Nursery Education Inspection Report
ST MICHAEL'S NURSERY SCHOOL
Inspection Number: 1131698
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whole or in part for non-commercial educational purposes, provided that all
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INSPECTION OF NURSERY EDUCATION
INSPECTION REPORT
| Name of setting: |
St Michael's Nursery School |
| Setting number: |
513400 |
| Address: |
St Michael's Convent |
| |
New Town |
| |
Uckfield |
| |
East Sussex |
| |
|
| Postcode: |
TN22 5DN |
| Person responsible for the day-to-day management of the
setting: |
Mrs W Holliday |
| Position: |
Head of Nursery |
| Name of Inspector: |
Mrs Ann Revell |
| RgNI's Registration number: |
25823 |
| Date(s) of inspection: |
14/3/2000 |
| Inspection number: |
1131698 |
The inspection took place as part of a national programme of inspection of
the educational provision for four year olds. It was commissioned by the Office
for Standards in Education (OFSTED), a department of central government.
NURSERY EDUCATION INSPECTION REPORT
ABOUT THE INSPECTION
The purpose of the inspection is to identify
strengths and weaknesses so that providers can improve the quality of
educational provision and help children to achieve the Desirable Outcomes for
children's learning on entering compulsory education, (ie by the age of five).
It is also to ensure parents and the public that nursery education funded by the
state is of an acceptable quality. The inspection report must be made available
to all parents.
If the setting has been inspected previously, an
action plan will have been drawn up to tackle issues identified. This
inspection, therefore, must also assess what progress has been made in the
implementation of this plan.
St Michael's Nursery School is a private nursery school owned by the Sisters of
Mercy and run by a management committee of trustees. The Head of Nursery is
responsible for the day-to-day running of the nursery school. The nursery school
was established in 1966 and moved to its current site in 1987. It has strong
links with the Catholic Church and the adjacent Catholic Primary School. The
nursery serves the small town in which it is situated and also the surrounding
villages. Children attending are from a range of social and economic
backgrounds. There are places available to children from a non-Catholic
background. The four-year-olds are situated in two adjacent classrooms and share
the use of the hall with the rest of the nursery.
The nursery accepts children between two and five years. There are currently 143
children on roll. Session times are from 8.45 am to 12 noon each week day in
term time except on Tuesdays when sessions for the pre-school children are from
8.45 am to 3.00 pm. The nursery accepts both full-time and part-time children.
There are, at present, 34 four-year-olds on roll, of whom 29 are receiving
funding. There are currently no four-year-olds who have been identified as
having special educational needs or who are learning English as an additional
language.
The Head of Nursery and the other pre-school class teacher are both qualified
teachers. Three of the remaining staff have an appropriate qualification in
Childcare and Education, two are unqualified and one is currently in training.
The class teachers and assistants are all part time. Three of the staff have
been appointed since the last inspection. The nursery participates in a student
placement scheme. The last inspection took place on the 17th of July 1997.
The strengths and weaknesses of the educational provision provided
St Michael's Nursery School provides interesting, worthwhile activities within a
warm and caring environment. Children are likely to achieve appropriately
towards the desirable learning outcomes by the time they are five years old.
Significant improvements have been made as a result of the action plan arising
from the last inspection.
Personal and social development is a strong feature of the nursery's work. The
warm, friendly atmosphere enables children to feel confident and secure and they
are encouraged to show good care and consideration for others. They work with
good purpose and co-operate well during group activities. Children have
excellent opportunities to be aware of the variety of cultures in society and to
respond to a range of festivals. Staff expectations for children's politeness
and behaviour are high and children respond well.
The programme for language and literacy is very good. The development of
listening skills is given high priority and children use the planned times well
to talk about their experiences. Good emphasis is given to word and name
recognition and to the sounds that letters make. Children are making good
progress through the early stages of reading development. They are learning to
form letters correctly and imaginative use is made of role-play situations to
encourage them to practise their skills.
