Holmwood Pre-School

Holmwood Pre-School Wallington United Reform Church, Stanley Park Road, WALLINGTON, Surrey, SM6 0EU

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 03/09/2013 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

 The management of the pre-school is efficient and well organised. As a result, staff receive good support and encouragement in their professional development.  Children enjoy their time at the pre-school. Particular strength is the gentle settling in programme, enabling children to find their way and chose their preferred key person.  Children are kept very safe because there is a strong emphasis placed on the safeguarding of children, by experienced well-informed staff.  Children make very good progress because staff have a good knowledge and understanding of child development and how children learn.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Staff miss opportunities to teach children an understanding of the passage of time and their own progress  Staff do not consistently provide children with opportunities to develop their independence or take responsibility for themselves,

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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 children in their play activities both inside and in the outside area as well as the large hall.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector viewed a variety of relevant documentation. This included policies and procedures, registration forms, accident and medication records

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Inspection activities

 The inspector undertook a joint observation with the manager and a group of children  The inspector spoke to parents and carers, taking their views into account.

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Information about the setting

Holmwood Pre-School first registered in 1992. The charitable status of the pre-school changed and, due to legal requirements, the provision registered again in 2013. The pre- school is committee run. It operates from a dedicated room within Wallington United Reform Church, close to Wallington town centre. The playroom provides direct access to a covered outdoor play area. The pre-school also has the use of the church hall, which has direct access to an uncovered outdoor play area, and the church kitchen.

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Information about the setting

The pre-school is registered on the Early Years Register and takes children aged from two and half years. Opening hours are Monday to Friday, term time only, between 9.15am and 12.15pm. A lunch club operates on a Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 12.30pm until 1.30pm. There are currently 23 children on roll. The pre-school supports children who have special educational needs and/or disabilities and children learning English as an additional language. The pre-school receives nursery education funding for children aged three and four years. The manager is qualified to level 3 in early years. Five staff are employed to work with the children; one has qualified teacher status (QTS), three are qualified to level 3, and one to level 2.

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

 consider ways of developing children's awareness of the passage of time to enable children to reflect and review their activities and their progress.

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

 enhance opportunities to increase children's independence by establishing consistent routines for them to take responsibilities such as preparing tables and fruit snacks.

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who attend

Children show they are developing confidently, making good progress in all areas of learning. Staff contribute to this by their good knowledge of how young children learn and they use their skills well, helping children to extend on their play and their thinking. Staff concentrate on children's interests and ideas to make play fun and meaningful. For example, circle times are an opportunity to ask children what they like doing most, how they want to decorate their room and their favourite cooking activity. Staff make notes of children's desires and includes these, where appropriate, into the planning. This demonstrates how staff value children's suggestions, recognising it is their play space. The children happily arrive and eagerly choose from a range of interesting toys and resources that capture their imagination. They enjoy exploring their play environment and begin to develop their ideas especially through role-play. For example, children happily work

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who attend

together to organise a picnic. They clearly show how they are using their social and negotiating skills whilst choosing the various items they may need. Staff observe and sensitively join in and extend children's thinking on the wider items they could include such as bags to pack items and blankets to sit on. Children show complete confidence in using all areas of the playroom to add resources to their play. This includes using the outdoor cooking area to bring in a pizza. Children begin to count the slices, showing early mathematical awareness, and they enjoy dividing it up between their friends which further embeds their social awareness.

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who attend

Sand play is a particular attraction, especially for new children who enjoy feeling the texture of the soft sand run through their fingers. Staff show how sand can make things move as they scoop it into the funnel and watch the wheel turn. Staff encourage children to count to see how many scoops fill the funnel. Children are keen to demonstrate their counting skills and staff note how much they understand.

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who attend

Some children enjoy quieter activities and staff are available to sit and chat and look at books enjoying the cosy one to one attention, developing a healthy enjoyment of books. This is particularly important for children who are settling in. They absorb themselves in the small world of mini beasts, looking at the different shapes and sizes and learning names such as 'beetle' and 'dragonfly'. Older children have extra encouragement to learn new words and write their names. Children and staff have fun working on projects throughout the term, which help develop their creative ideas as well as an understanding of their world. They build landscapes for trains as well as constructing rockets. Staff take photos of the projects and laminate them for children to view. However, staff do not include information about the dates and time taken with each project so children and staff are able to use these to reflect on their progress and achievements.

