Ickford Pre-School Incorporating After School Club

Inspection of Ickford Pre-School Incorporating After School Club Ickford Combined School, Sheldon Road, Ickford, AYLESBURY, Buckinghamshire HP18 9HY

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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 Good

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The provision is good

Children flourish in this welcoming and bright environment. They are happy and safe and arrive excited for their day. They confidently approach staff and other children to join in with activities. Managers and staff consider children's interests and individual needs when planning the curriculum. This helps them make good progress in their learning. For example, children bring in a toy or object of interest from home to use during show and tell. They take turns talking to their friends about their choice, promoting language and listening skills.

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The provision is good

Children behave well. Staff have high expectations of children, and they encourage them to be confident and independent. They help with tasks, such as peeling and cutting fruit for snack time and following instructions during tidy-up time. Children are enthusiastic about their creativity and imaginative play. Staff provide a range of opportunities for children to make choices. For example, they independently choose what they would like to use to make their creations.

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The provision is good

Staff recognise the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and support children with communication and social skills. For example, they create spaces where children can go when they are feeling overwhelmed or need to regulate their emotions.

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need to do better?

n Managers support staff and encourage their personal development. They work with staff to identify their individual needs. Managers organise regular group training, which helps to build on staff's knowledge of specific areas, such as early literacy and mathematics. n Staff develop children's early literacy skills well. For example, children enjoy telling stories using props, such as in story sacks. Staff provide resources so that they can do this at the pre-school and also at home with their parents. This is building children's knowledge of how stories are structured. n Staff encourage children to explore through new experiences. For example, children explore ice cubes filled with glitter, paint and bells with their senses. Children choose a tool to try to break open the ice. They talked about how they could break the ice, what the best tool to use was and how long it would take for the ice to melt. This promotes their language and communication and critical

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need to do better?

thinking. n During activities with staff, children are encouraged to count. They take this knowledge into their own games and play. For example, children play hide and seek and count to 15 before trying to find each other. n Staff identify areas of development for children and plan activities to support this. For example, staff recognise that some children starting school next year need extra support with fine motor and early writing skills. They encourage

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need to do better?

9 December 2022 children to practise their pincer grip by using tools to pick up pom-poms, helping to build these skills. n Parents are very happy with the standard of care and support they receive from the setting. They are especially happy with the feedback they receive about children's progress, achievements and what they have been doing during their day. They use this feedback to talk to the children about their day and support learning at home. n Children enjoy exploring the outdoor area. They choose from a range of activities and equipment that help to develop their coordination and strength. For example, children become engrossed as they explore troughs filled with mud and diggers and dig to find the toy people buried underneath. n Children who speak English as an additional language and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities are supported well. Staff build strong relationships with their parents, meaning the children get consistent support and

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need to do better?

help, both in the setting and at home. n Staff provide a range of exciting activities for children. However, at the planning stage, they are not fully effective at identifying the full range of knowledge and skills that they can help children develop within them. n Children create games based on their interests. However, this means that often they prefer to play only these games, and staff are not fully effective at providing support and encouragement to help them explore new learning opportunities.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Managers and staff have a clear understanding of the procedures in place to keep children safe. They recognise signs and behaviours that could indicate a child is at risk of harm or abuse and how to act on these. Staff deploy themselves well, indoors and outdoors, to make sure that children are well supervised. Staff paediatric first-aid training is kept updated. Staff help children to understand how to keep themselves safe by ensuring that the floor area is kept clear and that children tidy up after themselves.

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should:

n review planning to help staff identify all potential opportunities to develop children's knowledge and skills within their activities n support staff to monitor children's engagement in learning and recognise when to encourage children to explore new opportunities.

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Setting details

Unique reference number 151306 Local authority Buckinghamshire Inspection number 10228032 Type of provision Childcare on non-domestic premises

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Registers

Early Years Register, Compulsory Childcare Register, Voluntary Childcare Register Day care type Sessional day care

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inspection

Total number of places 38 Number of children on roll 31

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Name of registered person

Ickford Pre School Playgroup Incorporating After School Club Committee

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reference number

Telephone number 01844338785 Date of previous inspection 12 December 2016

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Information about this early years setting

Ickford Pre-School incorporating a before- and after-school club registered in 2002. The provision operates from Ickford Primary School, in Ickford, Buckinghamshire. It is open Monday to Friday, during term time only. It offers pre-school sessions from 9am until midday and midday to 3.15pm, a breakfast club from 7.45am to 9am, and an after-school club from 3.15pm to 6pm. The pre-school receives funding for the provision of free early education for children aged two, three and four years. Ten qualified staff are employed. Of those, one has early years professional status, one holds a level 4 qualification, seven hold a level 3 qualification and one member of staff is unqualified. The manager holds qualified teacher status.

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Inspection activities

n This was the first routine inspection the provider received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with the provider and has taken that into account in their evaluation of the provider. n The manager and inspector completed a learning walk together of all areas of the pre-school and discussed the curriculum. n The inspector talked to staff at appropriate times during the inspection and took account of their views. n The inspector carried out a joint observation of a group activity with the manager. n The inspector spoke to parents and considered their views.

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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

9 December 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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