Little Ducklings Pre-School

Little Ducklings Pre-School Holbein Close, Basingstoke, Hampshire, RG21 3EX

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 7 March 2018 3 December 2014

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3

Effectiveness of the leadership and management Requires improvement Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good 2

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3

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Requires improvement Outcomes for children Good 2

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This provision requires improvement. It is not yet good because:

 Staff do not maintain accurate records of children's attendance. They do not record the actual times children arrive and leave the setting, as required.  Staff do not have the required information recorded about all the children in their care. There is no information to inform staff who has parental responsibility for the children.  Staff miss opportunities to support children's thinking skills and help them to understand why certain rules are in place.  On occasions, staff do not organise activities or areas sufficiently to allow for children to consistently build on their interests and follow their own play choices.  Self-evaluation processes are not robust and do not effectively help management and staff identify areas for improvement and breaches in requirements.

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It has the following strengths

 Staff know the children well and plan a good amount of activities to help support their individual next steps in learning and ongoing development.  Outcomes for children are good. Staff effectively observe and track children's learning and development to help ensure that they are all continuing to make good progress.  Recruitment, supervision and mentoring procedures are appropriately implemented, and all staff undertake the required checks to ascertain their suitability to work with children.  Parents spoken to at the pre-school talk positively of the staff and their commitment to supporting their child's development.

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What the setting needs to do to improve further

To meet the requirements of the early years foundation stage and the Childcare Register the provider must:

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Due Date

 ensure the daily record of attendance contains the names of the children being cared for on the premises and their actual hours of attendance 07/04/2018

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Due Date

 ensure sufficient information is held about each child, including information about who has parental responsibility for them. 07/04/2018

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Due Date

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

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Due Date

 make sure staff give children clear messages that help them to understand what is expected of them  review the organisation of some activities and routines to fully enable children to make their own choices about their play  use self-evaluation effectively to identify any weaknesses, including any breaches of requirements, and take prompt action to improve the quality of the provision.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector observed activities and learning experiences available to children.  The inspector observed interactions between children and staff and interacted with the children as they played.  The inspector asked staff questions about their work and observed practice with the manager.  The inspector spoke to some parents about their views and opinions of the provision and considered these.  The inspector sampled documentation.

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Effectiveness of the leadership and management requires improvement

The management team is not meeting all the requirements of the early years foundation stage and the associated Childcare Registers. For example, the team fails to record the exact hours of attendance that children attend and does not document who has parental responsibility to safeguard children's welfare. Generally, the management team is aware of its strengths. However, its self-evaluation process is not robust and has not identified its failure to meet all requirements. Safeguarding is effective. Staff have regular safeguarding training and know the signs, indictors and procedures to follow in the event of a child being at risk. Staff benefit from regular staff meetings and have suitable training opportunities to update their knowledge. For example, some staff have recently had training in sign language to help them to expand communication skills between themselves and the children.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

Staff plan activities well for the children and offer good first-hand experiences to support their developing understanding of the world. For example, children are fascinated as they use a visual diagram to help them ascertain how big the chicks are growing in the eggs in the incubator. Staff support the children's communication and literacy skills well. For example, children enjoy talking about stories read to them, and learn about letters as these are referred to in the book. The manager reviews children's progress well to ensure any gaps in children's learning are quickly identified and fully supported.

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare require improvement

Staff do not have all the information they require to enable them to fully support children's welfare. Staff offer suitable praise and encouragement to the children. For example, they thank them for helping to tidy toys away. However, at times, staff do not help children to understand the consequences of their behaviour. For example, children do not always receive messages on why they should not climb and sit on the furniture inside. Staff offer a suitable range of activities, overall. However, on occasions, staff overly direct children's craft activities and there are limited opportunities for children to lead their own play in the outdoor area. Staff provide a range of healthy snacks and promote children's self-care skills well. For instance, children are encouraged to put on their own coats before playing outside. Children have daily opportunities for fresh air and exercise.

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Outcomes for children are good

All children are developing the good skills needed for their next stages of learning. For instance, children learn about colours, modelling and shapes, such as while they play with dough and construction materials. Children have fun being physically active. For example, they enjoy dancing to music and giggle as they jump in and out of tyres outside with friends.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY424761 Local authority Hampshire Inspection number 1071383 Type of provision Sessional provision Day care type Childcare - Non-Domestic Registers Early Years Register, Compulsory Childcare Register, Voluntary Childcare Register Age range of children 2 - 5 Total number of places 30 Number of children on roll 37 Name of registered person Little Ducklings Pre-School Basingstoke

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reference number

Date of previous inspection 3 December 2014 Telephone number 01256 413794

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Little Ducklings Pre-School re-registered in January 2011 when it moved to new premises. The pre-school is situated in Black Dam, Basingstoke, in Hampshire. The pre-school employ eight members of staff, including an administrator. Seven staff members hold appropriate qualifications at level 3 or above. The pre-school opens Monday to Friday during school term times. Sessions are from 9am to 3pm with a breakfast club running from 8am to 9am. The pre-school provides funded early education for children aged two, three and four years.

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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.

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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.

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

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