Minibuddies Nursery and Out of School Care

Mini Buddies at Manor Beach Primary School Manor Beach Cp School, Manor Drive, THORNTON-CLEVELEYS, Lancashire, FY5 1EU

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 06/11/2013 03/02/2010

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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 2 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 3

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This provision requires improvement

 Children's emotional security is addressed effectively, beginning with a well-planned settling-in procedure, so that children are settled and happy in their environment.  A variety of resources and play experiences are provided so that children make satisfactory progress in their learning and development.  Mealtimes for children are a positive experience within the school dinner hall. This enables children to make choices and build confidence in other areas of the setting and begin to be ready for school.

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It is not yet good because

 Teaching is inconsistent and planning is not linked closely enough to observations of the achievements of individual children. As a result, some activities do not challenge children or progress their learning.  Children have limited access to printed words, letters and numbers outdoors, this means their early literacy skills are not promoted as well as possible.  Self-evaluation is not rigorous enough to ensure that areas for improvement, with regards to staff practice, are fully addressed, which hinders children's progress.

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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 took account of the views of parents and carers spoken to on the day.

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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 observed practice in both play rooms and the outdoor learning environment.  The inspector spoke with staff at appropriate times during the day.

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Information about the setting

Mini Buddies at Manor Beach Primary School has been registered since September 2009. It was originally registered at other premises for 11 years. It is based within two classrooms in Manor Beach Primary School, situated in Thornton-Cleveleys in the Wyre District of Lancashire. There is an adjacent outdoor area to the rear of the setting.

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Information about the setting

The setting is registered on the Early Years Register and there are currently 34 children on roll, who attend for a variety of sessions throughout the week. A number of children receive funded nursery education. The setting supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children for whom English is an additional language. The pre- school operates from 9am to 3.30pm each week day, in term time only. There are six members of staff, two of whom hold an early years degree and all of whom hold appropriate early years qualifications up to level 3. The setting is a member of the Pre- School Learning Alliance and advice, support and training are gained from the local authority.

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must:

 ensure that information gained from observations and assessments is used to extend learning opportunities for children, so that provision is accurately tailored to children's needs and interests and to promote good progress.

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

 provide further opportunities during outdoor play to stimulate children's literacy development. For example, through the use of signs, symbols and other forms of print

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

 develop processes of self-evaluation by improving monitoring of the educational programmes with regards to consistency of staff practice and by taking account of the views of parents and children.

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who attend

Younger children often move around the room looking for activities to engage their interest, they find little challenge and often become distracted. This means some children are challenged less well than others and learn little within focused activities because teaching is, on occasion, ineffective. Staff work well in small groups and one-to-one with children, getting down on their level and use some well chosen, appropriate questioning to extend communication and thinking. In larger groups, however, questioning is less effective and children lose concentration quickly, minimising the learning taking place. Children's development files show they are making satisfactory progress within their age group, ensuring they are suitably prepared for their next stages in learning and school. The tracking of children's development, however, is brief and lacks rigour. As a result, staff are not always confident in ways to extend learning for individual children. Staff carry

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who attend

out regular observations of children during their play. These are, on the whole, evaluative and focus on what children are doing, however, next steps in learning are often missing. This prevents staff from focusing the activities to extend learning for individual children and as a result, activities are often restricted to what children can already do.

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who attend

Creativity is promoted heavily within the setting. Children enjoy a separate room full of exciting and varied resources to extend their creative play. Children enjoy making play dough and they add flour, pretending they are baking. Children take cooking equipment to the sink and investigate what happens to flour by adding water, building their knowledge of capacity and transporting objects. Mathematical language is promoted by staff encouraging children to think about using 'more' and 'less' with their ingredients. Children are invited to find numbers in the sand and count on regular occasions, extending their understanding of problem-solving and number recognition. Physical play is a key strength in the setting with continuous access to the outdoors throughout the day. Children access a large play area in the school grounds, a forest nature trail and a mud pit with a variety of tyres, crates and interesting objects to climb on. Children are invited to wear wellington

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who attend

boots and use umbrellas in the rain and go out in all weathers. As a result, children extend their senses on a daily basis and begin to understand changes in the weather and how this affects them and their surroundings. However, children have limited experiences outdoors to extend their literacy development with no reference to labels, written word or signs. This does not reflect the positive use of labelling indoors, so children do not have consistent learning experiences.

