This enables children to recognise when they are hungry and help themselves. Staff ensure that any allergies or cultural dietary preferences are recorded in child record forms, which enables staff to be aware of children's individual dietary needs.

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

The pre-school is located next to the village primary school, which has enabled them to form outstanding links. Children go over to the school weekly, which enables them to become familiar with the school and their new teachers. They also experience playing on the school field, learning how to change into their PE kits and join in with special assemblies. This enables children to become accustomed to the school environments and supports their transition into school.

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provision

The managers have a robust understanding of their responsibilities in meeting the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. Policies are up-to-date, reflecting changes in legislation, as the managers and staff review, and update them as necessary. The change in management structure, as a result of the re-registration of the pre-school has had a positive impact on the quality of the provision. Children are safeguarded exceptionally well, as staff display an excellent understanding of their responsibilities in keeping children safe. Arrangements for recruiting new staff in the pre- school are meticulous, all staff completes thorough background checks and inductions, which ensure that they are suitable to be working with children. Doors into the main hall are locked while children are in the pre-school, which means that only adults known to the pre-school are able to collect children. Internal doors have portable alarms attached

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provision

during the sessions, which means that alarms sound if children open any doors. Comprehensive risk assessment and thorough daily checks of the indoor and outdoor environments, ensures that the setting is safe for the children who attend. This is especially important as the hall is used for public functions outside of pre-school times.

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provision

The managers demonstrate an exceptional understanding of the learning and development requirements. They closely monitor each child's progress in their learning journals and through the various rigorous assessment procedures to ensure that staff are able to support each child appropriately. Comprehensive child record forms enable key persons to get to know their key child exceedingly well. This enables staff to meet each child's learning and development needs and identify any gaps in their learning. The staff have made impressive relationships with a broad range of specialists and professionals. This enables them to seek support when they identify a child with special educational needs and/or disabilities, which enables all children to make consistently high levels of progress in relation to their starting points. The setting has fostered superb partnerships with parents. Parents join in with some of the activities and trips that the pre-school

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provision

organises. For example, children and parents had fun making sausages and taking part in den building challenges at a local farm. Parents enjoy reading the exceptionally well presented learning journals, with a wealth of photographs showing the fun the children have at the pre-school. Parents comment that they feel the pre-school supports all aspects of their children's learning and development and some are extremely grateful for the 'extra mile' they go to help parents in need.

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provision

The manager and staff effectively use self-evaluation to evaluate the setting. They use parental questionnaires and verbal feedback to find out the views of the parents and their children. Staff have opportunities to express their views during staff meetings and appraisals. This means that the setting is able to formulate clear action plans to enhance their already exceptional practice. For example, plans are in place to create a pathway outside the back door, which would provide greater access to the outdoor environment for wheelchair users and for children to push buggies and ride on bicycles.

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The Childcare Register

The requirements for the compulsory 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 action. 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 EY450793 Local authority Essex Inspection number 884126

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 2 - 5 Total number of places 32 Number of children on roll 61 Name of provider Great Bentley Pre School Community Interest Company Date of previous inspection not applicable Telephone number 01206 251315

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Type of provision

set out in the guidance ‘Complaints procedure: 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, which are usually the childminder’s 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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