/ Providing Inspection Services for
Department of Education
Department for Employment and Learning

Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure

Inspection of Clonduff Playgroup, Hilltown,
Newry, Co Down
(DE Number: 5AB-0203)
A Report by the Education and Training Inspectorate
October 2003

STATISTICAL INFORMATION

Name of pre-school centre: / Clonduff Pre-school
Address: / Carcullion House
Rostrevor Road
HILLTOWN
Co Down
Management Type: / Voluntary
Date of inspection: / 15 October 2003
Date of previous inspection: / 22 March 1999

1.Details of Children

Total number of children: / am session / pm session
  • attending the pre-school centre
/ 31
  • in their immediate pre-school year
/ 29
  • funded by Department of Education
/ 16
  • qualifying under DE admission criteria 1 & 2
/ 9
  • with a statement of SEN*
/ 0
  • without a statement but receiving therapy or support from other professionals for SEN
/ 0
  • with English as an additional language
/ 0
  • who left in previous school year to attend reception provision within a primary school
/ 0
Attendance:
  • percentage attendance** of funded children for the previous school year
/ 86.3%

*Special Educational Needs

**Calculated from the date when the intake was complete

2.Details of Staff

Number of: /

Full-time

/ Part-time
Staff, including leader / 3
Staff holding recognised childcare qualifications / 2
New appointments within previous 12 months / 0
Number of: ***
Students / 1
Trainees / 0

*** Total placements since September of current year

3.Details of Sessions

Duration of morning session / Duration of afternoon session / Number of days open in previous year
2½ hours / 176

4.Parental Questionnaires

Number issued to parents:

/ 26
Percentage returned: / 50%
Number of written comments: / 5

INTRODUCTION

1.Clonduff Pre-school is situated in a rural area and shares the premises of a local community centre.

2.In their response to the inspection questionnaire, the parents expressed a high level of satisfaction with the overall provision.

THE QUALITY OF THE EDUCATIONAL PROVISION

3.There is a friendly, welcoming atmosphere. The room is attractively presented with a range of interesting activities and displays of the children’s art work. The children are generally settled and well behaved. A few children still require some support to engage productively during activities.

4.The staff are establishing appropriate links with the parents. In addition to the informal meetings which occur at the beginning of the day, the parents are invited into the centre to discuss their children’s progress with the leaders.

5.The centre has a suitable written policy on child protection which is implemented by the staff and shared with the parents.

6.The planning outlines a broad, balanced programme for the children, designed to foster their all-round development. There is evidence that the planning is being implemented by the staff. The staff should continue to develop the planning in order to outline more clearly how the activities provide increased challenge and progression over the year.

7.The daily timetable ensures that the children have time to explore the range of activities and develop their play. The children’s snack time is organised informally and provides some opportunities for the children to develop independence and to acquire conversational skills. During the latter part of the session, the children have opportunities to participate in group activities involving stories, songs and energetic play. The staff need to review aspects of the management of the group activities to ensure that all of the time is used more effectively to promote learning.

8.The quality of the staff’s involvement and interaction with the children is generally of a high standard. The staff give the children continuous support during play; their involvement is sensitive and purposeful.

9.The range of activities provided offers satisfactory or good opportunities for learning in all areas of the pre-school curriculum. The promotion of the children’s creative development and early mathematical experiences are particular strengths.

Further attention still needs to be given to the development of the children’s personal, social and emotional development.

  • The children are generally independent and the majority show a good level of involvement in their activities. A small number of children require additional adult support in order to promote further their confidence, independence and social skills.
  • There are daily opportunities for the children to participate in energetic physical play. The children are beginning to develop a range of appropriate skills. The staff have identified this as an area for continued development in order to ensure a challenging and progressive physical play programme. There is a variety of small tools and equipment available to promote the children’s manipulative skills.
  • During the inspection, the creative area was well used throughout the morning. The wide range of creative activities provided encouraged the children to explore and experiment with different materials and tools. The staff value the children’s work and display it prominently around the playroom.
  • A range of good quality books are presented within the book area and on the interest table. The staff should promote further the children’s use of books throughout the session and as an integral aspect of play.
  • During the inspection, many of the staff used appropriate mathematical language with the children as a natural part of the play. The staff encourage the children to count, match, make comparisons and recognise shapes as they use a range of materials and equipment. During the tidy-up routine, the use of an egg timer is helping the children to gain an early understanding of time.

10.The staff operate a key-worker system and observe regularly the children’s responses to play. The centre has made a good start in designing informative records. These are used to inform parents of their children’s progress.

11.The leader is currently seeking to establish links with the local primary school.

12.The staff plan and evaluate the programme together and all contribute to the effective operation of the centre. The staff are hard-working and dedicated; they work very well as a team.

13.The centre was only open for 176 days during the previous school year. This falls well below the number of days required as a minimum quality standard for groups receiving funding as part of the pre-school programme.

14.The quality of the accommodation is good. The staff make good use of all available space and resources within the centre. The children’s toilets are located outside the playroom; this requires a member of staff to accompany the children. The centre has an adequate supply of resources which the staff present in a thoughtful and stimulating manner.

15.The strengths of the centre include:

  • the attractive and stimulating learning environment;
  • the close involvement of the staff in the children’s play;
  • the satisfactory or good opportunities for the children to learn in all areas of the pre-school curriculum;
  • the progress made in planning and assessment;
  • the hard-working staff and sense of team spirit.

16.The inspection has also identified areas for improvement. In addressing the most important of these areas, the centre needs to:

  • review aspects of the organisation of the day in order to ensure that all time is used effectively to promote learning.

17.There are strengths in many important aspects of the educational and pastoral provision in this pre-school centre. There are also areas that require improvement if the needs of the children are to be met fully.

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Copies of this report may be obtained from the Inspection Services Branch, Department of Education, Rathgael House, 43 Balloo Road, Bangor, CoDownBT197PR. A copy is also available on the DE website: