Bierton Pre School

Bierton Pre-School Bierton Sports Centre, Burcott Lane, Bierton, Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, HP22 5AS

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 27/03/2014 22/03/2011

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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

 Ofsted has not been supplied with information on current committee members in order that suitability checks can be carried out. This is a breach in requirements.  The provider fails to obtain Disclosure and Barring Service checks for all staff and does not have robust procedures to check their ongoing suitability. Staff do not identify and minimise all potential hazards in the outdoor area and behaviour is not always managed appropriately. This compromises children's well-being.  The quality of teaching is not good enough to ensure all children are challenged in their learning and are building secure skills for their move to school. Staff do not complete accurate assessments or identify children's most important next steps. Support for children learning English as an additional language is poor and this demonstrates that staff do not promote equality of opportunity.  Self-evaluation procedures have not tackled the most urgent aspects in the pre-school

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This provision is inadequate

that require improvement. Monitoring of staff practice and teaching is weak. Gaps in children's progress have not been identified or sufficiently tackled.

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It has the following strengths

 Relationships between staff and parents are friendly and parents receive suitable levels of information about the activities in the setting, via newsletters and notice-board displays.  Staff have a secure understanding of the reporting procedures to follow if they have a safeguarding concern about a child in their care.

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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 mainly observed activities in the main room of the pre-school and the outdoor area.  The inspector held discussions with the manager and a member of the committee.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke to members of the staff team about the progress of their key children and their understanding of the pre-school's policies and procedures.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at observation, tracking and assessment records, planning documentation, evidence of suitability of committee members and staff working with children in the pre-school, and a range of other documentation.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector also took into account the views of children, written comments from parents and carers and spoke to a number of parents.

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Information about the setting

Bierton Pre-School opened in 1991 and is managed by a committee of parents. It is a pack-away setting that operates from the Sports Pavilion, which is owned and managed by the Parish Council, in the village of Bierton on the outskirts of Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire. The pre-school serves children living in the village and the surrounding area. Children have use of the main hall, toilets and a committee room is used as a cloakroom. Children have use of the adjacent playing field for supervised outdoor play and access to a small additional enclosed play area which they access at set times in the day. The pre-school opens five mornings and three afternoons a week, during school terms times only. Sessions are held on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday from 9.30am to 12 noon and then 12 noon to 2.30pm and Wednesdays and Friday mornings from 9.30am to 12pm. The pre- school is registered on the Early Years Register. The pre-school is in receipt of funding for

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Information about the setting

the provision of free early education for three- and four-year-olds. There are currently 40 children on roll. The pre-school supports children with special educational needs, and children who are learning English as an additional language. There are six staff who work directly with the children and of those all hold suitable childcare qualifications. The pre- school also employs a part time administrative assistant.

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must:

 implement a system to ensure notification is made to Ofsted of any change to committee members, and that notification is made in advance or at the most within 14 days of the change occurring; submit relevant documentation to Ofsted to initiate suitability checks for these people

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must:

 obtain an enhanced criminal records disclosure in respect of every person aged 16 and over who works directly with children

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must:

 ensure that staff know that they are expected to disclose any convictions, cautions, court orders, reprimands and warnings that may affect their suitability to work with children

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must:

 ensure that the premises, including outdoor spaces, are fit for purpose

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must:

 ensure there are appropriate arrangements in place for the supervision of staff who have contact with children and families, which includes opportunities for staff to discuss any issues - particularly concerning children's development or well- being; identify solutions to address issues as they arise; and receive coaching to improve their personal effectiveness

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must:

 implement a policy and procedures to promote equality of opportunity for all children; include how the individual needs of all children will be met; arrangements for reviewing, monitoring and evaluating the effectiveness of inclusive practices; how inappropriate attitudes and practices will be challenged; and how the provision will encourage children to value and respect others

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must:

 improve self-evaluation systems and use this to drive future improvements by identifying the setting's strengths and weaknesses accurately and taking appropriate action to address these

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must:

 develop the educational programme to help children to develop a positive sense of themselves, and others; to form positive relationships and develop respect for others; to develop social skills and learn how to manage their feelings; to understand appropriate behaviour in groups; and to have confidence in their own abilities

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must:

 improve staff's knowledge of the learning and development requirements in order to consider the individual needs, interests, and stage of development of each child and use this information to identify their starting points and next steps, and plan a challenging and enjoyable experience for each child in all of the areas of learning and development

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who attend

Staff have a poor understanding of how to support children's learning and, as a result, children do not make enough progress given their starting points. Staff gather some information from parents when children first start at the pre-school and also complete a settling-in summary of each child's starting points. They make notes of any additional needs that a child may have and this is also added to the child's folder to inform planning. However, once this information has been collated, staff are less secure in how to link the information they have gathered to the general interactions they have with children. Planning is also not effective in matching activities to children's needs because staff have not established a clear link between the range of activities and opportunities they offer and how these will purposefully support children's learning. Ongoing assessment of children's progress is not always accurate and next steps identified for children's learning