The programme for mathematics is strong. An effective programme of practical
activities is provided to develop and extend children's mathematical language
and understanding. Counting and number recognition are well used in many daily
routines and good use is made of planned activities and incidental opportunities
to introduce children to adding on and taking away.
The programme for knowledge and understanding of the world is very strong with
imaginative and relevant provision made to promote all the aspects. Display
tables give children first-hand opportunities to explore natural and made
objects and many artefacts are provided to interest children in the past. A
range of investigative experiences engages the children's curiosity effectively.
Resources for model-making are freely available for children to select and
explore and they are developing good skills.
The programme for physical development is good with all the aspects being
promoted through a daily variety of enjoyable activities. Movement lessons and
team games are increasing children's co-ordination and control and they use a
range of small and large equipment with increasing confidence and skill. There
are excellent opportunities for children to develop and extend their
manipulative skills.
Staff provide a stimulating variety of creative experiences and the programme is
very good. Opportunities for children to respond to different sensory stimuli is
excellent and children have access to a range of worthwhile media such as paint,
dough, papier mache and collage materials. Children frequently explore sound as
they sing and play instruments.
The detailed planning of the programme is carried out with regard to the
desirable learning outcomes and promotes these very effectively. The plans give
very high priority to all aspects of the three key areas of learning with
several activities planned daily to support each of these areas. Plans are based
on assessment of children's progress and for each theme many activities are
planned to cater for differing levels of development. The desirable learning
outcomes are made clear in the planning and the plans are very supportive of
teaching. The deployment of staff is carefully planned to ensure maximum
involvement with the children and well-organised sessions. The grouping of the
children for activities is now effective for learning.
The quality of teaching and assessment in the nursery is very good. Staff use
their sound knowledge of the desirable learning outcomes to provide a
stimulating, balanced programme of activities. Staff interact consistently well
with the children and use many opportunities to maximise learning. Questioning
is very well used to encourage children to think in a variety of situations.
Staff now provide a good balance between teacher-led activities and those that
children choose for themselves giving good opportunities for them to be
independent learners. A comprehensive system of assessment is in place that
effectively covers all the aspects of the six areas of learning. It is well used
for informing the planning and for reporting to parents. Staff make good efforts
to ensure that all the children are given full access to the daily range of
activities and are encouraged to participate fully. Staff cater effectively for
children's different levels of development in their planning of activities and
in the level of support that they offer. The head of nursery is informed and
experienced with regard to special educational needs and there are excellent
strategies in place for identification and support. Resources are of good
quality, sufficient to teach the whole curriculum and are very accessible to the
children. The accommodation is attractive and very well organised. It provides a
stimulating environment where children will want to learn.
A positive partnership has been developed with parents and carers and they are
involved in many ways that effectively support children's learning. They
regularly see the assessment record of their children's progress but staff do
not reliably ensure that all parents have the opportunity to discuss these with
staff. They benefit from good informal opportunities to contribute their
observations of their child's learning at home to the overall assessment. They
receive a good range of information, including details of the curriculum and of
forthcoming themes and activities.
Good progress has been made in implementing the action plan drawn up in response
to the last inspection. The grouping of the children is now very effective for
learning and staff ensure that all children are encouraged to contribute at
large group time and also provide small groups where they can share experiences.
There are now good opportunities for children to initiate their own learning and
to explore freely the resources. Staff appraisal is now in place and is
effectively used to identify training needs.
There are no significant weaknesses to report, but the following points
for development should be considered in the action plan:
Ensure that all parents and carers regularly have the opportunity to discuss
their child's attainment and progress.
The provider must draw up an action plan within 40 working days of receipt
of this report showing how the key issues or points for development detailed
above will be addressed. The action plan must be made available to all parents,
and to the Local Education Authority if required. An evaluation of the action
taken will form part of the next inspection.
