Great Expectations Pre-School

Great Expectations Pre-School 32-40 Grange Road, MIDDLESBROUGH, Cleveland, TS1 5AU

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 06/08/2013 23/04/2012

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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

 Staff provide an exciting range of stimulating activities and good quality, effective teaching. This means that children's needs and interests are met and they make very good progress.  The experienced staff's caring and sensitive manner helps children form secure emotional attachments and develops their confidence. This builds a strong and secure base for children's increasing independence.  There are strong partnerships with parents and other people involved in the care of the children, which effectively ensures each child's individual needs are known and met.  Accurate and focused self-evaluation promotes continuous development, and ensures improvements are made in areas where they are most needed.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Resources that help children to seek to acquire basic skills in operating domestic equipment, such as torches and cameras, are not always fully reflected in the room for two- to three-year-old children.

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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 playrooms and outdoor area.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke with the staff at appropriate times throughout the inspection, carried out observations and discussed the activities and children's individual capabilities with them.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector carried out a joint observation with the manager, which involved children and staff.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at children's records, assessment documents, policies and procedures.

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Information about the setting

Great Expectations Pre-School was registered in 2007 on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. It is situated in a two-storey converted building in the centre of Middlesbrough, and is owned by a sole director. The pre-school serves the local area and is accessible to all children. It operates from four playrooms and a dining room and there is a fully enclosed area available for outdoor play. The pre-school employs 16 members of childcare staff. Of these, 15 hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 2 up to level 6.

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Information about the setting

The pre-school opens Monday to Friday all year round. Sessions are from 7.30am until 6pm. Children attend for a variety of sessions. There are currently 55 children attending, of whom 10 are in the early years age group. The nursery provides funded early education for two-, three- and four-year-old children. It supports children who speak English as an additional language and children with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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

 enhance information technology resources further, so that children aged two- to three-years-old can access domestic resources that they can turn on and off, such as torches and digital cameras.

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who attend

All staff have a good understanding of the Early Years Foundation Stage and use their knowledge to support children's individual learning needs. A wide range of activities are provided that ensure all children have good opportunities to make expected progress towards the early learning goals. This helps them make good progress in acquiring skills for the next stage in their learning and when they move on to school. Children have individual development records with observations and photographs of their activities. A summative assessment is completed by staff every 12 weeks to show how children are making progress and a learning and development summary is shared with parents. This helps to identify if there are any gaps or delays in children's learning, which need to be focused on in future. This also means that children with identified special educational needs and/or disabilities are well supported.

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who attend

Children's communication skills are given priority as staff support their language development through explanations given during every day routines and activities. From being babies, staff support children by repeating words for them and name objects, such as balls and their colours, so that they learn the words. Children take pleasure in their developing skills, repeating the words after staff and naming their friends as they look at photographs that are on display. Children enjoy role play activities. Young children copy each other as they play in the home corner, pretending that they are preparing and eating food. Pre-school children elaborate on their ideas. They say that one child is poorly and needs to see a doctor. Staff join in with their play, encouraging children to express their ideas as they talk through what they are doing. For example, they ask open-ended questions about what children need if they are going on an aeroplane. This generates

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who attend

discussion about passports and who has one. During mark making activities staff listen and support what children are doing. They talk to children about their pictures as they use a pen to make marks on the paper. Children concentrate hard while making the marks and tell staff that they are circles. Children of all ages enjoy looking at books. They sit in comfort with staff, listening to them read stories and join in where they can. Staff encourage them to talk about what is happening in the pictures and relate it to what they do in nursery. For example, they ask is it nice to fight? Children who speak English as an additional language are provided with very good support. Close working partnerships with parents enable them to be closely included as they provide the nursery with words and phrases in the child's own language.

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who attend

Mathematical language is encouraged in children's play. For example, staff help children to recognise written numbers in the games that they play and encourage them to count the toys in the right order. Stimulating activities develop children's interest in the wider world around them. Staff help them to understand about different cultures and beliefs through practical activities. For example, they acknowledge Diwali and staff read a story about rangoli pictures. This leads children to make their own rangoli pictures. Technology resources are available for pre-school children and they access a computer and white board and listen to stories on a CD player. Babies have electronic toys that help them learn how to press a button to make them work. Children aged two- to three-years-old can visit the pre-school room to use the whiteboard and occasionally access electronic toys that are borrowed. However, these are not always freely available in their room, to

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who attend

help them seek to acquire basic skills in turning on and operating equipment daily.