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who attend

Staff work closely with parents to provide them with good quality information about their child's development. Learning journals are freely available for parents to see. Parents also provide staff with 'wow' achievement moments that they observe whilst their children are at home. This helps staff to include these in their planning to build upon children's learning, resulting in a strong partnership working. There are also regular reviews of children's progress between key persons and parents to ensure children are meeting all their learning goals. Additionally, staff update parents each day by talking about things that children have enjoyed so parents can pursue this further when at home.

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

Most children eagerly arrive at their pre-school and look forward to playing with their friends in their cosy play areas. Children show they feel safe and secure. Resources available encourage children's independence. Children readily select toys and equipment that they want to use from tables and low-level shelves. Children have a good understanding of safety, the steps they need to take to ensure themselves, and others remain safe. For example, they remind each other not to run and hold hands as they travel from their playroom to the hall for more physical play.

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

The settling in programme for new children is a particular strength, which makes children feel safe. Staff encourage parents to remain until the child feels happy and content. The staff work as a united team, attending every day and this allows the child's key person to develop a strong bond with both parent and child. As a result, the change from home to pre-school is pleasant and becomes an exciting experience as children progress.

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

Children relish being outdoors and have daily opportunities to benefit from the fresh air. They learn about nourishment by growing plants in the garden and see what happens when plants lack water. Children then understand it is also important for them to eat and drink regularly. Staff make use of the wider facilities occasionally available with the large hall. Here, children use energy running, playing ball and riding on mobile equipment. They learn about being hot as they exercise and the need for refreshment. Snack times are an enjoyable social occasion sitting with their friends and staff. However, children are not able to help to prepare areas for eating to reinforce hygiene practices consistently. Staff do not regularly engage children to help them in the preparation of snacks by cutting up different fruits to develop their coordination and self-care skills.

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

Children behave well at the pre-school. Older children show they are caring and respectful of others. New younger children are beginning to follow the examples of their older friends and staff quickly intervene to disperse minor disagreements. As a result, children learn to play cooperatively with each other. These skills are secure by the time children leave the pre-school. The staff have a good relationship with the local school. They occasionally visit reception classes, especially where a child needs specific support in their learning. The nursery teacher occasionally visits the pre-school, which result in children feeling ready and confident as they move to their new surroundings.

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provision

The supervisor and staff have a clear understanding of their responsibilities in meeting and promoting both the learning and development and the welfare requirements. They implement the good procedures for recruitment and induction of new staff, checking their suitability and qualifications to work with children. All staff are qualified in early years. They also have up to date training in paediatric first aid to make sure they can attend to any accidents appropriately. There is a high emphasis on ensuring children are safe at all times and this includes thorough clearance checks of staff and supervision of visitors. The supervisor receives good support from the management committee enabling her to develop personally and professionally. Comprehensive policies for the safe running of the pre-school, including risk assessments and reviewing accidents, are in place. Staff show a good understanding of how to implement these in their practice, thus safeguarding

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provision

children well. The pre-school continually strives to build upon already good practice. Self-evaluation is ongoing and reflects the views of staff, parents and children, which helps to strengthen the quality of the provision. There are secure systems to challenge staff to encourage them to reflect upon their practice. The supervisor continuously reviews all staff's work. She checks the observation notes and reviews this against each child's expected stage of development. Consequently, she is able to identify areas where a child may benefit from extra help. She has recently started a more formal approach to supervising her staff team. She is also encouraging them to carry out constructive observations of each other, which they can use to identify their personal training needs. This further evaluation enhances the benefits to the children's care and development.

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provision

This is a parent led committee pre-school where parents play a key role in the partnership. They are highly complementary about the staff and they show great confidence in approaching them for advice showing a high regard of staff's expertise. Staff also demonstrate how much they value parents' participation and respond quickly to any ideas and/or concerns. This is evident from a parent survey about opening times. Staff changed the times due to parent preference and convenience with the junior school opening times. Staff work very well with other professionals in the community. They successfully liaise with the local children's centre and the junior school. They welcome visits from health professionals who visit the setting to share their knowledge and advice on specific areas of learning.

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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 EY461606 Local authority Sutton Inspection number 909661 Type of provision Sessional provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 2 - 5 Total number of places 18 Number of children on roll 23 Name of provider The United Reformed Church (Southern Synod) Trust Limited Date of previous inspection not applicable Telephone number 02086698163

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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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