Sparklers

Sparklers St William's Catholic Primary School, Garstang Road, Pilling, PRESTON, PR3 6AL

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 23/04/2014 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 quality of teaching is good and some staff demonstrate outstanding practice in their interactions with children. Children rapidly develop good behaviour and concentration because activities are so interesting and cater for their unique needs and interests.  Children and their families are warmly welcomed into this nurturing environment. All staff help children to feel safe and secure, which successfully develops their confidence and supports their emotional well-being.  The enthusiastic leadership and management of the nursery contributes significantly to the good achievements of the children. Their search for innovative ways of teaching and fresh resources is worthy of sharing with others.  Lunchtime is a pleasant social occasion. Children enjoy healthy lunches cooked on the premises from a good balance of nutritious food.  Staff are secure in their knowledge and understanding of safeguarding matters. This

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This provision is good

means children are well protected and kept free from harm.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Opportunities for less experienced staff to learn from more experienced staff, for example, through peer observations and mentoring, have not been fully considered as a way of sharing the outstanding aspects.

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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 nursery room and one of the outside learning environments.  The inspector conducted a joint observation with the manager.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector held meetings with the manager of the provision and the nominated person for the committee and spoke to individual staff members.  The inspector looked at children's assessment records and planning documentation.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector checked evidence of suitability and qualifications of staff working with children, the provider's self-evaluation form and improvement plan.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took account of the views of children, parents and carers spoken to on the day and from information included in the nursery's own parent survey.

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Information about the setting

Sparklers was registered in 2013 and is on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. It is situated in St William's Catholic Primary School in the Pilling area of Over Wyre and is managed by Sparklers Committee. The nursery serves the local area and is accessible to all children. It operates from one room within the school. Children have use of the school hall, two outdoor play areas and the school playground. The nursery employs three members of childcare staff. Of these, one holds an appropriate early years qualification at level 4 and one at level 2. The nursery opens Wednesday to Friday from 8.45am until 3.45pm during term time. Children attend for a variety of sessions. There are currently 11 children attending who are in the early years age group. The nursery provides funded early education for two-, three- and four- year-old children.

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

 explore further the ways for staff to share ideas and model highly effective practice to others in order to maximise children's progress in learning to the very optimum.

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who attend

The manager and staff regularly meet to discuss each child's abilities and interests. They make good use of their observations and assessments to plan suitably challenging activities for each child. Staff speak daily with parents, which is a good opportunity for parents to share what they know about their child's learning at home. Each child has a learning journal in which staff clearly record children's good progress at nursery, which they share with parents. This, with daily communication books and verbal exchanges, keeps most parents well informed of their child's learning and development. Children's progress is clearly tracked so that any gaps in their learning are identified early and action taken to secure support where appropriate. Children are interested and keen learners. They choose what to play with and all staff interact well with individual children. Less experienced staff extend children's knowledge intuitively as their own knowledge of the

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who attend

learning and development requirements grows. They carefully observe children during activities and provide explanations to improve learning. For instance, when gardening, a member of staff explains how and why to dig up weeds by their roots. Outdoors, children plant and water flowers, which allows them to learn about how to care for other living things. They play imaginatively as they make dens and as they make mud pies in the mud kitchen. They also actively learn about nature as they search for mini-beats in the numerous bug hotels built in the school grounds. Children demonstrate a good awareness of technology as they play imaginatively, for example, with tills in the post office and binoculars while on safari. They are adept at using programmes on a large screen computer. Children develop good mathematical skills as they play and through routines, for example, they count how many chairs are needed

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who attend

at lunchtime. Children make good progress in communication and language and in their physical, personal, social and emotional development. This provides them with the key skills needed for the next steps in their learning, such as school. They help themselves to books and readily available pens, pencils, paints and chalks, which help refine their literacy skills. In addition, many novel opportunities are purposefully built into the plans to develop children's early writing skills. For example, using children's interest in castles, staff provide scratchboards in different shapes, such as crowns and flags to match the castle themed role play area. Children use tools to scrape off the top layer of scratchboards to reveal their marks in different shades of colour. Children practise early writing movements as they freely chalk on the easel outdoors and use water and brushes to remove the chalk. Throughout the year, children enjoy experiences which relate to their own culture and

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who attend

sometimes the culture of others. Children make cakes for each other's birthday, decorate poppy biscuits for Remembrance Day and make advent calendars at Christmas. They learn about the cultures of others, for example, they talk about Holi, the Hindu spring festival of colours. During this festival, children experiment with different colours, for example, they watch carnations change colour when placed in food colouring.

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who attend

Staff have a good understanding of the Early Years Foundation Stage and how to promote the learning and development of young children through play. Experiences are interesting and challenging, particularly when planning builds on each child's known interests and abilities. The quality of teaching during planned activities is good and sometimes outstanding. The manager seeks out authentic resources to engage children's interest in learning. For example, three different sizes of steel bolt, washer and nut are introduced to the construction area due to a child's keen interest in construction. These are used to teach mathematics as children place them in size order, also it develops their fine motor skills and develops good hand to eye coordination as children find matching sizes of bolt, washer and nut and screw them together. Large technical drawings of buildings are sourced specifically to meet a child's interest and are readily available. Children

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who attend

concentrate well as they follow the drawn lines with a highlighter pen, which effectively develops their mark making abilities. Assessment records indicate children progress consistently. This is confirmed by parents and carers spoken to at the inspection. As a result, by the time children move on from nursery they are all generally working comfortably within the typical range of development expected for their age.

