Beenham Pre-School

Beenham Pre-School Community Room, Beenham Primary School, Beenham, Reading, Berkshire, RG7 5NN

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 06/10/2014 05/11/2013

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

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This provision requires improvement

 The staff are positive role models. Their clear guidance means that all children are aware of the boundaries and behavioural expectations in the setting.  The staff organise the environment well and provide good resources that engage children in self-chosen play.  Partnership with parents is good. The management keep the parents well informed and provide ideas to extend learning at home in the weekly newsletter.

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It is not yet good because

 The leadership and management team do not deploy the available qualified staff effectively to ensure they meet the qualification requirements at all times.  The staff do not always provide children with appropriate challenges to stimulate and extend their learning.  The key person approach is not fully effective in promoting children's emotional security at all times.

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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 indoor and the outside learning environment.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector checked evidence of suitability, self-evaluation processes and documents that support the pre-school.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at children's assessment records and the planning documentation.  The inspector held a meeting with the manager.  The inspector took account of parents' views.

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Information about the setting

Beenham Pre-school registered in 1992. It is managed by a voluntary committee made up of parents. The pre-school is registered on the Early Years Register and both the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. It was established in the 1970s and operates from the community room situated at Beenham Primary School, in a rural village, close to Reading in Berkshire. Children have access to an enclosed outdoor play area. The pre-school is open during term time only. It operates on Monday and Wednesday from 9am to 2.45pm, and on Tuesday and Thursday from 9am to 12.30pm. The pre-school does not open on Friday.

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Information about the setting

There are currently 15 children on roll aged from two and a half to five years. The pre- school receives funding for the provision of free early education for children aged three and four years. The pre-school supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. The pre-school employs four members of staff. Of these, two hold appropriate early years qualifications.

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must:

 ensure suitably qualified staff are deployed effectively to meet individual children's needs

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

 improve the key person system to make sure that children are always able to receive support from an adult with whom they have a strong bond

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

 strengthen teaching to consistently provide children with appropriate challenges to stimulate and fully extend their learning.

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who attend

Staff organise the environment well and plan a range of activities that engage the children's interest. Children enjoy the activities available, which support their learning overall, and make adequate progress in relation to their starting points. Staff appropriately support children who require some additional support. They work with parents and other professionals to ensure a consistent approach in order to meet children's needs and to help them make progress. Staff make observations and assess the children's development. They plan activities to support the next stages in children's learning. However, the quality of teaching is variable because staff do not always build on children's interest in activities to offer a greater degree of challenge. Consequently, at times, staff do not fully stimulate children's interests to extend their learning.

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who attend

Children enjoy listening to stories and staff help them to focus their attention. Children are learning to anticipate what will happen next in a story and can confidently describe events and the main characters. Staff help children learn and understand new vocabulary. They teach them well in preparation for reading and writing. Children are learning to recognise the number of syllables in their names when clapping and to hear and say the sounds in words. The staff effectively involve parents in their children's learning. For example, children are very excited when it is their turn to take the 'rhyming sack' home to enjoy with their parents. The staff present a good range of resources to enable children to make marks, draw and paint. These skills help children develop coordination and control, which prepares them well for writing in preparation for school.

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who attend

Staff teach the children to count to 10 and beyond, and to recognise numerals. Children are also learning to solve simple mathematical problems. Staff provide a range of creative activities, encouraging children to discover through exploration, and to use their imaginations to express themselves freely. Staff help children to learn how to use simple tools and manipulate chosen materials to achieve a planned effect. For example, children chose a range of resources from the art trolley to make flags. They cut paper into a variety of shapes, wrapped it around their sticks and used glue to fix the flag in place.

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who attend

Staff provide a range of technological equipment, which they teach children to use confidently. As a result, children are able to use tablet computers to play games and can take photographs using a camera. Children enjoy self-chosen play and use their imaginations well in role-play games. Children completing puzzles worked together to discuss where a piece should go and why. They supported each other when a piece did not fit and shared the joy of finishing a puzzle together. Staff praised their success at completing such a difficult puzzle. This provided a boost to the children's self-confidence and self-esteem.

