Dorchester on Thames Pre-School

Dorchester on Thames Pre-School Horsa Hut, Dorchester St. Birinus School, Queen Street, Dorchester-on-Thames, Wallingford, Oxfordshire, OX10 7HR

p.1

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 23 April 2018 11 June 2015

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

 The manager leads a dedicated staff team that works hard to improve outcomes for children. All children, including those who speak English as an additional language, make good progress from their starting points.  Parents' feedback demonstrates their satisfaction with the service. They talk about how the manager and her staff care about the children and are friendly and warm. Parents describe how well their children settled in and that staff value their opinions.  There is a very positive atmosphere across the pre-school. Staff are caring and nurturing to the children and this is modelled by children being kind to each other. Staff and children have fun and enjoy the activities together.  Staff accurately observe, assess and plan interesting activities that follow children's interests. Children are engaged and motivated to learn.

p.1

It is not yet outstanding because:

 At times, staff miss opportunities to encourage less-confident children to participate in group activities to help them take a more active role.  The management team has not fully embedded the systems to monitor the progress of different groups of children to help identify any gaps in learning even more precisely.

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

 encourage all children to take an active part in group activities, in particular to support those who are less confident at these times  enhance the systems already in place to monitor different groups of children's development to identify any gaps in their learning even more precisely.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector observed children's involvement in activities and spoke to them during the inspection.  The inspector looked at a sample of children's records and discussed these with staff.  The inspector took account of the views of parents spoken to on the day.  The inspector undertook a joint observation with the manager.  The inspector looked at and discussed documentation in relation to safeguarding, risk assessments and daily attendance registers.

p.2

Effectiveness of the leadership and management is good

Safeguarding is effective. Staff have a strong understanding of their role and responsibility to safeguard children, including what to do if they have concerns about a child's welfare. The manager and staff are keen to build on their skills and knowledge further. They attend a good range of beneficial training. For instance, staff learned about letters and sounds by attending training at the local feeder school, which has helped children's early reading and writing skills. Self-evaluation is accurate and involves parents, children and staff to identify priorities for continued improvements. Effective recruitment and induction procedures help to ensure that adults working with the children are suitable.

p.3

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

The quality of teaching is good. Staff interact well with the children during their play and help them to become engaged in their activities. Children develop good early reading skills. Staff have created reading areas inside and outdoors, which are inviting with a wide range of age-appropriate books. Children clearly enjoy these areas of the pre-school. Staff provide many opportunities for children to learn about shape, space and measure. They talk to children about what may happen when they add more blocks to the tower in the construction area and encourage them to test their predictions. They use mathematical language to aid children's understanding of concepts such as 'full', 'empty', 'heavy' and 'light'.

p.3

Personal development, behaviour and welfare are good

Staff spend time getting to know children and their families well. Children settle well into the pre-school routine and are curious and confident to speak to visitors. This demonstrates that they feel safe and secure. Staff teach children about good health and physical well-being. Children receive many opportunities for daily exercise and practise good hygiene practices during toileting and handwashing. Children independently access their coats to go outside. Mealtimes are social occasions. Staff reinforce good manners and encourage children to take turns and listen to each other. Staff provide children with many opportunities to broaden their knowledge of the wider world and their local community. For example, they make visits to the shops to buy produce, walk to the allotment and enjoy joining in activities, such as Maypole dancing, with the local school.

p.3

Outcomes for children are good

Children develop good early literacy skills. They create marks in sand and on paper using different tools. Older children extend these skills, making marks for a purpose, such as ticking off bugs from their list found on the bug hunt and labelling their pieces of work. They are beginning to link sounds to letters. Children count and recognise numbers as they engage in their play and at routine times, such as snack time. Children develop the skills they need for the next stage of their learning and their eventual move on to school.

p.3

Setting details

Unique reference number 134311 Local authority Oxfordshire Inspection number 1089491 Type of provision Full-time provision Day care type Childcare - Non-Domestic Registers Early Years Register, Compulsory Childcare Register, Voluntary Childcare Register Age range of children 2 - 4 Total number of places 20 Number of children on roll 21 Name of registered person Dorchester Pre-School Committee

p.4

reference number

Date of previous inspection 11 June 2015 Telephone number 01865 341805

p.4

reference number

Dorchester on Thames Pre-School registered in 1993 and operates from purpose-built premises situated in the grounds of St Birinus Church of England Primary School in the village of Dorchester-on-Thames, near Wallingford. The pre-school is a committee run group and receives funding to provide early education for children aged two, three and four. The pre-school opens five days a week during school term times, with various sessions between 9am and 3pm. The pre-school employs seven staff, six of whom hold relevant early years qualifications.

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