Bramble Bears

Bramble Bears Ashwellthorpe Village Hall, The Street, ASHWELLTHORPE, Norfolk, NR16 1AA

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 03/10/2013 24/11/2009

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early years provision

This inspection: 2 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 2 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 2

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This provision is good

 Children are inquisitive learners who respond well to the staff's very skilful and enthusiastic interactions. They make good progress as a result of accessing an array of well-planned learning experiences which fully embrace their individual interests and developmental needs.  Staff are particularly competent in fostering children's positive behaviour. They make very effective use of good role modelling and work successfully with parents to promote consistent boundaries for the children.  Children's personal, social and emotional development is progressing well because they are given plenty of opportunities to develop their confidence in managing self-care tasks for themselves.  The staff work together as a highly cohesive team. They make effective use of self- evaluation and ongoing training to build upon their good practice and ensure children continue to benefit from improvements made at the pre-school.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 There is scope to enhance children's good literacy skills by increasing the use of words, labels, signs and notices in the indoor and outdoor learning environments.

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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's activities in the main hall, side annex and the outdoor learning environment.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took account of the views of parents, grandparents and committee members spoken to on the day of the inspection, and engaged in discussions with staff and children at appropriate times.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector carried out a joint observation of an outdoor play activity with the manager.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at children's assessment records, planning documentation, the provider's self-evaluation action plan, and some written policy documents.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector held a meeting with the manager and checked evidence of staff suitability and qualifications.

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Information about the setting

Bramble Bears was registered in 1992. It is registered on the Early Years Register. The pre-school is situated in Ashwellthorpe Village Hall, in the Ashwellthorpe area of Norfolk. It is managed by a voluntary committee made up of parents of some of the children who attend the pre-school. It serves the local area and is accessible to all children. Children have access to the main hall and side annex, and there is an enclosed garden available for outdoor play.

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Information about the setting

The pre-school employs five members of childcare staff. Of these, staff hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 3, including one member of staff with Qualified Teacher Status. The pre-school opens on Monday and Thursday from 9.15am until 2.45pm, and on Tuesday from 9.15am to 12.15pm. Sessions operate during school term times. Children attend for a variety of sessions. There are currently 19 children attending who are in the early years age group. The setting provides funded early education for two-, three- and four-year-old children. It supports a number of 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 the educational programme for literacy by providing an environment that is rich in signs, labels and notices, and creating further opportunities for children to learn that print carries meaning.

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who attend

Children benefit from rich interactions with all staff. They demonstrate high levels of curiosity and involvement in activities as they are motivated by the staff's enthusiasm. The use of carefully-framed questions is effective in extending children's critical thinking and promoting their skills in communication and language. For example, staff prompt children to use more complex vocabulary to describe the features of their 'monster pictures' as they draw with chalks on the ground outside. Since the last inspection, the opportunities for children to make choices and initiate their own play have improved greatly. They have much easier access to a wider range of toys and games, which they select from clearly labelled drawers and low-level storage shelves. The needs of the youngest children are also promoted through opportunities to select from the toys illustrated in a 'choosing book'. As a result, all children remain engrossed and stimulated in play that reflects their

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who attend

interests well. Children are imaginative learners. They are provided with interesting, open- ended resources, which facilitate their skills in designing and making. For example, children delight in working together to construct a house from a selection of large cardboard boxes. A member of staff supports their ideas fully, while skilfully asking questions to bring in new aspects of learning. For example, staff make the most of opportunities to talk about mathematical concepts as they prompt children to compare the difference between the square and rectangular windows. Children show good initiative as they choose the best materials to add more detail to their cardboard house. This includes squares of tissue paper, which they creatively use to represent the tiles on the roof.

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who attend

Children benefit from continual access to the pre-school's well-resourced outdoor space. Here, they enjoy exploring sand and soil, using a variety of tools to dig, scoop, sieve and flatten the materials. Staff are skilful in creating challenging opportunities for children to develop themselves physically. For example, children refine their coordination and control as staff draw arrows on the ground for them to follow while pedalling various tricycles. Children are actively supported to develop their skills in readiness for school. In particular, staff encourage them to repeat letter names and phonic sounds in their everyday discussions and during group story activities. Opportunities to practise making marks and to write for different purposes are particularly popular with the children. For example, older children are keen to form letters as they write directions on their treasure maps, while younger children play at making marks on a till receipt in the role-play shop.

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who attend

Although children encounter a few words written on displays and in books, the use of words printed on signs, labels and notices is not fully developed within the indoor and outdoor environments. This means that children are less likely to refer to these when writing themselves, and opportunities for them to recognise that print carries meaning are not fully optimised.

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who attend

Staff are flexible and responsive in their approach to planning activities, ensuring children's spontaneous interests are embraced. For example, when children spend time pretending to be kings and queens, the staff plan a meaningful outing to a local castle to widen their experiences. The continual use of observation and assessments ensures that any gaps in the children's development are promptly identified and effective support is instigated. This includes a comprehensive progress check at age two. In particular, this approach is successful in ensuring that children with special educational needs and/or disabilities receive support that is tailored effectively to meet their individual needs. There are many opportunities for parents to contribute to the assessment of their child's learning as they engage in regular discussions with their key person. They actively support the success of the pre-school's learning themes and activities. For example, they willingly

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who attend

supply family photographs to support an 'all about me' theme, and regularly take an active part in the pre-school's outings. As a result, parents have first-hand experience of their child's progress and are in a good position to enhance their learning at home.

