Integrated Inspection by the Care Commission and HM Inspectorate of Education of
Banavie Primary School Nursery Class
The Highland Council

20 December 2006

Banavie Primary School Nursery Class
Tomonie
Banavie
Fort William
PH33 7LX

The Regulation of Care (Scotland) Act, 2001, requires that the Care Commission inspect all care services covered by the Act every year to monitor the quality of care provided. In accordance with the Act, the Care Commission and HM Inspectorate of Education carry out integrated inspections of the quality of care and education. In doing this, inspection teams take account of National Care Standards, Early Education and Childcare up to the age of 16, and The Child at the Centre. The following standards and related quality indicators were used in the recent inspection.

Evaluations made using HMIE quality indicators use the following scale, and these words are used in the report to describe the team’s judgements:

Very good : major strengths
Good : strengths outweigh weaknesses
Fair : some important weaknesses
Unsatisfactory : major weaknesses

Reports contain Recommendations which are intended to support improvements in the quality of service.

Any Requirements refer to actions which must be taken by service providers to ensure that regulations are met and there is compliance with relevant legislation. In these cases the regulation(s) to which requirements refer will be noted clearly and timescales given.

HOW TO CONTACT US

If you would like an additional copy of this report

Copies of this report have been sent to the headteacher, staff and the education authority. Copies are also available on the Care Commission website: www.carecommission.com and HMIE website: www.hmie.gov.uk.

If you wish to comment about integrated pre-school inspections

Should you wish to comment on any aspect of integrated pre-school inspections, you should write in the first instance to Kenneth Muir, HMCI, at HM Inspectorate of Education, Denholm House, Almondvale Business Park, Almondvale Way, Livingston EH54 6GA.

Our complaints procedure

If you have a concern about this report, you should write in the first instance to either:

If you are not satisfied with the action we have taken at the end of our complaints procedure, you can raise your complaint with the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman. The Scottish Public Services Ombudsman is fully independent and has powers to investigate complaints about Government departments and agencies. You can write to The Scottish Public Services Ombudsman, 4-6 Melville Street, Edinburgh EH3 7NS. You can also telephone 0870 011 5378 or e-mail enquiries@scottishombudsman.org.uk. More information about the Ombudsman’s office can be obtained from the website: www.scottishombudsman.org.uk.

A copy of the HMIE complaints procedure is available from the HMIE website at www.hmie.gov.uk or by telephoning 01506 600 258.

Crown Copyright 2006

Care Commission

HM Inspectorate of Education

This report may be reproduced in whole or in part, except for commercial purposes or in connection with a prospectus or advertisement, provided that the source and date thereof are stated.

Introduction

Banavie Primary School Nursery Class was inspected in September 2006 as part of the integrated inspection programme by the Care Commission and HM Inspectorate of Education. HMIE carried out this inspection on behalf of both organisations and consulted the Care Commission about its findings. The nursery catered for pre-school children aged three to five years. It was registered for 21 children attending at any one session. At the time of the inspection the total roll was ten.

The environment

Standard 2

The accommodation for children was bright and welcoming. Staff had created attractive displays of children’s work, including photographs depicting life within the playrooms and activities in the local environment. The nursery had a small, enclosed outdoor area where children could grow plants. The gym hall was used daily for energetic physical play. The premises were well maintained, and staff complied with health and safety requirements in relation to risk assessments, food handling and the storage and administration of medicines.

Quality of children’s experience

Standard 4 & 5

Staff knew children very well and were responsive to their individual needs. They were very respectful of children and consulted with them and valued their contributions. Children were confident and enthusiastic and were very good at making choices and decisions. Staff encouraged children to use dialogue, discussion and questions to develop and express their ideas and to encourage them to think for themselves. All children were very well behaved and showed care and kindness towards one another. Staff used praise effectively to celebrate children’s efforts and achievements.

Daily activities were well organised and planned, and staff were developing their planning to make it more responsive to children’s interests and concerns. They made observations of children’s play and noted their responses. Information was used to evaluate children’s learning and to compile individual assessment documents. Staff now needed to strengthen the link between assessment information and planning to clearly identify next steps in learning for individual children. Parents received information about their children’s progress in formal and informal meetings and written reports.

Features of the programmes for children included the following.