A. QUALITY OF EDUCATIONAL PROVISION
| Personal and social development |
Promotes the desirable outcomes |
| Language and literacy |
Promotes the desirable outcomes |
| Mathematics |
Promotes the desirable outcomes |
| Knowledge and understanding of the world |
Promotes the desirable outcomes |
| Physical development |
Promotes the desirable outcomes |
| Creative development |
Promotes the desirable outcomes |
B. CHILDREN'S SPIRITUAL, MORAL, SOCIAL AND CULTURAL DEVELOPMENT IS
FOSTERED APPROPRIATELY.
C. PROGRESS IN IMPLEMENTING THE ACTION PLAN IS GOOD
D. OUTCOME AND RECOMMENDATION OF THE INSPECTION
Taken overall, the quality and standards of the educational provision are
acceptable in promoting the desirable outcomes for children's learning. The
action plan should show how the provider will address the key issues or points
for development within 12 months of the inspection.
It is recommended that the next inspection occurs within two to four years.
The strengths and weaknesses of
personal and social development
The programme for personal and social development is strong with children's
spiritual, moral, social and cultural development being well fostered. The
friendly atmosphere enables children to feel confident and secure in the nursery
with shy children being especially well supported. Staff give children lots of
praise for all their small achievements and give them special responsibilities
to encourage the promotion of their self-esteem. Staff have good expectations
for behaviour and politeness and manage the children calmly and skilfully. They
offer good explanations when encouraging children to consider the way they
respond to others. The simple rules are consistently reinforced, such as walking
sensibly when going to the hall. Children are becoming increasingly aware of
right and wrong. The relaxed atmosphere of the group enables children to explore
freely their feelings and they are able to express them appropriately. Staff use
group times to sensitively explore situations and encourage children to share
their feelings with others.
All relationships within the nursery are positive. Children are caring and
tolerant to each other. Good opportunities, such as craft activities, are
planned to enable children to co-operate together and to take turns. They
spontaneously offer to share the scissors. Children talk about their ideas and
listen to the suggestions of others. Staff expect that all the children will
help to clear away the toys and equipment and they do this sensibly and
willingly. They learn about the needs of pets, and water the seeds that they
have grown.
A wide variety of resources is available to ensure that children are aware of
the range of cultures in society. Displays of, for example, Chinese writing and
African artefacts give worthwhile opportunities for children to learn about
other cultures and customs. A number of religious and cultural festivals are
included in the plans during the course of the year such as Harvest, Diwali,
Christmas, Chinese New Year and Easter. Children have explored Mendhi patterns
and have danced to Indian music.
Staff have good expectations for children's achievements and they respond well
as they concentrate on their activities and they are encouraged to complete each
task. Children are confident in selecting their own activities and resources and
they work purposefully throughout the sessions. Staff actively encourage
children to use their initiative and to be responsible for their own learning
as, for example, they ensure that they can independently access the computer
programs. Staff promote personal independence as children hand round the snack
boxes and put on their own coats.
The strengths and weaknesses of
language and literacy
The programme for language and literacy is very good and promotes all the
aspects well. Staff give good emphasis to encouraging children to listen
carefully. They ensure that children wait for their turn to speak so they can
listen attentively to others. They are able to listen well at large group
discussion times. Planned times are now set aside for children to talk about
their experiences in both large and small groups and these are used well. There
are good opportunities for children to take part in discussions, for example,
about Africa, and they tell each other about the book they have been reading.
Staff introduce new vocabulary in the course of topic work and in the context of
many activities.
Very good use is made of the role-play area with the focus of the play being
changed with each new topic. At the time of the inspection, the area was an
'airport' with children 'checking in the luggage, flying the plane and serving
drinks to the passengers'. A good variety of 'small world' resources is in
frequent use to encourage children to make up their own stories. The book areas
are well stocked with both story and information books. Children have a daily
quiet reading-time where children share books with staff and with each other.
Children display good book knowledge, turning pages appropriately, following the
print and using the pictures to find out about the story. Children are able to
talk about their favourite stories. Daily routines are effectively used to
encourage children to recognise their names and other familiar words and they
are becoming confident at this. They find their name on arrival and can find the
correct day of the week from the date chart. Letter sounds are taught
systematically and staff reinforce this learning well as they play games such as
' line up if your name begins with 's' '. Good attention is given to sounds
within words and words that sound the same as children play rhyming games and
listen for the sounds within their names. They are achieving very well in their
pre-reading skills.