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

The manager has a very good awareness of each child's unique ways. She helps each child become familiar with the nursery, offers a settled relationship and builds a relationship with their parents. As numbers of children attending increase, other staff are beginning to take the role of key person and establish secure emotional bonds with children. Staff provide a nurturing, caring and supportive environment, which meets each child's needs and stage of development. Parents comment that they are especially pleased with the warmth of the reception that they and their children receive. They feel that staff know and understand their children well. Parents are welcome to stay with their children until they are happy and confident. However, many of the children and parents also attend stay and play sessions, which are open when the nursery is closed. This helps them settle quickly in to nursery because they are already familiar with the nursery environment

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

Staff are effectively deployed to meet required ratios and ensure children are supervised so their care needs are met. The manager and staff interact well with the children. As a result, children are happy, settled and display high levels of self-esteem and a strong sense of belonging. Staff help children to learn to be independent and encourage them to manage their own personal needs. As a result, children are competent at self-help skills, such as putting on wellingtons, shoes and coats. They easily help themselves to toys and books and also help themselves to water when thirsty and fruit and vegetables when hungry. Snack and lunchtime are sociable occasions. Children sit together at the table, listen to panpipe music and chat to each other and staff. Staff are fully aware of each child's individual health or dietary needs and maintain clear records to ensure that these are addressed appropriately. Lunch is cooked on the premises from fresh ingredients.

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

Children choose from two cooked meals, of which one is a vegetarian option, or sandwiches. Meals are nutritionally balanced with vegetables and salad also offered. Children develop a good understanding of healthy lifestyles as they enjoy experiences on the local authority health education bus. They learn through stories, songs and a giraffe puppet about the care of teeth and how to wash your face. Children gain an understanding of the need for physical exercise as part of a healthy lifestyle. They exercise and develop coordination as they swirl ribbons in large circles in the hall and through activities, such as throwing and catching balls in the garden.

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

Children confidently interact with visitors, which demonstrates that they feel safe and self- assured. They develop an excellent understanding of how to keep themselves safe. They identify hazards in the garden and actively minimise these, for example, they make a fence to secure an area of the garden. Children routinely wear helmets when using wheeled sit and ride toys outdoors. They know how to use spades safely when digging in the garden growing bed. Staffs' calm and polite manner sets a good example to children. They make good use of a children's television character who tries to do things right to help children discuss and agree rules and appropriate behaviours. These are scribed by staff and displayed on the wall as a reminder. Children learn to respect and tolerate each other's differences and display polite, courteous behaviour. They learn to care and consider the needs of others through raising money for national charitable events.

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

Children are emotionally well prepared for moving on to school. There is a strong and close working relationship with the host school and an effective partnership with other professionals and services. This ensures all children are fully supported to ensure they are not disadvantaged.

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provision

The leadership and management team understand their responsibility to meet the safeguarding and welfare and learning and development requirements of the Statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage. The nursery room is kept secure at all times and access to the building is through the school reception area, which is carefully monitored. Regular risk assessments are made and staff follow a checklist when opening and closing the nursery, to ensure hazards are kept minimised. Robust recruitment and vetting is followed by in-depth induction checks for each staff's suitability to work with children. Evidence of checks, including from the Disclosure and Barring Service, are available for inspection to evidence their suitability. On a daily basis, the clear policies and procedures are implemented consistently by staff, which protects the children well. All the required details about each child are obtained before a child starts, which ensures they are

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provision

accessible in an emergency. Arrangements for safeguarding children within the nursery and through work with outside agencies are good. Staff are confident about the procedures to follow should they have any concerns about a child's welfare. This is because they are all trained in safeguarding and some staff are trained at a higher level to support them. Accidents and injuries are dealt with appropriately, recorded in detail and shared with and signed by parents.

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provision

Children freely choose activities from a wide range of accessible toys and books. The manager tracks and monitors children's progress, which enables appropriate action to be taken to identify and close any gaps in learning. At the nursery there is a strong commitment to continuous improvement. The registered committee meet regularly to discuss the nursery and are aware of their responsibilities. The solid leadership and management team are totally committed and extremely passionate about their work with children. They effectively identify the nursery's strengths and areas to develop, as a result, they have positive improvement plans. Some priorities for development are based on the group's participation in the 'step into quality' award, provided from the local authority. Children's views are actively sought as they are involved in many aspects of planning. The management team meet regularly with providers of other settings delivering the Early

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provision

Years Foundation Stage to discuss topical items and share best practice. They also communicate and exchange ideas with teachers from around the world. Many aspects of practice at this nursery are innovative and worthy of sharing with others. For instance, they engage children's interest in literacy and bring to life the cultures and languages of others due to connections they make with professionals from around the world. Children receive post from other countries. For example, they listen to a translation of a letter received from Mongolia and look with interest at the Mongolian writing, photographs and drawings. Since registration the nursery is growing and developing well. The recently formed staff team are beginning to work well together and there are useful systems to manage their performance, which includes a cycle of supervision and appraisal meetings. The manager informally monitors staff and discusses their performance. The manager and

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provision

staff have a wealth of skills and knowledge to deliver high quality teaching and learning. However, opportunities for less experienced staff to learn from more experienced staff, for example, through peer observations and mentoring have not been fully considered as a way of sharing the outstanding aspects.

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provision

Staff have positive relationships with parents. Parents' views are welcomed and actively sought verbally and increasingly through questionnaires. Parents spoken to at inspection are pleased that their children enjoy coming to nursery and with the progress they are making in their learning. Staff and parents communicate well on a daily basis about children's care routines and activities. A suitable procedure for dealing with concerns and complaints is shared with parents. There are close links with the host school and children's centre, which support children and families. Appropriate information is shared and this secures any support children need.

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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 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 EY464887 Local authority Lancashire Inspection number 961501 Type of provision Sessional provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 15 Number of children on roll 11 Name of provider Sparklers Committee Date of previous inspection not applicable Telephone number 01253 790 389

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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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