The Learning Tree Pre-School

The Learning Tree Pre-School @ Wolsey Wolsey Infant School, King Henrys Drive, New Addington, CROYDON, CR0 0PA

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 23/10/2013 09/03/2009

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early years provision

This inspection: 4 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 4 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 4

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This provision is inadequate

 The manager failed to follow appropriate safeguarding procedures, including notifying Ofsted of all allegations about a member of staff, which compromised children's welfare. In addition, the provider has failed to notify Ofsted of a number of changes to the committee members.  The provider and manager have not provided appropriate induction, training and monitoring for all staff so that they are aware of expectations in the setting.  Children's needs are not always met at busy times such as lunchtimes, especially when children are leaving and arriving at the pre-school.  Staff do not always suitably observe children's progress and development in technology to fully promote their progress in this aspect of their learning.  Staff do not gather enough detailed information from parents when children start at the pre-school to provide a clear picture of what children already know and can do on entry.

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It has the following strengths

 Staff demonstrate suitable knowledge of how children learn, and recognise that some children prefer to do their learning in the outside area.  Staff are flexible when they plan activities. They are confident when describing how they can adapt activities to meet children's interests.

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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 activities in the large play room and in the outside area.  The inspector held discussions with the manager and provider.  The inspector spoke to children, parents and staff.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector sampled documents including policies, staff records and children's development records.  The inspector carried out a joint observation with the manager.

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Information about the setting

The Learning Tree Pre-School registered in 2007 on the Early Years Register. It is one of three committee-run Learning Tree pre-schools in the New Addington area. The setting is based within a classroom in Wolsey Infants school. The pre-school is open from 9am to 2.55pm from Monday to Friday during term time. The setting serves the local community as well as providing wrap-around care for the nursery at the school. There are currently 66 children on roll. The setting provides support for children learning English as an additional language. There are 15 staff at the setting who work with the children. Of these, 12 have appropriate childcare qualifications, including one who holds Early Years Professional Status and 11 with qualifications at level 3. The pre-school receives funding for the provision of free early education for two-, three- and four-year-old children.

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must:

 review safeguarding practice to ensure that the safeguarding policy is followed, especially with regard to procedures when there has been an allegation about a member of staff

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must:

 put in place appropriate arrangements for the effective supervision, coaching and training of all staff, including induction of all staff to ensure that they learn about good practice

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must:

 ensure that the needs of all children are met during busy lunch periods when children are leaving and arriving at the pre-school

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

 review the arrangements for involving parents when children start at the pre-school, in order to enhance their contributions to initial assessments of children's development

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

 review assessment arrangements for technology to help ensure all staff have suitable knowledge to observe and monitor children's progress in this area.

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who attend

The setting is bright and welcoming. Various posters and colourful equipment create an inviting environment for children. Staff generally provide a variety of learning experiences for children so that they can develop in all areas. Staff support children to use their imagination in a range of ways. Children make three dimensional models of space ships and count down as the space ship takes off. They use cardboard boxes to sit in and pretend they are on trains or airplanes visiting different places. These activities help children to use their imagination and bring mathematics into their play to develop their awareness of numbers.

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who attend

Children enjoy story time as staff use props to enhance the stories. Children enjoy making different sound effects and noises and they point out characters in the story. Children enjoy retelling stories and staff give them time to think about what they want to say next. This unhurried approach means that children are relaxed when they are chatting to staff and this helps the development of their communication skills. Staff provide a range of equipment to help children develop their skills in technology; however, staff do not always offer further support in children's use of the existing equipment and develop effective use of observations to monitor their progress.

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who attend

Staff demonstrate their knowledge of how children develop in most areas of learning. They describe how they plan to develop children's skills using activities which interest the children. Staff are flexible in their approach to activities and this means that children can combine different toys to develop their play. Staff support children who are learning English as an additional language by using key words in their home languages. This helps children become familiar with routines as they settle in to the setting. Staff encourage all children's knowledge of different languages by using songs with words in different languages which children enjoy.

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who attend

Staff plan for individual children and key persons know children's different characters and learning styles. This means that planned activities are suitable for children and cater for their interests. Staff suitably monitor children's progress in most areas and the manager has recently developed systems to review children's development records to ensure that staff are providing a variety of activities. Staff use their observations to complete progress checks for two-year-old children and they share these with parents so that parents are informed of their children's progress and development.