Staff have good strategies in place for progressively developing pencil control
and name writing. Good attention is paid to the correct formation of letters and
children are taught to use capital and small letters appropriately. Drawing and
writing materials are freely available and are enjoyed by the children. They
practise their writing skills as they 'write' their passports and 'write'
postcards for Africa. Some children are beginning to use their phonic knowledge
in their writing.
The strengths and weaknesses of
mathematics
The programme for mathematics is strong. Effective use is made of interesting,
practical activities, routines and incidental opportunities, all of which are
making children increasingly aware of mathematical language and ideas. Children
weigh themselves on the see-saw to find out how many bags of flour it will take
to make the see-saw balance. The teddies are weighed to find the 'heaviest' and
the 'lightest'. Children lie on the floor to see how many bricks long they are.
They place their teddies either 'above', 'under' or 'beside' the box and use
'full' and 'empty' at the water tray. They use two-dimensional shape in their
craft work as they make a body out of shapes. They are being introduced to solid
shapes, such as a sphere as they talk about travel to the moon. Children have
good opportunities to create their own patterns using pegs and boards, threading
beads and the toy cars.
Children compare and sort the zoo animals and sort themselves by the colour of
their clothes. They complete matching puzzles and games and order and sequence
the bears by size. Routines are well used to practise counting and children are
confident at counting to 20 at register-time. This is well reinforced by singing
such counting songs as 'Five Teddy Bears'. Children are beginning to recognise
the numbers they need to put on the date chart. They use numbers on the computer
and as they use the telephone, write their number on their passports and use the
calculators. Children have good opportunities to record counting on simple
worksheets.
Problem-solving activities are planned into each topic and staff use incidental
opportunities well to reinforce this aspect. Simple bar charts showing how
children travel to school are well used to introduce children to an
understanding of 'more than' and 'less than'. Staff are constantly extending
children's number knowledge as they maximise opportunities to encourage children
to 'add on' and 'take away'. Children who finish quickly are provided with good
challenges.
The strengths and weaknesses of
knowledge and understanding of the world
The programme for knowledge and understanding of the world is very strong and
all the aspects are well taught. Children benefit from planned themes and set
times when they can talk about their families and these are used well. Staff
introduce such language as 'before', 'after' and 'long ago' and provide
topic-related artefacts such as a vintage car to give children a sense of the
past. The current topic includes looking at their locality. They have drawn
their houses and place them appropriately on a map and have looked at
photographs of the main features of the area. They have visited the local steam
engine railway. Visitors such as the police, a doctor and a vet tell the
children about the work that they do.
Very good use is made of displays to encourage children to handle a variety of
made and natural objects such as African artefacts. Children grow seeds and know
that without regular water the seeds will not grow. They have watched chickens
hatch out in an incubator and have visits from dogs and lizards. They examine
similarities and differences as they compare facial features, look at the
differences in fruit and vegetables and find out that liquids vary when objects
are dropped into a container. Pattern and change are appropriately covered by
work on seasons, weather and life cycles. Children talk enthusiastically about
their experiments and record their findings on simple worksheets.
Staff have developed their planning to include interesting investigative
experiences such as looking at cogs and wheels, using magnets and completing a
simple circuit. They test cars on different surfaces to see which will go the
fastest. All these activities engage children's curiosity and give them good
first-hand opportunities to question why and how things happen as they do.
Children freely use a range of construction sets to build a variety of models.
When using scrap materials, staff provide a wide range of resources for children
to choose from and then allow them to explore them and to learn from their own
mistakes as they practise cutting, folding and joining. They are developing
excellent cutting skills through regular practice. Children have frequent access
to tape machines, programmable toys and a computer. They are developing good
skills as they use interesting programs to support several areas of learning.
