Fobbing Village Pre-School

Fobbing Village Pre-School Gardner Hall Fobbing, Wharf Road, Fobbing, Essex, SS17 9JP

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 23/05/2013 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

 Children are happy and settled as they develop warm and trusting relationships with their key person and other pre-school staff.  The indoor and outdoor child-focused learning environments provide interesting and challenging activities that engage children to support their learning and development. Children benefit from a wide range of toys, books and equipment which build on their interests and stimulate curiosity.  Staff keep meticulous records and effectively track children's development, helping to accurately assess their progress and move them forward in their learning.  Partnerships with parents and external agencies are a key strength and highly effective in making sure that appropriate interventions are secured and all children receive the support they need.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Professional supervision of staff is not yet embedded to ensure an astute and targeted programme of continuous professional development.  Opportunities for children to learn about differences and similarities between people in society are not maximised.

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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 playroom and garden area.  The inspector spoke with the staff and children.  The inspector took account of parents' views by speaking to them on the day.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at policies and procedures, risk assessments, children's progress records, and all relevant documentation.

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Information about the setting

Fobbing Village Pre-school was registered in 2012 on the Early Years Register and the compulsory part of the Childcare Register. It is situated in the village hall in Fobbing, Essex, is privately owned and managed by a committee. The pre-school serves the local community and surrounding areas. There is a fully enclosed area available for outdoor play and children use the paddock at the rear of the hall for regular outings.

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Information about the setting

The pre-school employs three members of childcare staff, two of whom hold appropriate early years qualifications. The pre-school opens on Monday from 8.30am until 2.30pm and Wednesday, Thursday and Friday from 8.30am until 11.30am. Children attend for a variety of sessions. There are currently eight 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 receives support from the local authority.

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

 enhance supervision of staff to ensure there is an astute and targeted programme of continuous professional development, for example by carrying out focused evaluations of staff practice

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

 provide more opportunities for children to learn about the differences and similarities between people in society to help them to further respect and value diversity, for example by extending the range of resources.

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who attend

Children make good progress at the pre-school because staff have a secure knowledge and understanding of how to promote their learning and development. They have a good understanding of the Statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage and activities are well planned to cover all the seven areas of learning both indoors and outdoors. Staff ensure that parents contribute to the assessment of children's starting points on entry to the pre-school through the completion of detailed questionnaires. This enables staff to accurately assess and track children's progress from the beginning. Staff engage with parents face-to-face on a daily basis to discuss children's progress. Learning journals are produced for each individual child and contain observations, photographs, assessments and plans for next steps, which are linked to all areas of learning. The key person system ensures that staff use effective, targeted strategies and interventions to

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who attend

support learning that meet children's individual needs. Staff liaise with parents and other professionals, such as the area special educational needs coordinator, speech and language therapists and portage staff to ensure that children's individual needs are appropriately and successfully met. Planning for children's progress is regularly discussed at staff meetings to ensure the needs of all children are incorporated. Planning also takes account of individual children's interests. For example, photographs of building sites are taken and included in scrapbooks and displays, and hard hats, goggles and tools are provided to support children's fascination with construction works. This supports children's understanding of the world which is extended as they use binoculars to see construction works in the distance beyond the garden.

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who attend

The quality of teaching is good as staff engage children in active learning. Staff are skilled in supporting children's imagination and curiosity. For example, children are excited to find out what surprise is in store for them when staff produce a new resource. Their curiosity is stimulated as they unpack a new cardboard playhouse and are keen to help with its construction. Staff show and explain the instruction leaflet as they work as a team to put the house together. This supports mathematical development through problem solving and matching of parts. Children say, 'I'll do the roof' as they learn to take turns and share in the project. They decorate the house with their own designs and draw a picture of 'mummy' on the outside. Children's imagination is stimulated when they dress up as postmen and post letters into the letter box. These activities support children's development in a number of learning areas, such as personal, social and emotional

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who attend

Children enjoy role play as they pretend to be decorators and paint the garden fences and paving stones with water. They learn mathematical concepts as staff ask them about rough and smooth surfaces and compare the shapes of paving stones and hoops they are using. Children's use of language is supported as they say they are going to, 'do some work' and are provided with resources to make a, 'to do list'. Children run around in the garden looking for snails after a hailstorm. They examine the tiny pieces of ice left behind and watch them melt in the sun. Children's understanding of the world is promoted as staff ask them open-ended questions about the qualities of the sun and how it helps them. However, activities and experiences provided for children to learn about the differences and similarities between people are not extensive and do not extend or fully support children to learn to respect and value the diversities in society. Children are well prepared

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who attend

for school or their next stage of learning as staff are experienced in promoting children's pre-reading, pre-writing and pre-mathematical skills, and they work closely with local nurseries and schools to ensure a consistent approach.