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

Children are keen to attend the pre-school as they develop strong emotional attachments to the staff and other children. This is demonstrated as they keenly seek out their key person to share their news from home, before delving into the available activities. Parents and grandparents are welcomed in for a short time at the beginning of each session. This is particularly supportive of the needs of the youngest children and those who are new to the pre-school because they have plenty of time to settle and feel secure. Parents are actively encouraged to share a wide range of information in relation to their child's preferences, care routines and learning needs. This enables each key person to plan and adapt the provision to ensure children's needs are effectively met from the very beginning. For example, staff ensure children are given more opportunities to play outdoors after a parent explains that their younger child learns best this way.

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

Staff are positive role models and provide children with lots of praise and encouragement. This boosts their self-esteem. As a result, children's good behaviour is a key strength of the provision. Staff work very closely together, and with parents, to provide children with consistent messages and boundaries. Consequently, children often adjust their own behaviour independently and show a growing awareness of the feelings of others. For example, older children make effective use of a sand timer as they wait patiently for their turn to play in the popular cardboard house. Staff are skilled in making the most of opportunities for children to manage everyday tasks with increasing independence. This is particularly evident during meal times as older children demonstrate confidence in washing their hands, pouring drinks, spreading crackers and opening food packets. Older children are prepared well for their future transition into school. The reception class teacher from

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

the local school is welcomed into the pre-school during the summer term, while staff also accompany children on introductory visits to the school. As a result, children feel familiar with the school environment and begin to form new supportive attachments.

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

From a young age, children actively learn to consider risks and how to keep themselves safe. Under the sensitive supervision of staff, children learn to use tools, such as scissors, trowels and spreading knives in a safe manner. They learn about wider aspects of safety as they meet people in the community who help them to stay safe, including a police officer who visits the pre-school. Children's health and well-being is also effectively promoted. The outdoor environment is put to good use during most of the session, ensuring children have daily opportunities to be physically active in the fresh air. Children's understanding of the importance of exercise in their lifestyle is fostered through the development of a gymnasium in the role-play area, and their involvement in a special sports day event. Staff provide gentle reminders to parents about the pre-school's commitment to ensuring children have healthy options at meal times. This means that

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

children benefit from a nutritious and balanced selection of snacks and packed lunches, while staff model healthy eating to reinforce this further.

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provision

Arrangements for safeguarding children are effective. Safeguarding policies and procedures are fully understood by the staff team, ensuring a common approach to protecting children from harm. For example, staff are confident about the procedures to follow if they are worried about a child's welfare, including their duty to refer any concerns to the local child protection agencies. In addition, most staff have attended relevant training and all have regular opportunities to discuss child protection issues at staff meetings. This means that children's safety is given good attention. There are robust procedures for vetting and recruiting staff. This ensures that the management has clear information to demonstrate that staff are suitable to be in contact with children. The small team of staff works very well together during the sessions, ensuring they communicate effectively and maintain good supervision of the children. Rigorous risk assessments

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provision

ensure potential hazards to children's safety are minimised and access to the premises is closely monitored. Since the last inspection, the management have taken effective steps to ensure the pre-school's policies and procedures are more readily available to parents. For example, a summary of the most significant policies is now included in an updated prospectus, which is issued to all parents. As a result, parents understand how they can support the efficient and safe operation of the pre-school.

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provision

The management and staff continuously seek opportunities to self-evaluate and enhance the provision for children. As a result, they have secured a good range of improvements since the last inspection, and have a comprehensive action plan to address further areas for improvement. For example, there are secure plans to apply for external funding in order to enhance children's access to a wider range of information and communication technology equipment. The management are continuing to focus their efforts on extending the existing use of appraisals, supervision meetings and peer observations with staff. This ensures that staff continue to have purposeful opportunities to reflect on the quality of their practice with the children. Training opportunities are well targeted to ensure staff maintain a good knowledge of how to meet children's specific needs. For example, they proactively attend local authority cluster meetings to enhance their understanding of how

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provision

to support children's behaviour. Staff continuously observe children's use of the learning environment and their level of engagement in the educational programmes. They informally discuss and evaluate activities at the end of each session to ensure children continue to be stimulated and challenged in their learning. The children's assessment records are regularly reviewed by the management. As a result, the arrangements for observing and assessing children's progress continue to be effective in identifying and narrowing any gaps in their achievement.

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provision

Regular questionnaires are issued to parents in order to ensure their views are reflected in the pre-school's self-evaluation. Their comments are consistently positive, with much praise for the staff's supportive approach and strong commitment to supporting their children's individual needs. Many parents are inspired to become more actively involved in the daily practice of the pre-school, as they often volunteer during sessions and willingly join the management committee. As a result, they have purposeful opportunities to influence practice at the pre-school and can work closely with staff to promote good continuity in their child's care, learning and development. Partnership working with relevant outside professionals is fostered, including liaison with local authority advisors. This enables staff to draw on their advice and guidance when tailoring the provision to meet the needs of children with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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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 253964 Local authority Norfolk Inspection number 818458

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 5 Total number of places 24 Number of children on roll 19 Name of provider Bramble Bears Committee Date of previous inspection 24/11/2009 Telephone number 07751323991

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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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