Millies Pre-School

Millies Pre-School St. Mildreds Centre, 30 Bingham Road, CROYDON, CR0 7EB

p.1

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 11 January 2018 7 February 2014

p.1

This inspection: Good 2

Effectiveness of the leadership and management Good 2

p.1

This inspection: Good 2

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good 2

p.1

This inspection: Good 2

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good 2

p.1

This provision is good

 Staff successfully use group singing sessions to support children's good communication and mathematical skills. Children enthusiastically join in, remembering the words to their favourite songs, and confidently use their fingers to count along as they sing.  Staff effectively support children's positive behaviour and consistently remind them of their high expectations. Children behave very well and develop strong social skills. They make positive friendships and happily include others in their play.  Partnerships with parents are strong. The managers and staff successfully encourage regular two-way communication and involve parents in all aspects of their children's learning. They value parents' contributions highly and regularly discuss children's interests and next steps in learning.  The managers have a strong understanding of children's development. They monitor closely the progress made by all children and look in depth at specific groups, such as

p.1

This provision is good

boys, girls and children who speak English as an additional language. All children make good progress from their starting points, regardless of their circumstances.

p.1

It is not yet outstanding because:

 Although the managers support the professional development of staff well, systems are not fully embedded to help raise staff practice to an outstanding level.  Occasionally, staff miss opportunities to fully extend children's thinking skills.

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

 continue to develop and fully embed the systems already in place for the professional development of staff to help raise practice to the highest level  make the most of opportunities to fully extend children's thinking skills.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector observed teaching practices and the impact these have on children's learning.  The inspector held discussions with the manager, staff, children and parents.  The inspector read some of the pre-school's documentation, including the safeguarding policy and procedures.  The inspector sampled children's development information and records.  The inspector completed a joint observation with the manager and discussed children's play, learning and progress.

p.2

Effectiveness of the leadership and management is good

The managers are ambitious and highly qualified. They have high expectations for the children and work closely with staff to evaluate the effectiveness of the pre-school and make improvements. They have recently focused on encouraging boys' interest in early literacy and have created new 'cosy den' areas where children can chat, make marks and access books. Overall, the managers support staff well to continue to develop their childcare knowledge and skills. Staff benefit from regular training opportunities and are encouraged to further their early years qualifications. After recent training, they have introduced new 'home play bags', with resources and activities to support children's play and learning at home with their families. Safeguarding is effective. All staff attend safeguarding training and have a thorough, up-to-date understanding of how to deal with any child protection concerns. They work together well to create a safe environment.

p.3

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

Staff know the children well and maintain precise and accurate assessments of their development. They successfully plan an engaging environment that supports children's current interests and developmental next steps. Children enjoy creative activities very much. They pay good attention to detail as they carefully create 'sound shakers', choosing pasta and rice to fill their containers. Staff encourage children to think about how the sounds change as they add more filling, and children excitedly share their ideas. Staff follow children's ideas well and join in with their play skilfully. For example, as children play outside in the rain, they encourage them to explore the mud and what happens to the grass when it gets wet. Children are curious about the natural world.

p.3

Personal development, behaviour and welfare are good

Staff are strong role models for children and build warm and trusting bonds with them. Children are very happy and thoroughly enjoy their time at the pre-school. They develop a good understanding of emotions and how their actions can affect others. For example, children say, 'when I share it makes people happy', and are consistently considerate of their friends. Children enjoy regular exercise in the well-resourced garden and during regular sports sessions with a trained teacher. For example, they excitedly develop their football skills and show good balance, coordination and movement. Children have a strong understanding of how to keep themselves safe and healthy.

p.3

Outcomes for children are good

Children eagerly take part in a wide range of activities and experiences and quickly gain the skills they need for their future learning. Children are very imaginative and confidently take on roles in their play, such as when pretending to buy and sell food in a role-play shop. They count coins to give for change and show good mathematical development. They begin to write the letters of their name with staff support and give good detail to their drawings. All children communicate well, including those who speak English as an additional language. They happily share their ideas and views.

p.3

Setting details

Unique reference number EY448177 Local authority Croydon Inspection number 1069153 Type of provision Full-time provision Day care type Childcare - Non-Domestic Registers Early Years Register, Compulsory Childcare Register Age range of children 2 - 4 Total number of places 36 Number of children on roll 37 Name of registered person Kim Benham

p.4

reference number

Date of previous inspection 7 February 2014 Telephone number 0208 7774679

p.4

reference number

Millies Pre-School registered in 2012. It is open during term time only, from 9.30am to 2.30pm on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday and from 9.30am to midday on Thursday and Friday. The pre-school receives funding to provide free early education for children aged two, three and four years. Eight staff work with the children, six of whom hold appropriate early years qualifications between level 3 and early years professional status.

p.4

reference number

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

reference number

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

reference number

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 reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/, write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

p.5

reference number

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our website for news, information and updates at www.ofsted.gov.uk/user.

p.5

reference number

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

p.5