Little Poppies Pre School

Little Poppies Pre-School (Royal British legion) Poppyfield Drive, Mickleover, DE3 9GQ

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 13/01/2015 03/02/2014

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early years provision

This inspection: 2 Previous inspection: 3 How well the early years provision meets the needs of the range of children who attend The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children 2 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 2

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This provision is good

 Children are confident, active and make good progress in their learning and development. They are very well supported by skilled staff who have a secure knowledge of the different ways in which children learn.  Staff accurately assess children's learning and development and use the information to plan carefully to meet individual children's needs. Planning is regularly monitored by the manager to ensure that all aspects of children's learning and development are being catered for.  Parents receive detailed feedback on their child's progress from their child's key person, with activity suggestions to support children's learning at home.  Children are developing a good range of skills in readiness for the next stage in their education. They confidently make choices about their play, participate in games for extended periods of time and join in age appropriate group activities led by adults.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Children use the outdoor area regularly but not enough is made of the unique opportunities that the outdoors offers all year round. Digging in soil, for example, is mainly seen as an activity for warmer weather.  Staff one-to-one meetings with the manager and the manager's monitoring of practice are regular, but not frequent enough to ensure staff are on track with any development points and that good quality practice is being maintained.  Consultation with parents about the pre-school and how it might be improved has been basic. It is developing with improved questionnaires now in place but the outcomes are not yet known and cannot, therefore, be included in the setting's self-evaluation process.

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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 playroom and the outdoor learning environment.  The inspector conducted a joint observation with the manager.  The inspector held a meeting with the pre-school manager.  The inspector looked at children's assessment records and planning documentation.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took account of the views of parents spoken to on the day of the inspection.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector checked evidence of the suitability and qualifications of the staff who work with the children.

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Information about the setting

Little Poppies Pre-School was registered in 1989 and is on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. It is situated on the Royal British Legion site in the Mickleover area of Derby, and is privately owned. The nursery serves the local area and is accessible to all children. It operates from the main hall and there is a fully enclosed area available for outdoor play.

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Information about the setting

The nursery employs nine members of childcare staff, seven of whom hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 3. The nursery opens Monday to Friday all year round. Sessions are from 8am until 4.30pm. Children attend for a variety of sessions. There are currently 47 children on roll who are in the early years age group. The nursery provides funded early education for two-, three- and four-year-olds.

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

 improve the range of activities on offer to children that make use of the unique opportunities the outdoor environment provides

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

 increase the frequency of staff one-to-one meetings with the manager and the manager's monitoring of staff practice so that any development points or training needs can be followed up and acted on in a timely and meaningful way.

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who attend

Children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, make good progress in their learning and development while at the setting. Staff use a good range of teaching strategies throughout the day to capture and retain children's interest. Activities on offer appeal to children of all ages and abilities attending the pre-school and are adapted and changed spontaneously depending on the children's interests. Children playing on the climbing frame were captivated when a staff member helped them to imagine it was a fishing boat. Children used binoculars to look for fish and then with encouragement and skilful questioning from the staff member were able to describe the imaginary fish they saw. The activity was rich in language with children using a wide range of words while the staff member drew what they were describing to demonstrate how important it is to think and listen.

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who attend

The pre-school room has been reorganised to create areas with different foci, for example, a quiet area for reading books, a role play area and a construction area. Children move between these areas and the outdoor area freely and sensibly. Activities are carefully planned to make sure that over time all aspects of the areas of learning and development identified in the Early Years Foundation Stage are covered. This long term process sits alongside short term planning that takes into account the needs of individual children. The combined process has supported children, in particular those with special educational needs and/or disabilities to make good progress. Staff use their detailed knowledge of the children to provide different levels of challenge from one activity. In an activity, primarily provided for the older children to improve how they hold writing tools using shaving foam and different sizes of paint brushes, younger children were encouraged to use their fingers

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who attend

or the chunky paint brushes to make controlled marks in the foam. Staff modelled holding a paintbrush, supported children to change how they held their brush and praised them when they were successful.

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who attend

Each child has a key person who monitors their progress and ensures that their individual needs are planned for. Parents are full of praise for the quality of information they receive from their child's key person. Staff accurately assess the children and have a secure understanding of their development. Parents feel confident that when their child is assessed to have reached a milestone they have securely reached it and staff have not used one observation to make the assessment.

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

Children are happy, settled and behave very well in the pre-school. They have good relationships with staff and happily play with, and alongside, each other sharing their thoughts and ideas. Staff apply rules consistently so that children are clear about what is expected of them. When there are lapses, staff remind children about rules, such as 'walking feet when we are inside', and carefully help children to work out solutions to disagreements. Children are confident and happily ask familiar adults for help and support when they need it, for example, when getting ready to go out to play, a younger child was helped to put on their coat.

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

The pre-school is well staffed. Throughout the day staff make sure that they are well deployed across the playroom and the outdoor area so that children have the support they need, when they need it. Children are very familiar with the daily routines and confidently follow them. Older children know the signal for their turn to have a phonics session and younger children tidy up after themselves when they have finished having a snack. When moving from indoor to outdoor play children are encouraged to find and put on their coats themselves with varying levels of support offered by staff. Two areas have been created in the playroom. One has activities developed for the younger children and the other for older children who will be moving to school in September. The discussions in circle time in these areas are very different and older children are successfully learning about the day, month and year, which they tell staff about when asked later in sessions. These activities

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

are instrumental in preparing children well for their eventual move to school.

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

Every morning the session starts with a 'wake up, shake up' exercise session to music. Children thoroughly enjoy this burst of activity and staff who join in act as good role models commenting positively on how good the exercise makes them feel. The outdoor area is used on a daily basis as long as staff feel it is safe to use, especially in windy weather. Children have opportunities to use chalks on the floor, ride wheeled toys and climb. However, not enough use is made of the unique opportunities outdoor learning offers to children throughout the year. Planters full of soil, for example, are not used in colder, wetter months.

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provision

Staff and the manager deliver a well-balanced range of experiences and activities for children. They have a secure understanding of how young children learn. They apply this daily to their work, reflecting their understanding of the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. The manager regularly monitors children's progress and how staff plan to support this. The accuracy of the manager's observations and quality of one-to-one meetings is good and provides staff with opportunities to discuss their professional development and concerns about key children. However, the time between each meeting is too long so that any follow up is not meaningful. Nevertheless, staff do use the training opportunities they are given to improve their practice. This is evident in the way in which staff talk to and question children following work on speech and language development.

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provision

Staff have a good understanding of how to safeguard and protect children. They know what would give them cause for concern about a child or about a colleague's behaviour and where to go to seek advice and support. The pre-school has good links, and works closely with professionals such as speech and language therapists, who are involved with children who attend the pre-school. When staff identify that a child may need extra support they do not hesitate to speak to parents or seek advice and guidance from their local authority early intervention team. As a result, children who need extra help make very good progress, for example, in their communication and speech.

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provision

The pre-school has successfully developed its self-evaluation process to include the views of staff members. Records are swiftly updated as things change and improve. However, the inclusion of parents' and children's views has, up to now, been basic. New questionnaires have been devised and sent out to parents, but the outcome of these is yet to be reviewed and incorporated into the self-evaluation process.

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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 EY371611 Local authority Derby, City of Inspection number 1001334 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 35 Number of children on roll 47 Name of provider Jacqueline Anne Beacon Date of previous inspection 03/02/2014 Telephone number 07789 393172

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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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