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who attend

do not effectively target the most significant gaps in children's learning. For example, some children are still developing their communication skills which are vital for their move to school. However, rather than build children's confidence in speaking by planning a range of opportunities to help them develop in this area, staff identify that children need to learn how to hold a pencil properly. This also means that children are generally occupied by the range of activities on offer, rather than being challenged, and any learning is incidental rather than focussed to meet their needs. As a result, not enough children are working within the typical range of development expected for their age, given their starting points. This is particularly evident for those children who have lower starting points than their peers. More able children make no better than steady progress because the lack of challenge provided by the activities means that they are often disinterested in

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who attend

what is on offer and do not become purposefully engaged or motivated in their learning. The use of group work to deliver a commercially produced programme to teach children the sounds that letters make is also currently having a limited impact on children's learning because staff model letter sounds inconsistently. The work is not tailored or specific enough to meet the needs of the varying groups in order to add value to their learning, and some of this work is not age- or stage-appropriate for the children attending.

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who attend

The quality of teaching is poor. Staff miss too many opportunities to actively build on what children already know and can do because they do not re-shape tasks, skilfully question children or support them by working towards finding an explanation for why things work. For example, in a group activity staff present the children with a feelings board to help them discuss their feelings. Children are uninterested in the activity because they cannot read the print on the labels staff are using and find the discussion hard to follow because they cannot relate it to their own behaviour. Later, they run outside in the outdoor area but are left to manage a game of bubble-blowing for themselves. This means that staff miss the chance to explore mathematical concepts such as 'larger' and 'smaller' with the children, as they blow assorted size bubbles, build on turn-taking or discover why some bubbles blow higher than others. Inside, children that are more able have limited

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who attend

opportunities to write as staff do not encourage them to write their names with purpose. Some staff state that they are discouraging writing until the children move onto school.

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who attend

Parents say they have regular opportunities to discuss their child's learning with staff and this is informative. Relationships between staff and parents are friendly and parents receive suitable levels of information about the activities in the setting, via newsletters and notice-board displays. However, because of the weaknesses in assessment and planning parents do not always get a true picture of where their children are in their learning. This affects how well children's further learning is supported in the setting and at home.

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

Children come into the setting and settle suitably well, greeting their friends and staff as they arrive. The pre-school operates a key person system that allows for each child to have a designated member of staff who is their first contact in order to help them settle. When a child first starts, the key person visits the family in their home to gather information to inform this settling-in process. However staff sometimes forget to find out about children's home languages and do not always use information gathered to tailor children's care to meet their individual needs. The weaknesses in the key person system mean that some children do not display good levels of self-confidence and some struggle to join in with group activities or access the full range of activities on offer.

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

Behaviour is improving. Staff manage children's behaviour adequately most of the time. Following a high number of cases of biting and hitting, staff have implemented strategies, such as the use of timers, to help children learn about taking turns and sharing. However, throughout the session there are still incidences of poor behaviour because children struggle to communicate their needs or do not have the consistent support of an adult to help them understand about turn-taking, respecting the toys and working together. This can be attributed to poor daily planning which does not meet the needs of the children in order to keep them purposefully engaged for the whole session. Staff follow the behaviour policy but this is less positive as children are taken away from the issue and made to sit with a member of staff rather than helping them to learn behavioural expectations. General levels of staff supervision are suitable to manage children's safety but staff are

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

not proactive enough to help children manage to conflict and they only intervene once an incident has occurred. This does not support children's understanding of how to resolve issues for themselves or teach them how to solve problems when they are faced with making decisions about their actions.

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

Resources within the pre-school are generally accessible in low-level shelves and boxes, and children can choose from a selection of toys and resources. However, there is a lack of resources that reflect positive images of diversity. This means that children cannot use resources in their play that value or represent their home culture or heritage. Children have opportunities to use recycled materials in their play as they build, paint and glue cardboard containers and other materials together in a creative play activity. Resources outdoors are very much limited to what staff put out on the day and are timetabled into the routine because the pre-school does not have a designated play space that children can freely access. This means that there is less of a focus on active learning outside because this time is set aside for the children to run around in the fresh air. Staff provide some activities, such as nature hunts and playing at the park, but overall the choice,

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

planning and range of equipment is limited. There are some opportunities for children to manage tasks for themselves, such as fetching their own coats for outside time, putting on their wellies or blowing their own noses. Children show a developing awareness of why they should wash their hands before snack time and they take responsibility for managing their own toileting needs. This is generally supervised by staff but more recently an intercom system has been added which allows staff to listen and identify if children need further help.

