Ladybirds Pre School

Ladybirds Pre School Bunyan Meeting Rooms, High Street Elstow, Bedford, Bedfordshire, MK42 9XP

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 07/06/2013 04/07/2011

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early years provision

This inspection: 3 Previous inspection: 3 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 3 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 3

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This provision is satisfactory

 Children enjoy the outdoors as staff provide different resources, such as milk crates and pipes, to foster their imaginative play.  Children learn about how to manage risks for themselves as they climb slides and construct using large resources. This helps them to learn to keep themselves safe.  All staff have a positive attitude towards ongoing improvement and the management are developing areas to increase the quality of care for children.

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It is not yet good because

 Assessment of children's learning and development is not rigorous because staff do not always encourage parents contributions about children's learning at home.  Organisation of the key person system is not always fully effective in supporting children during times of change. This leads to some children taking a period of time before they settle at the pre-school.  Children's arrival at the pre-school is not well organised. This leads to some children feeling unsettled as they try to leave the pre-school to see their parents.  Resources are not always readily available for children during adult guided activities. This leads children to sometimes become unsure of what they need to do.

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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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Inspection activities

 The inspector observed activities in the main hall and outside areas.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector had discussions with parents, staff and children throughout the inspection.  The inspector undertook a joint observation with the manager.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector sampled a range of documentation including children's records, safeguarding procedures and self-evaluation.

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Information about the setting

Ladybirds Pre-school was registered in 1991 and is run by a voluntary management committee made up of parents. It operates from a church building in Elstow, near Bedford. The pre-school is accessible to all children and they have access to the enclosed outdoor play area. The pre-school provides funded early education for three- and four- year-olds. It is open each weekday, except for Thursdays, during term-time only and sessions are from 9am to 11.30am and from 12.15pm to 2.45pm, with the option of a lunch club between these sessions. Children may attend for a variety of sessions.

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Information about the setting

The pre-school is registered on the Early Years Register and there are currently 38 children on roll in the early years age range. The pre-school serves a wide catchment area. It currently supports a number of children who speak English as an additional language. The pre-school employs six members of childcare staff, an administrator and a lunchtime supervisor. Of these, five hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 3 and one at level 2. The pre-school receives support from the local authority.

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must:

 improve the two-way flow of information with parents; to shape learning experiences for children and to inform progress and assessment

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must:

 improve staff deployment so that key people are used effectively to support children at all times, for example when they experience changes in their personal needs.

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

 review the routine at the start of the day to make sure that children separate from parents calmly to help them feel secure so that they settle easily on arrival

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

 organise adult led activities to make sure that all resources are available for children to prevent them becoming unsure of what to do.

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who attend

Staff plan activities that children generally enjoy. There is a range of activities available for children inside and outside the pre-school. In the garden, children work together to dig in the sand and find dinosaurs. Staff support this activity by encouraging children's mathematical learning as they discuss size, shape and patterns. Adult led activities help children to develop their speech and language as staff use descriptive terms to talk about the ingredients children mix together as they make dough. This helps children to suitably increase their vocabulary. Staff appropriately help children who learn English as an additional language by working with parents and modelling basic English. This helps children to understand simple instructions as they follow the daily routine. Visual signs help children to learn about food they will eat at snack time. The labelling of these foods supports children's early reading, as they begin to associate the picture with the word.

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who attend

Children enjoy listening to stories in small and large groups. Their enjoyment of this and concentration supports their developing readiness for school.

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who attend

Children make some choices about what they play with. In the home corner, children play with real life kitchen utensils and dolls as they role play families. They move the toys and equipment around the room as their play unfolds. Children have less flexibility in choosing resources when they join in with adult-led activities. This is because staff do not always fully prepare beforehand. For example, children wait periods of time while they use one spoon between them. As staff respond to children's requests for more spoons and ingredients, children become unsure of what they need to do. This leads to some children becoming upset.

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who attend

Children enjoy playing in the garden and use creative resources, such as milk crates, large reels and pipes imaginatively. The range of different resources allows them to use their imagination as they pretend to be fire fighters and enjoy moving equipment around. Children develop their large muscles by climbing and balancing. They sit on see-saws three at a time and watch what happens when one child gets off. This helps them to understand cause and effect. Children cycle bikes with increasing skill as they negotiate the playground and others. This helps them to gain spatial awareness and confidence in their actions. Children practise their writing skills in the garden by writing on laminated sheets using pens to develop the small muscles in their hands.