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

Staff and management take positive steps to promote children's well-being. However, the weaknesses in safeguarding children mean their well-being cannot be assured. Staff encourage children's independence skills by giving them small tasks to complete and praising them when they do so. Children pour their own drinks at snack time and put on their coats and boots before going outside to play. All children use the outside area every day for a variety of activities. They can choose to play outside during large parts of each day. Staff support children's physical skills as they play with balls and hoops. They also provide table top activities outside, such as drawing. This means that children who prefer to learn outside can do so with a range of equipment. Children use their imagination as they paint the play house with water and chat to each other about how the water is draining away. This regular access to outside play means that children can benefit from

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

daily fresh air. Staff provide healthy snacks, such as bananas and strawberries, and children choose from milk or water to drink. These measures help children to develop an awareness of healthy lifestyles.

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

Staff support children's behaviour in a range of ways. They praise children when they join in with planned routines and the use of rewards, such as stickers and stamps, effectively encourages other children to take part in these daily routines. Children's behaviour is generally good. They work as a team with staff to carry large items as they tidy away their role play equipment. This helps them to learn about cooperation and helping others.

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

All staff know the children as there are rotas in place which mean that staff rotate with different activities and care routines. Parents comment that they receive regular feedback from staff about how children are developing and they know they can look at children's development records at any time. Staff engage parents in their children's learning by asking for contributions to planned activities for individual children and the whole group. However, staff do not always gather detailed information from parents when children begin at the setting so that staff can plan effectively from children's starting points.

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

The pre-school is on the site of a primary school. Therefore those children who attend the school nursery are well prepared for this stage in their learning as staff support them and take and collect them from the nursery each day. The manager has introduced other methods to support children attending other schools, such as asking for photographs of key members of staff so that children can talk about and become familiar with them before they start school.

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provision

This inspection took place as a result of concerns regarding the implementation of appropriate safeguarding procedures, following a notification from the manager of a safeguarding allegation against a member of staff. At inspection, it was found that there had been a previous allegation about this member of staff which was not reported correctly. This ineffective monitoring of staff following the first incident contributed to the second episode taking place. The manager is aware that the safeguarding policy was not followed correctly and understands the implications of these actions. This means the provider has failed to comply with conditions. The incidents occurred at lunch time in the nursery, which is a busy time of the day as children arrive from or go to nursery or home at various times. The provider and manager do not support staff at this busy time to ensure that children's needs are met appropriately. Furthermore, bank staff do not always

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provision

receive the same rigorous induction procedures as other staff and do not always attend training and staff meetings. This lack of induction and training has had an impact on the incidents that took place. Consequently, children's safety and welfare were compromised. The manager shows an acceptance of recent failings and a capacity to learn from them. However, as a result of the inspection findings, the provider is required to take further action regarding the safeguarding procedures, as they are not meeting the requirements of the Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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provision

All other staff generally receive regular safeguarding training. Safeguarding and whistle blowing policies are discussed at supervision and general staff meetings. As a result, staff demonstrate appropriate knowledge of procedures to follow if they have concerns about a child in their care. Generally, staff recruitment procedures are robust. Suitability checks are carried out and the manager requests references for all new members of staff. Except for bank staff, the manager carries out regular supervision meetings and appraisals and she observes staff to monitor their practice. The manager identifies training needs with staff and the whole team uses information that their colleagues have learnt on training to provide new activities for children.

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provision

There have been a number of changes to the constitution of the committee for this provision; however, the provider failed to inform Ofsted about changes to the committee members. This is an offence as this means that Ofsted do not have up-to-date information about the individuals who form the registered provider. The manager has made a number of improvements to the setting and uses a range of methods to evaluate the provision. She works well with parents and has introduced parent training sessions so that parents know what to expect when children start at the pre-school. For example, the manager explains about children's development records and how staff make observations and plan for individual children.

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provision

The manager works well with other agencies, for example, the local children's centre. She advises parents about the available services so that they can get the additional support they need. The manager is knowledgeable about procedures to make referrals for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. She demonstrates this knowledge well and confidently describes the additional services children sometimes need to support their development.

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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 EY358389 Local authority Croydon Inspection number 938921 Type of provision Sessional provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 2 - 4 Total number of places 48 Number of children on roll 66 Name of provider The Learning Tree Pre-School Committee Date of previous inspection 09/03/2009 Telephone number 01689 844954

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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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