The strengths and weaknesses of
physical development
The programme for physical development is good with the indoor and the outdoor
facilities being well used throughout the year to give a full range of physical
experiences. A physical activity is planned for each day and in addition,
outdoor play is included whenever possible. Children thoroughly enjoy riding the
bikes, moving imaginatively to music and playing action games. In all these
activities they display a good awareness of space and each other. Children show
good control and co-ordination as they change from fast movements to slow
movements in time to the piano and as they practise their skipping skills. Team
games and obstacle courses also give children good opportunities to engage in
vigorous exercise and to develop agility.
Children frequently use a variety of balls and quoits in their indoor and
outside play. Staff place good emphasis on the teaching of skills, such as
throwing, catching, kicking and aiming at a target. Children have good access to
a range of large apparatus including a challenging climbing frame on which staff
encourage children to develop good skills and confidence. Suitable apparatus is
in use to promote balancing skills.
Staff offer good support to children daily when encouraging them to develop
skills with small tools and to practise using such equipment as construction
sets, threading beads, scissors and dough tools. Children's pencil control as
they write and draw indicates that they are achieving well in this aspect.
The strengths and weaknesses of
creative development
The programme for creative development is very good. Children explore sound as
they enjoy singing together as a group, clap rhythms and use a variety of
instruments including some of other cultures. Children are focusing on the
comparison of different sounds, pitch and rhythm during the course of the year.
They have opportunities to appreciate music as they listen to tapes.
Many good opportunities and activities are provided which allow children to
explore the creative media in both two and three dimensions. Staff provide
experiences that encourage children to become increasingly aware of colour,
shape, form and texture. They paint themselves, make observational drawings of
transport, print with fruit and shapes and dye fabric. They use raffia, rice and
tissue paper in their collage work. Dough, papier mache and scrap materials are
all frequently in use to make a variety of models. Children have excellent
opportunities to respond to their senses as they smell and taste fruit and
vegetables, explore a 'feely' bag and respond to music as they clap the beat.
Display tables are also used well for encouraging touching and feeling. Many
displays are in response to what the children have observed.
Good use is made of role-play resources to stimulate imagination and an
interesting focus is planned for each topic. 'Small world' play is in daily use.
Children regularly move to music, for example, as if they were machines, and
stories are well chosen to encourage the use of imagination. Staff value all the
children's paintings and drawings and these are carefully and attractively
displayed. Staff teach children the skills they need and then allow them to
express their own ideas and feelings in a confident way.
The strengths and weaknesses of the overall planning of the educational
programme
The planning of the programme is detailed and comprehensive. It covers all the
aspects of the six areas of learning and is very effective in promoting the
children's achievements of the desirable learning outcomes. All planning is
based on the curriculum documents that have been drawn up in all the areas of
learning. Planning is topic-based with the yearly plans outlining the
half-termly topics and how they will promote the desirable learning outcomes
throughout the year. Themes are well chosen to give breadth and balance over the
year. Topic planning is for the whole nursery but activities are planned that
are specifically appropriate for the three levels of development by which the
children are divided into groups. Medium-term plans identify the desirable
learning outcomes to be focused on in each area of learning and the
topic-related activities that are designed to promote them. A forecast
illustrates how the activities will be spread across the half-term. This
includes detailed lists of the resources needed for each activity. Weekly plans
provide the detail of the activities and the staff who will be responsible for
supervising them. Daily timetables indicate the grouping for the day's
activities. At each stage of planning, the main focus of the desirable learning
outcome for the activity is made clear. This is particularly supportive of
students. Each group leader completes a Curriculum Framework Document giving
evidence for the coverage of each desirable learning outcome and how it has been
covered, for example, by focused activity, through ongoing free play or through
incidental opportunity. Any gaps can be clearly seen and can be included in the
next term's planning. All staff are involved in all aspects of the planning and
all planning takes account of the assessment of what children already know. The
differentiation of activities to suit the differing levels of development is
very well planned. The thorough planning contributes greatly to the quality of
the provision.