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who attend

Staff observe children at play and make basic assessments of children's progress. They share these with parents during parents' evenings and drop in sessions. Therefore, parents can continue children's learning at home. However, there are no systems for consistently gaining information from parents about children's learning. This means that staff cannot consistently build upon children's prior learning and assessments lack rigor and accuracy. This means that children's learning is not always fully supported.

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

Staff welcome parents into the pre-school each morning. However, registration and organisation of this time does not always help children to separate from parents with confidence. For example, while staff talk with parents children sometimes become anxious and leave the room to look for their departing parents. Although there is no risk to their safety as further staff supervise the main gate, this unsettles children as they go after their parents who are leaving the building. Furthermore, organisation of key people is not always effective as they are not always available to support individual children. For example, some children become distressed at times when they have changes in their personal needs, such as toilet training. The inconsistency of key person involvement at this time means that children do not feel confident in expressing their needs. Parents share information about children's care. Staff follow their wishes, such as allowing children

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

to use comforters until they settle. Children mostly feel secure because staff work with their parents to find out some information about their likes and dislikes and previous experiences.

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

Children are beginning to manage risks for themselves and learn about safety. Staff encourage them to take responsibility in hot weather by finding themselves a hat before they play outside. Staff supervise children as they climb the steps of slides, negotiating the top as they move into a sitting position. Children build towers and climb on milk crates as they try out their balance picking themselves up when they fall. When children bump into each other on their bikes they are able to resolve the situation for themselves. Therefore, children are developing independent skills that help them to feel confident and capable.

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

Staff suitably encourage children to learn about healthy lifestyles by eating healthy food. At lunchtimes staff explain they must eat their sandwiches first as they learn some foods are treats. Children sufficiently manage their own personal needs as they use toilets and wash their hands by themselves. Staff help those who are not yet able, encouraging them to help dress themselves and hold their hands under the running water. This helps children to recognise their own needs and begin to understand about good hygiene.

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

Children follow basic rules and know the structure of the day. Staff help them to anticipate change by giving them warning about changing events, such as home time and lunch time. This helps children to generally feel secure and behave well. Staff also support children to prepare for bigger changes, such as starting school. Teachers attend the pre- school to meet children and staff discuss their learning to ensure the transition to school is smooth.

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provision

Staff follow policies and procedures that help them to maintain a safe environment for children. When the pre-school recruit new staff they carry out appropriate checks to determine the suitability of staff to work with children. The induction period helps staff to be aware of their roles and responsibilities. Therefore, staff know how to identify signs and symptoms that may cause them concern about children's welfare. The designated safeguarding officer knows the action to take to pass on any concerns. Regular checks of the environments where children play, and appropriate staff to children ratios keep children safe at the pre-school. When staff administer medication to children they follow clear procedures to ensure they give the correct dose. Recording of this is accurate to provide information for parents and maintain children's good health.

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provision

The pre-school carries out self-evaluation to review the care they provide for children. Close partnership working with local authority advisors supports staff to reasonably identify strengths and weaker areas. The pre-school gathers the views of parents via questionnaires and discussions. Parents play an active role in the organisation of the pre- school as they have opportunity to join the management committee. All staff have a positive attitude towards improvement. For example, the manager attends other provisions to observe their practice and adopt relevant aspects to improve upon the quality of care they provide for children. Recommendations from the previous inspection have been satisfactorily addressed demonstrating that the pre-school are willing to maintain positive improvement for the benefit of children.

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provision

Staff work together in a supportive team. Regular peer to peer reviews and appraisals help to identify training needs. This means that staff develop professionally and are able to increase their knowledge and skills. There are measures in place to tackle under performance helping to make sure that children receive generally good support. Staff have an understanding of how to help children make steady progress. They observe children and begin to assess their progress, although this is not fully accurate as it does not reflect children's prior learning experiences. The manager considers how she will use staff assessments of children's development to complete the progress check at age two. The pre-school have decided upon a format they will use and plan to work with parents to agree the most appropriate time for this. Staff work alongside others who provide care and support for children, such as the Child Development Centre. Relationships with local

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provision

schools and other providers help staff to provide appropriate care for children that meets their needs and prepares them for their next stage in learning. Consequently, parents are happy with the care the pre-school provide.

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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 219245 Local authority Bedford Borough Inspection number 876319

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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 38 Name of provider Elstow Pre School Committee Date of previous inspection 04/07/2011 Telephone number 07748 796051

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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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