Jack & Jill Pre-School

Jack & Jill Pre-School Old Hall Road, Old Hall, Warrington, Cheshire, WA5 9PA

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 17/07/2013 23/02/2012

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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

 Staff plan a wide range of activities to extend children's experiences. They plan a fun and interesting play and learning environment in which children make steady progress in their learning.  Children show they feel safe and have warm relationships as they look to staff for support and comfort.  Staff work closely with local schools to help prepare children for their move to school.

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It is not yet good because

 The record of children's progress check at age two is not shared with parents to inform and involve them in the care and learning of children.  Required records regarding staff qualifications and when and who obtained Disclosure and Barring Service checks are not always held for all staff to help demonstrate they are deployed appropriately.  The key persons of younger children are not always fully involved in planning for their key children to help them have an accurate understanding of each child's next steps.  Staff do not always make the best use of opportunities to engage young children in conversations to help further enhance their understanding and speaking skills.

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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 activities in the main playroom and the outdoor area.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector held meetings with the manager and had discussions with the provider and staff.  The inspector looked at children's assessment records and planning documentation.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector checked evidence of suitability and qualifications of staff working with children.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took account of the views of parents, carers and children talked to on the day.

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Information about the setting

Jack and Jill Pre-School was registered in 1984 on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. It is situated in Bewsey Barns Community Centre in the Old Hall area of Warrington and is managed by the Jack and Jill Pre-school Committee. The nursery serves the local area and is accessible to all children. Children have access to a large community room, an enclosed outdoor play area and associated facilities.

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Information about the setting

The pre-school nursery employs seven members of childcare staff. Of these, four hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 3 and one at level 2. The pre-school is open term time only from 9am to 11.30am and 12.30pm to 3pm on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday and from 9am to 11.30am on Tuesday. Children attend for a variety of sessions.

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Information about the setting

There are currently 70 children attending, who are all in the early years age group. The pre-school provides funded early education for three- and four-year-old children. It supports a number of children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. The pre- school is a member of the Pre-School Learning Alliance and receives support from the local authority.

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must:

 provide parents with a short written summary of children's progress when they are aged between two and three to build positive partnerships in promoting children's learning

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must:

 have effective systems in place to record information about staff qualifications and the identity checks and vetting processes that have been completed for all staff, including the date the Disclosure and Barring Service check was obtained and details of who obtained it, to enable effective monitoring of staff deployment.

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

 enhance the key person's role in planning activities for younger children to ensure plans are well-targeted to meet each child's individual needs and plan for the next stage in their learning to help them make the most of their learning opportunities

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

 enhance the development of younger children's understanding and speaking skills, by, for example, making the most of appropriate opportunities to engage them in conversations about what they see, hear, think and feel.

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who attend

Children enter the pre-school confidently as they are warmly welcomed by staff. Staff use a range of sound teaching techniques to engage children in play and learning. They talk with children about what is available to play with and encourage them to make choices in their play. Staff plan a wide range of fun and interesting activities covering all areas of learning for children to choose from. Overall, children show confidence and independence as they choose what they want to play with.

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who attend

Planning and assessment of children's learning is sound overall and helps staff understand children's steady progress towards the early learning goals. However, procedures differ for different groups of children. Older children's progress is regularly assessed by their key person. This helps them get to know what children can do and helps them plan effectively for the next stage in their learning and their move to school. However, ways to assess younger children's progress are still being developed and are less rigorous and less consistent. Best use is not always made of what staff know about younger children to plan for the next stage in their learning. The planning and assessment of younger children's learning is shared between different staff members. Staff meet weekly to share what they know about children. This helps them guide younger children to toys and activities they enjoy. However, it does not always effectively help staff to provide appropriate challenges

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who attend

for children to help them make the most of their learning opportunities. Staff talk to parents about their child's progress and share some assessments of their child's learning to help inform and involve them in their child's learning.

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who attend

Children enjoy listening to stories as staff split children into two small groups. Staff make the story fun by using playful expressions and voices. Overall, children are developing sound communication skills. However, some younger children move quickly between self- chosen activities and engage only briefly in conversations with staff or other children. Staff notice when younger children are not fully engaged and gently suggest other activities they may wish to choose. However, they do not always effectively use these opportunities to engage children in conversation or offer opportunities for them to practise their developing speaking skills. Older children are confident talkers. They eagerly talk to friends in play, sharing ideas and listening to each other in conversations. They are confident to talk in small groups and proudly take part in the practise for the end of term production. Older children's literacy skills are effectively developed by staff, who follow a

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who attend

phonics programme. Staff clearly link letters and sounds in fun activities. For instance, staff and children wave their arm to represent a slithering snake for the letter 's' or hold their fingers to their mouths to feel the effects of saying 'p' correctly.