The plans show good emphasis on personal and social development and many aspects
are promoted by the planned routines and overall ethos of the nursery. Language
and literacy and mathematics both receive high priority with planned activities
to promote all the aspects being regularly included.
Staff deployment is carefully timetabled with staff being allocated to specific
activities. This promotes focused teaching and well-organised sessions. The
grouping of the children for some activities is noted on the plans. Staff now
plan good times for children to work in small groups. These groups are often
planned to ensure that the many part-time children have access to the full range
of activities. In addition, attention is paid to grouping by the level of
children's development. The planning for small group work is very effective for
learning.
The strengths and weaknesses of
teaching and assessment
The quality of teaching and assessment in the nursery is very good. Staff have a
very sound knowledge of the desirable learning outcomes and use this to plan an
interesting programme of activities that has a good balance across the
curriculum. Planning is detailed and comprehensive and very supportive of
teaching. Teaching promotes the desirable learning outcomes very effectively.
Staff work very well as a team and they are clear about their roles and
responsibilities. There is very good communication between staff regarding all
aspects of provision at the frequent staff meetings. Staff are very involved in
the planning and, in some cases, take responsibility for specific areas of the
curriculum. They are fully involved in the assessment process and have input
into all aspects of the provision. Their planned deployment facilitates
well-organised sessions and focused teaching. Children work with all the staff
in their group at different times. Staff now ensure that children have
opportunities to work in both large and small groups and they carefully monitor
participation at large group time ensuring that all children have the
opportunity to contribute. Small group times are very well used for focused
activities and for enabling children to have first-hand opportunities to explore
the resources. Staff have developed their programme to include good times when
children can choose their own activities. There is now a good balance between
self-chosen activities and those directed by the staff. Children now have
worthwhile opportunities to become independent learners. Staff are very involved
with the children throughout the sessions and the interaction is very good.
Staff are clear when giving explanations and instructions. Some excellent
questioning is used in many areas, for example, knowledge and understanding of
the world, really encouraging children to think. Staff are competent at
developing and extending many learning opportunities both at group times and as
children engage in their free-choice play. There are good expectations for
children's achievement. All relationships are warm and positive. Personal and
social development receives high priority, supported by the routines and ethos
established in the nursery, and the children are very well behaved. Language and
literacy and mathematics are both given very good emphasis and children are
likely to achieve well in these three key areas.
The system in place for assessment is very good. Staff observe children at their
activities and systematically plan assessment tasks into the programme to ensure
that they are monitoring all aspects of the provision. This information is
transferred to each child's 'Individual Profile' and also onto their individual
'Learning Tree'. The 'Learning Tree' records are a simplified version of the
'Individual Profile' and are in place to be used for regularly reporting to
parents. These records, together with a 'topic book' of annotated work showing
development, give a very clear picture of each child's attainment and progress.
The assessment information is effectively used in the planning of the programme.
The Head of Nursery provides strong leadership. Through whole staff and group
meetings she carefully monitors planning, teaching and assessment. Staff
meetings are also effectively used for in-service training. A system of staff
appraisal has been put in place since the last inspection and this is
successfully informing training needs. All staff are motivated to update their
skills and knowledge and to maintain the high quality of the provision.
The strengths and weaknesses of
equality of access and opportunity
Staff intend that all the activities are available to both boys and girls and
they actively encourage children to participate in all the daily activities.
They ensure in their careful planning of the programme and in the level of
support that they offer, that work is matching the developmental needs of all
the children, particularly in language and literacy and in mathematics. Planned
work is progressive and there are good challenges provided for those children
who finish activities quickly. The needs of the children who attend part time
are well catered for in the planning of the programme.
The nursery does not have any four-year-olds who have been identified as having
special educational needs, at present. The Head of Nursery has a sound knowledge
of the Department for Education and Employment's 1994 Code of Practice on the
Identification and Assessment of Special Educational Needs and she has
considerable expertise and experience in this area. All suitable strategies for
identification, support and liaising with parents and agencies are in place and
comply with the Code of Practice requirements. The nursery does not have any
children for whom English is an additional language, but previous staff
experience, the excellent programmes for language and literacy and mathematics
and the support available, would enable any such children to integrate well.