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who attend

Good partnerships have been developed with parents. Staff that care for children under two-years-old write a day sheet about what children have been involved in and their meals and nappy changes. All staff give verbal feedback to parents as they collect their children. Parents have access to their children's development record at any time, which along with receiving the termly development summary, keeps them in touch with their child's progress and helps them to continue with their learning at home.

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

Children feel very secure at the pre-school, as staff are very caring and give a high priority to children's well-being. They obtain information from parents about children's likes, dislikes and routines so that children's needs are met. Settling-in visits for new children are discussed with parents and tailored to meet each child's individual need. An effective key person system also aids a smooth transition from home to the pre-school. Staff praise children for their achievements, which gives them confidence and good self-esteem. Behaviour and manners are good as staff have excellent strategies for managing children's behaviour. They have firm ground rules that they share with children regularly. When behaviour is unwanted they talk to children, asking them about the rules. Children recall that they should not run and staff respond that the floor might be slippy. This helps children learn to manage their own safety and reflects the high expectations of staff.

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

Children are cared for in a bright and welcoming environment. Each playroom is set out in to different areas of play and resources are easily accessible on low-level shelving. This encourages children to make their own choices about the activities they want to take part in. Excellent quality resources in the garden stimulate children's interest and exploration skills. There are ride-on toys, which develop children's large muscle skills as they manage to pedal them round. Children become excited about playing in the water. Appropriate clothing is provided and staff help children to put their boots and waterproofs on, which develops their skills in dressing themselves. Once ready they splash with glee in the tubs of water and say that it is raining when staff spray water in the air from a hose. Staff have excellent processes in place for children to learn independence skills, so that they make their own choices at snack and meal times. Children join together in the dining room. A

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

selection of foods are set out at the side of the room and children take it in turns to select their own plate and the foods they would like. Their understanding of healthy eating is promoted as staff talk to them about the different foods. They take part in fun activities, such as painting and printing with vegetables, and the dentist visits regularly to talk to them about looking after their teeth. Children are becoming very independent in self-care skills. For example, they let staff know when they want to wash their hands after painting and go to the bathroom on their own. They know they need soap on their hands to get them clean.

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

Staff manage children's move to the next room well. They have several settling in visits with their key person in agreement with their parent, prior to moving permanently. Transitions to schools are eased as staff forward children's summative assessments to reception classes. This helps the school to know about children's learning and development needs. Staff also visit other settings that children attend to discuss their development and needs to ensure continuity in their learning and development.

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provision

Leadership and management of the setting is good. Arrangements for safeguarding children are strong and fully understood. An effective safeguarding policy is implemented well and staff's knowledge of safeguarding children is robust. Thorough risk assessments are conducted and children play and learn in a safe, secure and supportive environment. Staff are vigilant and attentive, and children benefit from high levels of supervision and individual attention. Robust recruitment practices ensure the safe employment of suitable and qualified adults in the pre-school. There are excellent procedures in place to monitor staffs ongoing suitability. The manager carries out regular observations during their work and feeds back to them afterwards about their strengths and if there are any areas that they could develop further. This ensures that any underperformance is quickly recognised by the manager and is addressed through an action plan. This is backed up by termly

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provision

supervision meetings and annual appraisals, where the manager and staff discuss training and development needs and their performance is assessed in line with their job description. Effective systems are in place covering all aspects of children's care, including the recording of accidents and any medication administered.

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provision

The manager has an excellent overview of the educational programme. She carries out monthly planning checks to ensure that observation and planning are being followed correctly and that the learning intentions for children are well matched and provide a challenging experience. She analyses the progress that the whole group makes and looks for any patterns. For example, the under achievement of children with English as an additional language or of all children within one area of learning, so that this can be addressed. Improvements made since the last inspection demonstrate the manager and staffs' drive for excellence. For example, the changes made to serving food to children, which has helped to develop their independence.

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provision

Self-evaluation of the service offered is very evident in every day practice. Local authority development officers visit regularly to provide advice and support, which helps to identify areas for improvement. Parents are asked about their opinion through the comments section on newsletters, learning stories and development summaries. There is an open- door policy and they have informal chats with staff.

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provision

Staff work closely with parents and other agencies that may be involved with children that have special educational needs and/or disabilities. They seek advice from other professionals and follow this to support children. Individual educational plans ensure that activities are based on each individual child's needs. Parents speak highly of the pre-school and the staff, stating that they are very happy with the care that their children receive.

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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 EY362002 Local authority Middlesbrough Inspection number 915501

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 90 Number of children on roll 55 Name of provider Greater Expectations Ltd Date of previous inspection 23/04/2012 Telephone number 01642 243256

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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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