Woolston Adventure preschool

The Woolston Centre, Church Road, Southampton, Hampshire, SO19 9FU

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 15/04/2013 12/10/2012

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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

 Children's safety is given priority and safeguarding procedures are robust.  Use of an attractive and stimulating environment together with assessments of children's knowledge and skills, enables staff to effectively plan challenging play and learning opportunities.  Good emphasis is put upon children developing their communication skills because staff use Makaton, to aid children's understanding.  Partnership with parents and other settings is effective in protecting children and in promoting positive learning outcomes.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 The book corner is not frequently used by children because books are not displayed well.  Not all staff are highly skilled when supporting children during their play and learning activities because the monitoring and coaching of staff is not wholly successful.

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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 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 play and learning activities and tracked children, indoors and out.  The inspector undertook a joint observation with the manager.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector had discussions with the manager and nominated person regarding leadership and management with focus on safeguarding children.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at a sample of children's progress records, planning and had discussions with staff relating to safeguarding and welfare.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke to some parents to gain their views of the setting and discussed the parents questionnaire with the manager.

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Information about the setting

Woolston Community Pre-School 1 is one of two sessional pre-schools run by the same voluntary management committee. It registered in 1975 and operates from a refurbished nursery block in a community building in the Woolston area of Southampton. There is a fully enclosed outside area used by all children. Children attend a variety of sessions and live in the local and surrounding areas.

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Information about the setting

The pre-school is registered on the Early Years Register and both the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. There are currently 53 children on roll in the early years age range. The pre-school is open throughout the week, except for Monday mornings, from 9am to 12 noon and from 12.30pm to 3.30pm during school term time. There is also an optional lunch club. The pre-school currently supports children with learning difficulties and/or disabilities and children learning English as an additional language. There are seven members of staff, of whom one holds a relevant Foundation Degree in early years and five hold early years qualifications to level 2 and 3.

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

 strengthen the monitoring and coaching arrangements for staff to ensure practice is consistently good

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

 adapt the book area display to encourage and interest children's use and enjoyment of books.

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who attend

Children display a good attitude to learning, are well-motivated individuals, and make good progress from their starting points. The adults promote all seven areas of learning well, in their planning of play opportunities and learning experiences. This ensures children meet the expected levels of development. Those children identified as needing additional help receive specific support and benefit from the adults who, overall, have a clear understanding of how to support their needs. For example, children understand Makaton and are starting to use this system to communicate. This is particularly evident during the well-planned snack time, where staff introduce new children to the Makaton signs for milk, water and the different snacks. Staff get on the floor with children to play, interact and engage with them at their level, during role play in the home corner. Children are becoming skilled users of the computer, because of the good support they receive from

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who attend

the adults. Although the manager is skilled and very knowledgeable about how best to support children in play, not all staff are as effective. For example, when children notice ants crawling on the floor the adult helps children to put them in a container, but does not extend their learning by looking closely at them and talk about them being alive. Some of the adults promote mathematics well such as when a small group of children are outside digging for worms. They accurately recall how many they have found. Overall, children are developing valuable future skills.

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who attend

Four-year-old's concentrate well at cutting activities in the well-planned creative area using tools and materials, which they handle well. They demonstrate their knowledge of writing their name emergently, in the record book, after selecting a book to take home to share with their parents. Some staff are starting to introduce letters and sounds, when appropriate, during children's spontaneously play activities. The adults often plan fun play activities linked to favourite story books, using actions, story sacs and boards. However, children do not frequently use the book corner to look at favourite stories, but use it for their imaginative play with their friends. This is because the books are stored in piles, on shelves, so the children are unable to see the front cover to ignite their interest. Overall, the adults responsible for key children know them well and have identified their next learning steps, which they implement through the planning system and during freely

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who attend

chosen play. Parents become involved in their children's learning, because there is a very active parents committee and children's' 'learning stories' are shared with parents regularly.

