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

16 February 2005

Cannich Bridge Primary School Nursery Class
Cannich
Beauly
IV4 7LN

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

Copies of this report have been sent to the acting 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.

Should you wish to comment on or make a complaint about any aspect of the inspection or about this report you should write either to the Care Commission or to HM Inspectorate of Education at the address below. If you are still dissatisfied with our services, you can contact your member of the Scottish Parliament (or, if you prefer, any other MSP). You can also contact the Scottish Parliamentary Ombudsman. The Ombudsman is fully independent and has powers to investigate complaints about Government departments and Agencies.

Crown Copyright 2005

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.

Cannich Bridge Primary School Nursery Class was inspected in October 2004 as part of the integrated inspection programme by the Care Commission and HM Inspectorate of Education. The nursery catered for pre-school children from age three to five years. At the time of the inspection the roll was ten.

The nursery was located in a unit at the rear of the primary school. The accommodation provided a safe and secure environment. The playroom was in a good state of decoration and repair. Staff had organised the room to make effective use of the resources and encourage the children to play independently or in a group. Resources were plentiful and organised to good effect. The external area was secure and provided ample space for energetic play and had been developed to encourage an interest in the environment.

Access to and from the nursery was by wooden steps and required upgrading to allow disabled access. The nursery had its own child-sized toilets. There was no hot water in the toilets and infection control was an issue. The children required hot water after using the toilet facilities to prevent cross infection. This needed to be rectified. Heaters in the toilets were too hot and posed a risk to the children. These required replacement or safety measures installed. There were no disabled facilities in the nursery and this needed to be reviewed and addressed.

Children’s work and photographs of activities were displayed in the nursery and cloakroom area. Information was clearly displayed for parents, with each child having an identified wall file to allow effective information exchange.

Standard 2

Standard 4 & 5

Staff had created a warm, caring environment in which good use was made of praise to encourage children’s efforts and sustain their interest. They had good relationships with children, knew them well and were responsive to their individual needs.

Play and adult-led activities, including whole-group activities and structured group times, were organised across each morning session. Opportunities for children to exercise free choice, take responsibility for their own learning and access a wide range of learning opportunities across the whole of each morning session, were uneven.

Staff planned a range of topics, seasonal events and festivals using the education authority planning format. They used a daily planning sheet to plan for children’s progress and development. A more formal teaching programme was being piloted for children during quiet time activities. Staff used the education authority transition document on children’s progress, which was shared with parents and with staff from the primary school. Staff should continue to develop the good systems in place for planning and assessment and link assessment information more closely to planning. They needed to take more account of children’s own interests when planning children’s learning experiences.

Features of the programmes for children included the following.

• The programme for emotional, personal and social development was good. Children were happy, familiar with daily routines and simple rules. They were developing friendships and cooperated well with each other. They were beginning to develop self confidence and were aware of the needs of others. Most children were able to take responsibility for personal hygiene and for tidying away materials. They took part enthusiastically in a tooth-brushing programme. Opportunities for children to develop skills of concentration and perseverance were limited.
• In communication and language, the programme was good. Most children were beginning to develop effective skills in listening and talking. They listened and talked well during play experiences and in small- and whole-group activities. They were beginning to develop skills in early reading and writing. Most children could recognise their name in print and some could write it. Children needed further opportunities to extend their skills in early reading and writing through play and to access the book corner independently.
• The programme for developing children’s knowledge and understanding of the world was good. Children were learning about their local environment through regular visits to the woods, fields, play-park and the nature trail at Abriachan. The adjacent outdoor area provided good opportunities for children to develop skills of observation, investigation and enquiry. Most children could recognise basic number, colour and shape. They could match, sort and group well. Early mathematics activities were not always set firmly in the context of play.
• The programme for expressive and aesthetic development was good. Children were developing some art and craft techniques and enjoyed gluing, painting and modelling with playdough. They had regular opportunities to sing and make music using percussion instruments. Children enjoyed taking part in role-play, but would benefit from a wider range of contexts for creative, imaginative play. They needed more opportunities to exercise their own choice across the whole of each morning session.
• The programme for physical development and movement was good. Children were developing effective hand control through a range of activities including painting, drawing, cutting, gluing, rolling and using constructional games. Children had some opportunities to engage in energetic play indoors. Opportunities for children to enjoy energetic activity, both indoors and out, were not regular enough.

Standard 6

The nursery class offered very good support to children and their families. Staff had very positive relationships with parents and the local community. They provided parents with useful up-to-date information through regular newsletters, parents’ meetings, informal discussions and an attractive and useful notice board. Parents and carers who responded to the pre-inspection questionnaire were very happy with all aspects of the nursery.

There was a well-planned programme of induction in place to support children when they moved from nursery to P1. Nursery children had regular opportunities to visit P1 on an informal, as well as on a formal, basis. Children made regular use of a digital camera and used information and communications technology (ICT) resources in the school to print out their own photographs. These procedures eased the transition for children moving between nursery and P1. Information on children’s progress was appropriately shared with parents and the receiving P1 teacher using the education authority transition record. The acting headteacher and nursery staff liaised with outside agencies to support children and their families as appropriate.

Standard 14

Leadership of the nursery was good. The acting headteacher provided effective leadership and had developed good relationships with the caring nursery staff team. She was committed to developing and supporting the work of the nursery with the nursery coordinator teacher. She was class-committed four days per week. The day-to-day management of the nursery was delegated to the nursery assistant who had additional allocated time for planning, and worked closely with the nursery coordinator teacher. Staff worked enthusiastically as a team. They contributed to the running of the nursery and to evaluating their own practice and service delivery.

There were effective measures in place for evaluation and development. These included formal and informal processes to obtain the views of parents/carers. Regular meetings took place with staff to evaluate service provision, the professional progress of individuals and continuing professional development.

The acting headteacher and staff had a sound understanding of the content of the child protection policy and procedures.

The acting headteacher was aware of the work of the Scottish Social Services Council. She was aware of the implications of its codes of practice relating to the work of the nursery staff.

The work of the nursery was included in the development plan for the whole school and appropriate priorities were set for the coming year. The acting headteacher was working with the staff and the nursery co-ordinator teacher to take these forward.

• The very positive relationships with parents and the local community.
• The very effective support for all children and their families.
• The caring, welcoming nursery staff.
• The effective leadership of the acting headteacher.
• The acting headteacher and staff should review and amend the daily programme to ensure that children have more opportunities to exercise their own choice, take responsibility for their learning and access a fuller range of activities independently.
• The acting headteacher and staff should continue to develop the good systems in place for planning and assessing children’s progress. They should take more account of children’s own interests when planning programmes.
• The service provider requires to review access and facilities within the nursery to allow for disabled use and to prevent discrimination. This should take place within a time period of one year from receipt of this report.
• Regulated hot water requires to be provided to the toilets in the nursery within six months of receipt of this report.
• The heaters in the toilets require replacement or the installation of safety measures. This should take place within two months of receipt of this report.

Scottish Statutory Instruments 2002 No. 114 Social Care

Fitness of Premises 10.

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.