St Mary's Playschool

St Marys Playschool St Marys Church Centre, The Chase,Great Baddow, Chelmsford, Essex, CM2 7JU

p.1

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 18 March 2015 28 January 2009

p.1

This inspection: Good 2

Previous inspection: Good 2 How well the early years provision meets the needs of the range of children who attend Good 2

p.1

This inspection: Good 2

The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children Good 2

p.1

This inspection: Good 2

The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision Good 2

p.1

This inspection: Good 2

The setting meets legal requirements for early years settings

p.1

This provision is good

 Children are confident and settle well in the pre-school because staff are consistent in their expectations and they are friendly and welcoming. Children form strong attachments to their key persons and this helps them to feel safe and secure.  Staff have a good understanding of the learning and development requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. Staff understand how children learn and they provide challenging and interesting activities tailored to meet their needs.  Staff have a good understanding of the needs of individual children. The key-person system is well embedded and staff engage positively with parents to ensure continuation of learning between the setting and home.  Staff ensure that children learn about the benefits of eating a balanced diet. They exercise regularly in the fresh air, which promotes their good health.  Staff fully understand their responsibilities to protect children from harm. They carry

p.1

This provision is good

out robust risk assessments of the areas where children play and learn, including outdoors and on outings.  A good self-evaluation process means that the views of parents, staff, children and other people involved in the smooth running of the pre-school, ensure its continued improvement.

p.1

It is not yet outstanding because:

 Staff do not use the outdoor environment to its fullest extent to promote all the areas of learning, throughout the year. This means that continuity of learning for children between inside and outside, is sometimes reduced.

p.1

What the setting needs to do to improve further

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

p.2

What the setting needs to do to improve further

 increase the variety of provision in the outdoor learning environment for children to experience all areas of learning throughout the year.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector observed staff interactions with children, indoors and outdoors.  The inspector held discussions with the manager, members of staff and children.  The inspector carried out a joint observation with a senior member of staff.  The inspector took account of the views of parents by speaking with them on the day of the inspection.  The inspector looked at children's progress records, staff suitability and qualification records, policies and procedures and a sample of relevant documentation.

p.2

who attend. This is good

Children enjoy a good range of interesting and challenging activities that build on their interests and individual learning needs. Staff make learning fun and they use planned and unplanned indoor activities to promote children's learning across all areas. For example, children learn a variety of skills during a role-play shopping activity. They learn to queue and take turns, handle and count money, solve problems and name a variety of food items. Skilled staff extend the play by using a spontaneous incident to help children to learn about right from wrong, when a child left the shop without paying. Children have less opportunity to experience all areas of learning in the outdoor environment as staff tend to focus predominantly on physical development outside during the winter months. Children make good progress because staff regularly evaluate their learning through frequent and detailed observations. Staff assess and monitor children's learning using

p.3

who attend. This is good

appropriate developmental guidelines. This helps them to successfully plan for children's continued progress in their future learning.

p.3

good

Staff obtain information from parents from the beginning to ensure they understand children's developmental and learning needs. This enables staff to quickly identify any gaps in children's learning and seek appropriate and timely interventions to ensure their continued good progress. Staff prepare children well for school and moving on in their learning. For example, children demonstrate their developing skills in mathematics when they identify the correct number of snacks to serve to children on their tables. This also teaches children independence and good social skills. They manage their personal care needs appropriate to their stage of development and tidy away their own playthings. They understand the routines of the pre-school and line up to use the bathroom or go outside to play.

p.3

provision is good

Staff are well qualified in the pre-school and this has a strong impact on the learning outcomes that children achieve. There is a strong management team comprising the manager, supervisors and deputies. This ensures good monitoring of the effectiveness of staff's practice and educational programmes. Staff receive regular training opportunities to continually develop their skills. Strong partnership working with parents and other professionals ensures that children with special educational needs and/or disabilities receive early intervention to enable good progress in their learning. Staff ensure children are well safeguarded as they follow strict procedures to ensure their safety. Safeguarding and first-aid training are carried out by all staff to ensure that children remain safe. Rigorous recruitment procedures ensure that all staff are well qualified and mentored throughout their induction to ensure consistency in teaching practice.

p.3

Setting details

Unique reference number 650135 Local authority Essex Inspection number 869516

p.4

Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 2 - 5 Total number of places 78 Number of children on roll 101 Name of provider St Marys Playschool Committee Date of previous inspection 28 January 2009 Telephone number 01245 471683

p.4

Type of provision

St Marys Playschool was registered in 1968. The pre-school employs 19 members of childcare staff, of whom two hold Qualified Teacher Status. One member of staff holds an early years qualification at level 6, 15 hold qualifications at level 3 and one at level 2. The pre-school opens Monday to Friday from 9am until 12 noon and Monday to Thursday from 12.50pm until 3.20pm, term time only. The pre-school also operate a lunch club between 12 noon and 12.50pm on three days per week. The pre-school provides funded early education for two-, three- and four-year-old children.

p.4

Type of provision

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.

p.4

Type of provision

procedures set out in the guidance ‘Complaints procedure: raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted’, which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted. If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk. 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, safeguarding and child protection.

p.4

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’.

p.5

Type of provision

T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ofsted

p.5