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

Older pre-school children show self-assurance and new children at the setting settle easily. The key person system is well-established, which means that those children in need of a cuddle and reassurance can gain it from their special person. The older children know what is expected of them and show confidence in accessing the play curriculum. Those identified with challenging behaviour receive sympathetic, tailored support because the adult tunes in successfully to their needs. For example, they gain their attention by saying they are going outside, a favourite activity of theirs. Then together they have fun tidying away the bricks.. Children are mostly well-behaved and feel safe and secure in their surroundings. Overall, staff are vigilant regarding children's safety. At hello time, the adult encourages the children to talk about the pre-school rules, by asking questions such as 'what happens if we want a toy?' Children are learning about caring for one another and

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

There is effective emphasis on children playing outdoors, in the fresh air, because staff promote free-flow of indoor and outdoor play. Children demonstrate their good physical skills on scooters in the large, outdoor area. They develop movement skills, while climbing on small apparatus and using soft play shapes. Children understand the importance of hand washing before they eat and staff ensure that new children are given support to follow these routines. Older children independently access the bathroom to use the toilet and wash their hands. Mid-morning children enjoy a sociable snack time, sat together in small groups, where their personal independence is promoted well. They select crackers and spread margarine on them, with cheese and fruit to eat with a drink. Children are well-prepared for their next stage in learning because there are good links with the nearby school. The manager has regular meetings with the school and other early years providers

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

and children access school activities. Children flourish in the enabling play space, with plenty of choice of toys and activities on offer to engage their interest. The spacious, child-friendly environment and well-set up play areas and resources effectively supports children's all round development.

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provision

Arrangements for safeguarding children within the provision are good. Management have a very good knowledge of safeguarding issues and rigorously take action when significant incidents occur and Ofsted is notified, in line with requirements. The inspection took place following the notification of a potential missing child. The inspection found that clear roles and responsibilities are in place for all people involved in the setting. The management and staff team focus well on effective team working, implementing good policies and procedures that promote children's welfare and safety. Underperformance of staff is tackled in a robust manner and new departure systems are trialled to find better ways of safeguarding children. Management follow disciplinary proceedings when adults do not meet their suitable person criteria regarding deputy arrangements. Adults have a secure understanding of the child protection procedure, particularly the child protection officer.

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provision

She is becoming expert in initiating the Common Assessment Framework (CAF) to support vulnerable families in the community. The setting are going through some staff changes under the effective leadership of the committee chairperson and the manager who is relatively new to the post. Newly appointed staff go through a rigorous recruitment procedure; they receive a mentor, and all staff receive regular supervision and appraisals.

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provision

The setting's self-evaluation, overall, is accurate which informs the pre-schools actions for improvements. Evaluations of the settings work is continuous, although with very recent staff changes, management have needed to focus on ensuring staff can carry out their roles effectively. The management see the adults in the setting as their greatest resource and all staff are encouraged to attend training, to extend knowledge and develop skills. Monitoring of the learning and development provision takes place, with the manager introducing a tracking system to ensure children are making progress in all areas of learning. Coaching is offered to staff in completing the children's learning stories accurately and some peer observation takes place. Although this is not wholly successful, in increasing staff skills in how to consistently support and extend children in their play and learning. The partnership forged with parents is strong. Communication is good, and

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provision

helped by home visits prior to children commencing at the setting, conducted by the key person. The adults gain a full picture of children's starting points and can therefore swiftly meet their needs on their first day of pre-school. Parents report positively of the pre- school, with more cross working with parents on learning and development and more communication since the new manager commenced at the setting. Staff have excellent links with external agencies, the local authority and local schools and the community. This means they are able to support children with special education needs and/or disabilities effectively and can swiftly put strategies in place to promote children's welfare.

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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 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 131577 Local authority Southampton Inspection number 911994 Type of provision Sessional provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 2 - 5 Total number of places 26 Number of children on roll 53 Name of provider Woolston Community Pre-School I & II Committee Date of previous inspection 12/10/2012 Telephone number 023 8044 4414

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Setting details

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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