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

Children have positive relationships with the staff working with them and every child has a key person. However, the key person approach is not fully effective to ensure all children feel emotionally secure. There are times when the organisation of staffing and duties in the pre-school means that key persons are not available to their key children. Therefore, children do not always receive comfort and support from the staff member they have bonded with the best. The management has good relationships with the local schools. The staff take all children for a fortnightly visit to the adjacent primary school for story time. This helps children to prepare for their move to school. Staff also encourage children to become independent in preparation for school. Children confidently move around the pre-school environment. Staff organise the area between indoors and outside well so children can easily access their outdoor clothing and dress

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

and undress themselves. Staff support children to manage their own personal hygiene. Most children independently use the toilet, turn on taps and use the hand dryer to dry their hands. Staff help the younger children and follow good hygiene procedures when changing their nappies.

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

Staff assist children to get along together. During a recent topic, staff talked to the children about what makes them happy and how the characters in stories and rhymes might be feeling. Staff teach the children the behavioural expectations in the setting. As a result, children generally behave well and play together happily, successfully resolving minor disputes between themselves. Children are learning to take care of their environment and enthusiastically take part in tidying up at the end of session. The staff teach children to move safely in the indoor and outdoor environments. For example, they reminded them to sit down when they were eating and give a clear explanation that walking with food in their mouths that may cause children to choke. Staff practise the fire drill regularly, which means children are learning how to evacuate the building to keep themselves safe.

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

Staff plan a good range of physical exercise. They organise the outside space well so children can play amongst the trees, enjoy time in the playhouse, and use tyres to build, climb and balance. Children have a positive attitude to being outdoors and towards physical activities, which promotes their understanding of a healthy lifestyle. Children observed playing outside took great pleasure in jumping and riding various bicycles through the muddy puddles that had formed. Children are learning to move and negotiate space successfully, adjusting speed or direction to avoid colliding with each other. Staff use a favourite story to encourage children to express their ideas and experiences and try new combinations of movement. In partnership with parents, staff provide a good range of nutritious snacks. Children are learning to try healthy food and understand how these contribute to a healthy lifestyle.

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provision

The leadership and management team have made progress since their last inspection, using self-evaluation to drive improvement. For example, the entry to the pre-school is now secure. In addition, staff plan a better range of opportunities for children to engage in freely chosen role-play activities. The newly appointed manager competently identifies areas for further improvement in teaching. However, staffing arrangements do not meet the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. These specify that at least half of the staff team must be suitably qualified. Of the four staff, two are qualified but they do not work together each day. As a result, there are regularly days when less than half the staff team are qualified.

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provision

Regular meetings with staff support the management to monitor children's development and progress, and to discuss any identified gaps in children's achievements. Staff attend specialist meetings with parents and other professionals for those children requiring special educational support. This means any decisions made include all those involved in the child's care and clarify how they will work together to provide the support required.

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provision

Staff are familiar with the policies and procedures that underpin their practice. They have a clear understanding of procedures for child protection and know who to contact in the event of a concern. The premises are safe and secure, and management complete risk assessments as well as ongoing visual checks. Therefore, they are vigilant around the children and promote their safety. The leadership and management have effective systems for safe recruitment. They ensure that all staff complete the necessary Disclosure and Barring Service checks. This helps determine the suitability of any adult involved in the pre-school. The manager works with a training provider to support the professional development of staff. She makes time to talk to the staff about their learning and progress. All staff attend training in first aid and are therefore able to deal with accidents and other emergencies quickly and efficiently.

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provision

Partnership with parents is good. Parents say how happy their children are at pre-school. Parents' value the weekly newsletters that include updates on the activities and children's learning, as well as ideas to extend learning at home. Parents' also say they like the parent consultation evenings, where they discuss their children's progress and agree their future learning goals.

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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. We re-inspect nurseries and pre-schools judged as requires improvement within 12 months of the date of 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

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Grade Judgement Description

is not meeting the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. It will be monitored and inspected again within six months of the date of this inspection. Met There were no children present at the time of the inspection. The inspection judgement is that the provider continues to meet the requirements for registration. Not met There were no children present at the time of the inspection. 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 508015 Local authority West Berkshire (Newbury) Inspection number 962709 Type of provision Sessional provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 2 - 5 Total number of places 24 Number of children on roll 15 Name of provider Beenham Pre-School Committee Date of previous inspection 05/11/2013 Telephone number 0118 9714380

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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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