The strengths and weaknesses of
the learning resources and accommodation
The resources and accommodation are very good and are used well to support the
children's learning. The resources are of good quality, appropriate, and
sufficient to teach the whole curriculum. Many of the resources are suitable or
adaptable for children with special education needs. A good range of resources
reflects the variety of cultures in society and would support children who are
learning English. Many resources are accessible to the children giving them good
opportunities to make choices and to be independent learners. Resources are
rotated between the two pre-school classes to ensure that children have access
to the full range.
Resources, such as board games and many craft activities are used well to
promote turn-taking and co-operation. An excellent range of books provides
enjoyment and is used well to promote book knowledge. Staff have made games to
develop children's interest in words that sound the same. Good use is made of
interesting resources to teach mathematical language, such as the see-saw and
bags of flour to teach the language of measure. Display tables give children
first-hand experiences of natural and made objects. Staff make a wide range of
model-making resources available for children to select and explore. An
excellent range of large and small apparatus is in daily use to develop
confidence and skills. Interesting resources are provided to enable children to
explore colour and texture in two and three dimensions. Instruments are well
used to explore sound.
Both the nursery rooms are well organised and made stimulating with good
displays of children's work. All the appropriate learning areas are available on
a daily basis. The children also make full use of the nursery hall for music and
for a range of physical activities. The outside facilities are very good with
ample scope for physical activities on the hard area throughout the year. There
is a large additional grassed area which is currently being developed for
additional large apparatus and for use to support aspects of knowledge and
understanding of the world.
The strengths and weaknesses of the partnership with parents and carers
The partnership with parents and carers is good and effective in supporting
children's progress towards the desirable learning outcomes. Much useful
information is made available to them in the form of a handbook, newsletters and
the noticeboards. Meetings are held to inform parents about the curriculum and
the activities that will be provided to support it and full information is
provided in a curriculum newsletter regarding each half-term's topic thus giving
good opportunities for parents to reinforce learning at home.
Parents have very good informal opportunities to talk with the staff about their
child's progress and appointments to meet with staff more formally are offered.
Parents report that staff often volunteer information regarding children's
particular achievements at the end of the sessions. Records of children's
attainment are sent home on a regular basis together with annotated work showing
progression and development. However, staff do not have strategies in place to
monitor whether they have regular meetings with all parents to discuss the
assessments. Parents have good informal opportunities to contribute their
observations of their child's learning at home to the overall assessment. They
report that staff value their contributions and will always work with any
difficulties that are noted.
There is a St Michael's Parents' Committee who are active in organising social
events and fundraising to support curriculum resources. The nursery's 'Learning
Together' policy reminds parents that they are invited to share in sessions and
that their skills and ideas are always appreciated. At the time of the
inspection, all relationships between parents and staff were observed to be warm
and supportive.
Implementation of action plan
Progress in the implementation of the action plan following the previous
inspection has been good. The previous inspection required the nursery to plan
opportunities for children to work in smaller groups, to provide more time for
children to choose their own activities and to formalise appraisal.
Staff now include small group work as part of their daily programme and have set
aside a small room where these activities can take place. These times are very
effectively used by staff for focused teaching. Staff carefully monitor
children's participation at large group times and give good encouragement to
those who are reluctant to contribute. They also provide opportunities for
children to share their experiences in small groups, such as at snack-time.
These are used well.
Staff have developed their programme since the last inspection to include a wide
range of activities across the curriculum where children freely explore and
investigate the resources provided. There are many investigative activities
planned, for example, in knowledge and understanding of the world, and good
opportunities are provided in the creative programme for children to explore
freely sound and the creative media. Children now have very good periods of time
in the programme where they can initiate their own learning.
Staff appraisal has now been formalised and a satisfactory system is now in use.
This effectively identifies training needs which can then be addressed through
in-service training or the local courses on offer.