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

The effective key person system supports children to make attachments and form strong relationships with staff. Staff visit children at home prior to their entry to pre-school which helps them to settle quickly. Children move confidently between the indoor and outdoor spaces and select from a wide variety of accessible activities that meet all the areas of learning. Children behave well in the pre-school which demonstrates that they feel safe and are fully engaged in their learning. Safety is a high priority and staff ensure that all external doors and gates are securely locked at all times when the children are present. Secure high fencing has been erected to ensure that children who climb cannot gain access to the outside or risk falling. A safety gate prevents children's access to the kitchen so they learn about not accessing dangerous areas. Risk assessments are carried out on all parts of the pre-school on a daily basis and fire evacuation procedures are practised

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

regularly so that staff and children know how to react in an emergency situation. Children are well supervised in the pre-school and staff join in with children's play and support them in developing their chosen activities. Staff allow children to take well-supervised risks in their play, when climbing and making discoveries, which gives them confidence and an understanding of how to keep themselves safe to prepare them for future challenges.

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

Children learn to be independent as they manage their own personal care needs, appropriate to their stage of development. They wash their hands after visiting the toilet, after messy play, and before eating, thus developing good hygiene practices. Children put on their own dressing-up clothes, overalls for painting and coats for outside play. They are encouraged to cut up their own fruit and pour their own drinks, therefore learning skills for the future. Healthy eating is promoted in the pre-school as children are provided with fruit, milk and water for snacks. Children benefit from regular fresh air and exercise in the imaginatively resourced garden and they are taken into the paddock beyond the garden to explore the natural environment. This area is risk assessed prior to each outing to ensure it is a safe area for the children to play. Children are physically active in all areas of the pre-school as they move to music and rhymes inside, or climb on the climbing frame

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

Staff provide a welcoming environment and children are free to choose from the well- organised, stimulating and accessible resources available. Children are made to feel welcome in the pre-school as a named place is made available for their belongings which they have decorated themselves. There is a 'being kind book' where children can add stickers for being especially kind to other children and staff. This helps children learn to think of others and gives them a sense of responsibility.

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

Children take pride in their work because staff offer praise for their achievements. For example, when children mix colours when painting staff point out the new colour they have made and enthusiastically congratulate them. Their self-esteem is promoted when they proudly show parents their creations. Staff have established good links with other early years professionals and teaching staff at local schools and nurseries. Consequently, children starting full-time education are supported well to ensure a smooth transition.

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provision

Staff of the pre-school get to know the children and their families well. They carry out frequent observations and assessments of children to identify the next steps in their learning and development. They use a local authority tracking chart and the guidance document, 'Development matters in the Early Years Foundation Stage' to track children's progress. Learning journals and scrapbooks are produced and shared with parents to inform them of children's progress and support their development at home. Safeguarding procedures are good because staff have undertaken appropriate training and fully understand their responsibilities. Policies and procedures are clearly written and available for parents to see at all times. Partnerships with parents are strong and good quality information is provided through daily contact and helpful visual displays. Parents express gratitude to staff for the support they and their families receive and they speak very highly

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provision

of the pre-school and recommend it to their friends.

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provision

Staff work well together as a team and they support and complement each other in their roles. They have a good understanding of the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage and approach their work with energy and enthusiasm. The staff team are supported by a committee of volunteers from the local community who oversee the running of the pre-school. Robust recruitment procedures are in place and ensure all staff are thoroughly vetted before they start work. Students and apprentices are fully supported, supervised and mentored by staff which ensures they are not left alone with children until they become qualified. There are systems in place for supervision and appraisal and for necessary staff training. However, there is not yet an embedded system to ensure a targeted programme of continuous professional development for staff, for example evaluation of staff practice is not fully

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provision

Self-evaluation takes into account the views of parents through questionnaires and verbal feedback. Staff contribute their views at team meetings and children's interests are taken into consideration when planning for improvements. Senior staff are very experienced in working in early years settings and they have a clear vision of the improvements they want to make to the pre-school. Improvements have already begun, for example, outside fencing has been improved to ensure that children who climb are not exposed to danger, and storage facilities have been improved to enable a wider range of resources to be provided. Secure partnerships are formed with other settings and specialist professionals to support children's individual needs. This ensures that early support is obtained for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities so they make good progress. Effective partnerships are also formed with local schools so that children transfer

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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 EY453704 Local authority Thurrock Inspection number 894828

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 2 - 5 Total number of places 26 Number of children on roll 8 Name of provider Teresa Mary Smith Date of previous inspection not applicable Telephone number 07581833905

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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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