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who attend

Staff work closely with families and children, who have special educational needs and/or disabilities. Individual learning plans are in place for children, so staff can plan to support the child appropriately according to their needs. For children, who have English as an additional language, staff have spoken to parents, in order to introduce dual language books and have begun to learn words in the home language. Very positive use of signing encourages children to begin to follow the routines and join in with activities.

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

Children are very confident in the setting, feeling they can access all resources at their leisure and transfer objects from one area to another. This enables children to build a sense of identity and belonging in their surroundings as they independently request to use the toilet or play outdoors. Mealtimes are a positive experience for all children. They thoroughly enjoy the trip to the school dinner hall to choose their own meal that is freshly prepared and cooked on site. Children learn about making healthy meal choices, build their social skills and learn to mix with older peers. Staff sit with children during mealtimes to help children use utensils correctly, develop manors and model good language at the table. This encourages independence and enables children to manipulate tools for a purpose. Children, as a result, develop confidence in their decision making and enjoy opportunities to interact with others. Staff explain that using the hall for mealtimes and

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

also physical education sessions helps children with their transition to school as they become more familiar with their surroundings. The school also include the setting within their nativity performances and other special occasions. Children gradually establish connections with the school ready for their transition.

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

The management team and staff work particularly well to ensure children are provided with an enabling environment. For example, furniture is arranged to allow children to play safely and allow them to access the outdoors at any time of the day. Children request to visit the outdoor nature forest where they can explore and investigate, while benefiting from developing the use of all their senses. This also helps them learn about safety as they negotiate outdoor environments. All rooms are richly equipped with good resources that reflect what children enjoy doing and support their learning and acquisition of skills.

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

Throughout the setting a high priority is placed on children's personal, social and emotional development, meaning children are relaxed, content and secure in their surroundings. The key person system works very well and secure attachments develop between all children and staff. Consequently, children display close relationships with staff and also other children, with lovely examples of them helping each other throughout the day. As new children settle in, parents are invited to spend time in the setting, which can be any period of time they choose. Parents feel this works well and feel very welcome in the setting and part of their child's learning. Children are happy and playful developing their sense of self and showing age-appropriate behaviour. Staff are positive role models and are consistent with their care, meaning children understand reasoning, boundaries and risks.

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provision

All staff demonstrate a sound awareness of the Statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage and the prime and specific areas of learning. Staff enthusiastically attend regular training to update their knowledge from the local authority and the management team. This ensures they are aware of any changes in practice. Staff appraisals offer suitable discussion points and accurate questions to enable staff and the management team to reflect on practice. However, the systems for self-evaluation are not robust and weaker aspects of the educational programme and the inconsistency of staff teaching means children's progress is no better than satisfactory. The self-evaluation includes ideas from all staff members, although, there is limited input from parents and children. This means changes that occur are not always effective for all children who attend.

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provision

The manager has recruited and retained an experienced and well qualified team, as a result, staff support children safely and appropriately during their play, extending their thinking skills and recognising activities that children enjoy doing. Staff request brief information about children's starting points from parents as they register at the setting. They then use this information to discover children's likes and dislikes. This ensures resources offered reflect what children enjoy doing. Staff are clear about safeguarding children and know the procedures well, they are also aware of who to report any concerns to so children's safety is well promoted.

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provision

The setting has close partnerships with outside agencies for the benefit of individual children, which helps to secures appropriate interventions. Staff from many different partnerships have visited the setting, allowing for children's individual physical or emotional needs to be provided for. A strength of the setting is that parents feel part of the team and have close relationships with all staff. Parents comment they are pleased with the way staff support their children, particularly through their settling-in procedure and approachable nature. This enables staff to work with parents for the benefit of their child and allow for appropriate interventions to take place.

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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 Requires improvement The provision is not giving children a good standard of early years education and/or there are minor breaches of the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. It will be monitored and inspected within twelve months of the date of this inspection. 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

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Grade Judgement Description

the Early Years Foundation Stage. It will be monitored and inspected again within six months of the date of this inspection. 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 EY400561 Local authority Lancashire Inspection number 875166

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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 34 Name of provider Sharon Parkes and Nita Mills Partnership Date of previous inspection 03/02/2010 Telephone number 07990711570

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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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