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who attend

Children's counting skills are promoted as staff count in play and planned activities. Staff make learning fun. They play a game where they stand on numbered tiles to escape the dangers of an imaginary shark. Children squeal with delight as they successfully stand on a tile in safety. Staff hold up the tile and children call out the correct number demonstrating good recognition of numbers. Younger children learn about size as they play with different sized toys and puzzles. Staff regularly use gestures to demonstrate 'big' or small'. They count to three before they start activities to extend children's fun and understanding of counting.

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

Children form warm relationships with staff as they create a welcoming, accessible play and learning environment for them. The key person system is strong for older children. Staff get to know children well by regularly assessing their progress and sharing written comments with parents. However, it is weaker for younger children as staff do not regularly assess their progress and therefore, do not have as secure a knowledge of their key children. Older children are very well supported in their transition to school. Staff arrange visits from and to the local school and liaise closely with other schools and settings children may also attend. This helps prepare children emotionally for the move to school and helps to provide continuity for them.

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

Children demonstrate they feel safe as they talk comfortably with staff. They ask for help when they cannot find their bear to take to the teddy bear's picnic or if they need help in using scissors. Children learn to take safe risks as staff are supportive and encourage them to safely test their physical skills. For instance, children develop a jumping game on the outdoor play equipment. They walk carefully across the balancing beam, reach the top and then jump off. Some children do so confidently and are praised appropriately by staff. Staff support less confident children to jump by being near and encouraging them. They offer a hand of support to develop children's confidence. At first some children hold hands with staff as they tentatively jump off. By the end of the game, they jump independently, much to their delight. Staff manage children's behaviour well. They offer clear explanations to children about why some behaviour is unacceptable and help them learn

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

to manage their feelings by offering support and comfort. Consequently, children play well together.

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

Children learn about healthy choices and hygiene as staff encourage them to follow good hygiene routines. Older children competently use the bathroom, remembering to use soap and dry their hands as they are gently encouraged to by staff and see posters displayed nearby to remind them. Staff sit with children as they eat their pack lunches, making mealtimes a pleasant and social event. All children demonstrate a sense of belonging as they know to wash hands before sitting down for their morning snack.

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provision

The provider and managers have revised the safeguarding policy in line with requirements to help protect children. The policy includes the appropriate use of mobile telephones and the reporting on any inappropriate behaviour of staff to help ensure children's safety. Procedures are in place to ensure staff have appropriate qualifications and are appropriately vetted. However, not all required records are held and complete. For instance, a record of each staff member's qualification is not always held on-site and the record of the Disclosure and Barring Service check does not always include all the required information, such as when it was obtained and who obtained it. This is a breach in requirements and does not demonstrate that staff are deployed appropriately. Recruitment and induction procedures effectively help staff and volunteers understand their role and responsibility to implement the pre-school's policies. This includes implementing the

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provision

safeguarding policy and ensuring any risks are properly assessed to help ensure children's safety. They do this by completing risks assessments and ensuring all risks are minimised and any accidents are recorded and monitored.

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provision

The provider and managers have a sound understanding of their responsibility to monitor the learning and development requirements. They work together with staff to review and improve how they plan for and monitor children's learning progress. Systems to plan for and monitor older children's learning are well established and effective. Younger children's learning is less well planned for. Staff complete progress checks on each child's development at age two. However, parents do not receive a written summary of their child's development. This is a breach in requirements and weakens, the otherwise, sound partnership with parents in planning for children's learning.

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provision

The provider and managers have worked closely with the local authority to work towards their quality award. They have used this process to evaluate their practice and have effectively addressed actions raised at the previous inspection. This helps ensure all required information and consents are obtained from parents to help ensure children's health and safety. The management committee is supportive. They are beginning to develop plans for further improvements and have accurately identified areas for further development. These include further training on staff recruitment and closer involvement of parents. They work very closely with local schools to help them evaluate their practice and plan effective transitions for children. They liaise appropriately with external agencies, such as speech and language services, to ensure each child's individual needs are planned for in partnership with parents and other professionals.

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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 315225 Local authority Warrington Inspection number 915333

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 35 Number of children on roll 70 Name of provider Jack and Jill Pre-School Committee Date of previous inspection 23/02/2012 Telephone number 07761 906697

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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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