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

Children are developing some awareness of healthy lifestyles as they have fruit snacks. Staff work in partnership with parents to ensure that dietary needs are catered for. Information is gained about any allergies and dietary preferences and staff ensure that they observe these at all times. They obtain prior written consent from parents about any medication they need to administer and some children have an emergency care plan which staff are trained to follow in the event of emergency. There is a suitable space for ill or tired children to rest.

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provision

This inspection took place as a result of a notification made by the pre-school. The pre- school acted appropriately by notifying Ofsted of an incident that occurred and staff demonstrated sound judgement by contacting other professionals for advice. The manager has a good overview of her role as the designated child protection lead and has a suitable understanding of what to do in the event of an allegation being made. Staff, under the supervision of the manager, record any changes they note about a child's behaviour and show an awareness of the signs and symptoms of abuse. The manager seeks additional advice as and when necessary. Written safeguarding policies have been updated and staff undertake safeguarding training as part of their ongoing development. A suitably experienced designated committee member has been appointed to oversee that safeguarding procedures are closely followed. However, not all other safeguarding

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provision

measures are adequate. Suitability checks for committee members have not been initiated because the provider has failed to notify Ofsted of changes to the committee. Also Disclosure and Barring Service checks have not been obtained for every staff member who is employed to work with the children. This compromises children's well-being because unvetted staff, on occasions, have unsupervised access to children, for example helping them in the toilets. In addition, staff have not been informed of the need to share information about any changes which may affect their ongoing suitability to care for children. The manager and chairperson are aware that this is a requirement and are devising a system to ensure staff disclose any changes. However, currently there is no robust system for recruitment and vetting and to ensure the ongoing suitability of staff.

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provision

Risk assessments are ineffective. Staff do daily visual safety checks of the areas used by the children, however, staff fail to identify all hazards. As a result, when children go outdoors to play, they run through dog faeces in close proximity to play equipment. This does not support children's ongoing good health. Supervision of children and deployment of staff is satisfactory and helps to promote children's safety.

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provision

The manager has not met her responsibility in overseeing the delivery of educational programmes within the pre-school. This is because she has been tackling a high number of other issues that she has identified since recently taking over the position. This has meant that she has not had the time to sufficiently tackle staff under-performance in order to improve the levels of progress children make. Staff appraisals have had very little impact on the quality of the teaching delivered, which overall is poor, and staff supervision opportunities are not established. The impact of this is particularly noticeable in the amount of progress that children learning English as an additional language make. As staff are unaware of the language their key children speak at home, they do not provide effective levels of support for them or tailor an individual programme that fosters and builds on their speaking skills. Gaps in progress are also evident for those children who are

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provision

made more vulnerable by their home circumstances and they are making less progress in their personal, social and emotional development. Overall, the pre-school staff fail to sufficiently promote a programme of learning that has sufficient depth, breadth and challenge or that reflects the needs, aptitudes and interests of the children attending. As a result, children have insufficient opportunities to acquire the skills and attitudes necessary to prepare them for their next stage in learning and school.

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provision

Self-evaluation provides an adequate overview of the strengths and weaknesses in the pre-school. The manager, supported by the chairperson and committee, is steadily addressing weaknesses in the pre-school. A number of recent changes have been implemented as a result of intensive support and feedback from the local authority, and actions are slowly becoming embedded in daily practice. For example, increased access to the outdoor play spaces to support learning and a full review of all policies and procedures which have impacted on some safety practice. However some actions have not been addressed with the urgency that is required to ensure children's safety, for example suitability checks for staff, and so children are still placed at risk. Parents speak of their satisfaction with the pre-school and comment positively on the range of activities their children undertake and the friendly, kind staff. Children generally appear to enjoy their

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provision

time at the pre-school although, on occasions, their behaviour shows that they are still finding it hard to understand the need to share toys, although this is steadily improving.

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provision

Partnerships with other professionals who are involved in the care and support of families are generally suitable to meet the needs of the children attending. Staff liaise with agencies such as First Response, if they have a concern about child in their care. This prompt action ensures that families gain the support they need from a range of professionals and staff working in partnership and has a positive effect on how children settle in the pre-school. Suitable links are becoming established with local schools and other early years providers.

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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 140842 Local authority Buckinghamshire Inspection number 965848

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 2 - 5 Total number of places 26 Number of children on roll 40 Name of provider Bierton Pre-School Committee Date of previous inspection 22/03/2011 Telephone number 07881 931 354

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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

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk. You may copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as you give details of the source and date of publication and do not alter the information in any way. To receive regular email alerts about new publications, including survey reports and school inspection reports, please visit our website and go to ‘Subscribe’.

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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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