• The programme for emotional, personal and social development was very good. Children were happy and cheerful in the nursery environment and were developing their confidence and self esteem. They had settled well into nursery routines and were comfortable with simple rules. Staff involved them in making plans and decisions and children were able to choose activities confidently by themselves. They were enthusiastic learners who were developing very good skills for working independently and in a small group. Children demonstrated independence and sustained their concentration on tasks well. Staff encouraged them to take responsibility for personal tasks such as hand washing before snack. The snack ‘helper’ assisted carefully in the preparation of snack and laid the table.
• The programme for communication and language was very good. Children were confident when talking and listening to adults and to each other. Staff gave children time to formulate and express their thoughts and ideas. They were encouraged to ask questions and use language to describe events and experiences. Children listened to information well and followed instructions during activities in the gym hall. Staff made very good use of labels and captions around the playroom to help children to gain an understanding of the link between the written and spoken word. Children used the book area independently and enjoyed listening to stories and finding information from books. The mobile library visited the nursery and children were able to choose books to read at home. The well-resourced writing area was used by children who were very interested in early writing. They could recognise their own name in print and had opportunities to write it.
• The programme for knowledge and understanding of the world was very good. Staff planned an interesting range of topics throughout the year. They made very good use of the natural environment and children were gaining an understanding of the natural world. They had been on a ‘colour walk’ and took photographs of colours in the local area. Staff and children had made an attractive wall display of their observations. Children were developing simple science and investigative skills using a wide range of materials including sand, water and play dough. Staff had developed science sacks for children to take home and share with parents. They were gaining a very good understanding of everyday technology using cameras, telephones and familiar items of equipment in the ‘home’ corner. Children had won a cup from the Lochaber Agricultural Society and had grown their own tomatoes. Staff provided very good opportunities for children to understand simple mathematical processes such as counting, sorting, matching and measuring.
• The programme for expressive and aesthetic development was good. Children enjoyed painting a large wall display of Noah’s Ark as part of a project. Staff provided a good range of art and craft resources for children to use for collage and junk modelling. However, some of these activities were too adult led. Children moulded and modelled play dough to make volcanoes and birthday cakes. Some children made good use of the imaginative area and enjoyed dressing up and acting out roles and characters. Staff needed to make more use of these situations to stimulate children’s imagination and creativity and provide further challenge in learning. Staff provided opportunities for children to enjoy Scottish dancing and they were able to move rhythmically to music. During a singing activity, children sang a range of familiar songs and rhymes enthusiastically and tunefully. Staff did not provide enough opportunities for children to use musical instruments, make their own music and gain an awareness of rhythm, pitch, tone and beat.
• The programme for physical development and movement was good. Children enjoyed daily energetic physical activity in the gym hall. They were developing a good range of skills and were able to run, hop, skip and jump confidently. They followed instructions well and made themselves small and tall during warm-up and stretching exercises. Staff planned the programme to encourage children to experiment with what their bodies were able to do. Children used bats and balls, hula hoops and an obstacle course to develop balancing skills. They were gaining a good awareness of space and were becoming aware of how to keep themselves safe during physical play activities. However, children had limited opportunities to ride wheeled toys and enjoy energetic physical play outdoors. Staff needed to ensure there was sufficient challenge and progression for individual children. All children were developing good hand and finger control using scissors, writing tools, the computer, cutlery and construction toys. Staff encouraged children’s health and fitness by talking to them about healthy eating and exercise.

Support for children and families

Standard 6

The headteacher and staff provided very good support to children and families. They had created a happy, caring environment where children and parents were made to feel very welcome. Staff made considerable efforts to involve parents in the nursery and in their children’s learning. They consulted with parents in relation to issues such as behaviour management and were very keen to utilise parents’ knowledge and skills for the benefit of children. Parents were kept well informed about the work of the nursery through an informative notice board, nursery handbook and newsletters. Staff made effective use of photographs of children enjoying activities and explained how and what children were learning through play. Parents provided very good support to the nursery and the Parent Teacher Association had organised events and provided funding for resources and equipment. Parents who responded to the pre-inspection questionnaire were very satisfied with the quality of care and education provided to their children.

The nursery had a well-planned programme of induction for children moving into the primary school. Information about children’s progress was transferred to the P1 teacher who was a visitor to nursery and known to children. A ‘buddy’ system provided support from older pupils to nursery children and helped familiarise them with the playground and dining hall. Staff had formed effective links with outside agencies and were able to access assistance from other professionals when required.

Management

Standard 14

The headteacher provided very good leadership and management of the nursery. She was very committed to establishing positive relationships with children, parents and staff and saw the nursery as a valuable and integral part of the school community. She had worked very hard to create an inclusive ethos and was highly professional, open and approachable. Very good team work existed between the staff and the peripatetic nursery teacher. They were enthusiastic about the nursery provision and shared a vision and commitment to continuous improvement in the quality of children’s experiences.

Child protection guidelines were followed appropriately and staff had received training in how to keep children safe. The headteacher had appropriate procedures for staff supervision and review that informed the staff training and development plan. Staff were aware of the Scottish Social Services Council Codes of Practice and its implications.

The headteacher had established a systematic and robust system for monitoring and evaluating all aspects of the work of the nursery. Staff and parents were involved and informed the priorities for improvement. These were clearly identified within the development plan. Staff were committed to taking these forward successfully. The headteacher had developed very effective procedures for formally monitoring and evaluating the quality of children’s experiences, and practice within the playroom.

Key strengths

• The very happy, confident and motivated children.
• The high-quality experiences for children in emotional, personal and social development, communication and language and knowledge and understanding of the world.
• The high quality of staff interactions with children.
• The very effective staff teamwork.
• The very good support provided to the nursery by the Parent Teacher Association.
• The very effective headteacher and her commitment to continuous improvement.

Other Issues

Response to recommendations or to requirements made at previous inspection

At the last Care Commission singleton inspection there were two recommendations. One of these had been actioned. There were no requirements.

Recommendations for improvement

• Staff should provide more opportunities for children to express themselves freely and creatively through imaginative play, arts and crafts and music-making.
• Staff should improve the programme for physical development and movement to develop and progress children’s individual physical skills.

Care Commission Officers and HM Inspectors have asked the pre-school centre and education authority to prepare an action plan indicating how they will address the main findings of the report. Where requirements are made, the action plan should include timescales to deal with these. The plan will be available to parents and carers. In liaison with the pre-school centre and education authority, Care Commission Officers and HM Inspectors will monitor progress to ensure improvements are in line with the main findings of the report.

Hilary Long

HM Inspectorate of Education