The Playbox, St Johns Methodist Church Preschool

Inspection of The Playbox, St Johns Methodist Church Preschool The Playbox Nursery, St. Johns Methodist Church, Community Centre , York Road, SUDBURY, Suffolk CO10 1ND

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Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Good Leadership and management Good Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Inadequate

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The provision is good

Children arrive at the nursery excited to join in with a planned activities week. Some children choose to have their faces painted and others wear fancy-dress animal ears and tails to join in with the day's theme. Children delight to see that adults are wearing animal ears too. They develop strong bonds with their key person and demonstrate that they feel emotionally secure. They eagerly greet their friends with a little wave as they arrive. Children are enthusiastic learners who readily lead their own play. They settle quickly into their chosen activities, chatting with their friends as they play.

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The provision is good

Children are becoming independent learners. They look at the picture timeline to see what they will be eating at snack time. Children are learning to recognise their own name and register their name card for snack. They learn to manage their self- care needs, such as hanging up their coats and washing their hands. This supports their readiness for the next stage in their learning, such as starting school.

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The provision is good

Children's good behaviour is supported as staff offer clear and consistent reminders. They know what is expected of them and respond well. For example, children listen to staff, follow their instructions and understand the daily routines. They help to tidy up without hesitation before lining up for the next activity.

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need to do better?

n The members of the management team and committee have worked hard to address the actions set at the last inspection. There are now clear roles and responsibilities to ensure the effective running of the nursery. Furthermore, staff researched wider safeguarding issues such as witchcraft and county lines, and they shared this with their colleagues. This has helped to deepen their knowledge on how to protect children from harm. n Children have many opportunities to practise their hand control. They learn to use a variety of tools such as pens, sticky tape and scissors. Staff provide praise and encouragement, boosting children's self-esteem. However, staff do not notice when children cannot hold scissors and other tools correctly, to enable them to achieve their chosen task. For instance, children hold scissors upside down and cut towards themselves. This means that children do not learn to use tools effectively.

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need to do better?

n Staff think carefully about the needs of the children who attend the nursery. They pay particular attention to developing the children's physical skills. Children have the opportunity to develop their large-muscle skills on the indoor stepping stones. Staff support children to take and manage risks as they learn to jump between the stepping stones. n Staff are particularly skilled at using songs and music to support children's

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need to do better?

13 July 2022 communication, language and understanding of rhythm. They play the piano as they sing with the children. Later, the children excitedly join in with a visitor who plays the guitar as they sing a familiar song. They hold their friends' hands as they jump and dance, remembering the words and actions well. n Children's speech is supported by staff who introduce new words to them, placing them in the correct context. For example, they introduce words such as 'nocturnal', 'gracefully' and 'stalking'. Staff explain the meaning of new words and repeatedly use them to help the children hear them again. Staff engage children in conversations during activities. However, on occasion, some staff are overenthusiastic and answer the questions they have asked the children. This means that children are not given enough time to think and respond to the questions they have been asked. n Leaders and staff have high expectations for all children to achieve. They plan

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need to do better?

meaningful activities to engage the children. They use children's interests to plan experiences that build on their knowledge. For example, when children talk about going to the zoo, they create their own zoo in small-world play. This helps children to remain motivated learners. n Visitors regularly come into the nursery to speak to the children about their jobs. Children confidently interact with visitors, asking them questions and telling them about their experiences. Children have the opportunity to learn about living things when they have a visit from 'Leo' and 'Shelley', the tortoises. These visits help to provide children with rich experiences.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Staff know how to keep children safe and promote their welfare. All staff and committee members have had refresher training to ensure they fully understand their roles and responsibilities. They have now ensured that Ofsted are able to check their suitability. Staff know the signs and indicators that may mean a child is at risk of harm or abuse. They know where to report any concerns they have about a child in their care or concerns about staff who work with children. Robust recruitment procedures are now in place to ensure that those who work with or have access to children are safe to do so.

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should:

n support staff to make the most of teachable moments to help children learn to use equipment correctly n strengthen staff practice to develop their questioning techniques to further extend children's thinking skills and allow them time to respond.

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Setting details

Unique reference number 251691 Local authority Suffolk Inspection number 10237146 Type of provision Childcare on non-domestic premises Registers Early Years Register Day care type Full day care

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inspection

Total number of places 28 Number of children on roll 43

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Name of registered person

The Playbox, St Johns Methodist Church Preschool Management Committee

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reference number

Telephone number 01787 373185 Date of previous inspection 17 March 2022

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Information about this early years setting

The Playbox, St Johns Methodist Church Preschool opened in 1995 in Sudbury, Suffolk. It is managed by members of a voluntary committee. The setting employs seven permanent members of childcare staff. Of these, five hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 2 or above. The setting opens from Monday to Thursday, during school term time. Sessions are from 8.30am to 11.30am, and from midday until 3pm. The provider offers a lunch club between the morning and afternoon sessions. The setting provides funded early education for two-, three- and four-year-old children.

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Inspection activities

n The inspector discussed any continued impact of the pandemic with the provider and has taken that into account in their evaluation of the provider. n The inspector viewed the provision and discussed the safety and suitability of the premises. n The manager and inspector completed a learning walk together of all areas of the nursery and discussed the early years curriculum. n Children told the inspector about their friends and what they like to do when they are at nursery. n Staff spoke to the inspector during the inspection. n The inspector spoke with the nominated individual/registered individual about the leadership and management of the setting. n The inspector observed the quality of education being provided, indoors and outdoors, and assessed the impact that this was having on children's learning. n The inspector and the manager carried out joint observations of group activities. n The inspector spoke to parents during the inspection and took account of their

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Inspection activities

We carried out this inspection 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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Inspection activities

13 July 2022 regulates and inspects to 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 and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, 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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Inspection activities

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Inspection activities

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Inspection activities

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Inspection activities

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