/ Providing Inspection Services for
Department of Education
Department for Employment and Learning
Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure
Education and Training Inspectorate
Report of a Short Inspection
Pond Park Nursery School
Lisburn
Inspected: April 2005

STATISTICAL INFORMATION ON POND PARK NURSERY SCHOOL, LISBURN

1.Details of Children

Number of children: / Class 1 / Class 2
Attending full-time / - / -
Attending part-time / 52 / 50
Under 3 years of age* / - / 8
With statement of SEN** / 0 / 0
At CoP stages 3 or 4*** / 3 / 9
At CoP stages 1 or 2*** / 1 / 2
With English as an additional language / 4 / 0

*On 1 July.

**Special Educational Needs.

***The stages refer to those set out in the Code of Practice for the Identification and Assessment of Special Educational Needs.

Percentage qualifying under DE admission criteria 1 or 2. / 5%
Average attendance for the previous year. / 91%

2.Duration of Sessions

Full-time / Part-time: am / Part-time: pm
- / 2½ hours / 2½ hours

3.Details of Staff

Number of: / Full-Time / Part-Time
Teachers / 1 / 2
Nursery Assistants / 1
Qualified Nursery Assistants / 2
Number of: ****
Students / 3
Trainees / 2

**** Total placements since September of current year

4.Parental Questionnaires

Number issued / 102
Percentage returned / 49%
Number of written comments / 23

1.INTRODUCTION

1.1Pond Park Nursery School is situated in Redpoll Avenue, Lisburn. The children come mainly from the surrounding area.

1.2The arrangements for the inspection of pastoral care included the completion of questionnaires by the parents as well a meeting for governors. The parents, and the governor who attended, expressed a high level of satisfaction with the nursery’s provision.

2.THE QUALITY OF THE EDUCATIONAL PROVISION

2.1The nursery has a very positive ethos based on good relationships at all levels. The staff provide a secure, supportive environment, which helps the children grow in confidence and independence. The children are settled and well behaved; they relate well to one another; some firm friendships are developing. The nursery is bright and stimulating; good use is made of a wide range of the children’s art work.

2.2The nursery has a suitable written policy on child protection which sets out the procedures and provides relevant guidelines for the staff. The staff have received appropriate training and the parents are given suitable information about the school’s policy and procedures.

2.3The nursery has an effective programme of liaison with parents. The nursery provides the parents with clear information about the curriculum and seeks their views on aspects of the work. The staff are developing an Internet website to make information on all aspects of the life and work of the school more accessible to parents and the wider community. In addition to the informal meetings which occur at the beginning and end of the day, the staff carry out home visits and parents are invited into the school twice during the year to discuss their child’s progress with the class teacher.

2.4The planning outlines a broad, balanced programme for the children, designed to foster their all-round development. It identifies many facets of learning inherent in the various aspects of play. A good range of themes and topics is used to introduce a variety of interesting activities in all areas of the pre-school curriculum.

2.5The staff provide the children with sustained support during play; their interaction and involvement with the children is of a high quality. The staff constantly encourage the children to observe and to think; they engage the children in valuable discussions about their play and their experiences.

2.6The nursery’s programme promotes effectively the children’s personal, social and emotional development. The range of activities provided offers good or very good opportunities for learning in all the other areas of the pre-school curriculum.

2.7The children display a good measure of independence and responsibility; they choose freely from the activities on offer. During the inspection, many good instances of concentrated play were observed. The staff are alert to those children who need additional support in order to develop their social skills; they are quick to offer appropriate guidance.

2.8Many of the children are acquiring good manipulative skills using small tools such as scissors and pencils. There is excellent provision for outdoor play. A high priority has been given to developing the outdoor area; it is designed imaginatively to provide a wide range of learning opportunities for the children.

2.9The wide range of creative activities encourages the children to explore and experiment with different materials and tools. The staff’s imaginative approach to this area of development encourages the children to produce work of a high standard.

2.10High priority is given to developing the children’s language through skilful talk and discussion, and the introduction by staff of a rich vocabulary and range of ideas. A few children are learning English as a second language; the staff are aware of the needs of these children and are helping them to make good progress with oral language. There are good opportunities for the children to experiment with marking and drawing; a few children are attempting to write their names independently.

2.11Imaginative play and constructional materials are used effectively to promote early mathematical ideas. The staff use appropriate mathematical language when participating in the children’s play and promote an interest in pattern-making, counting, matching and making comparisons.

2.12The children are helped to become aware of the properties of materials through well-planned play with sand, water, dough, clay and scrap materials. There are good opportunities for the children to explore materials, observe changes and form ideas about how things work. The staff provide an interesting range of natural materials, living things and items of interest for the children to observe and investigate. The children’s interest in the living environment is fostered by growing bulbs and observing tadpoles and other small creatures. There are good opportunities for the children to design and build using a variety of constructional materials.

2.13The skilful development of imaginative play in the ‘hospital’ and ‘fire station’ areas, promotes the children’s awareness of the work of people in their community. The staff make good use of a range of visits and visitors to the centre to enhance the children’s experiences.

2.14The staff regularly monitor and record the progress made by each child; they use the outcomes of their observations in planning activities to meet the needs of individuals and groups. Close links are maintained with the parents and information on the children’s progress and needs is shared through written reports and individual meetings.

2.15The children transfer to a large number of different primary schools. The nursery is located in the grounds of Pond Park Primary School. There is close liaison with the teachers at key stage one; these links help to ensure that the children make a smooth transfer to the year one classes. Relevant information about the children’s progress is passed on to all the primary schools to which the children transfer. The school has developed strong links with a number of European nursery schools through their involvement in the Commenius Project. The staff have visited the schools and their` experiences are having a positive impact on the life and work of the nursery school.

2.16Good provision is made for the children with special educational needs (SEN). The children identified as having SEN are well integrated into the activities provided in each playroom; the staff make very good efforts to identify, address and monitor the particular problems faced by these children.

2.17The Principal has a high level of professional competence and exerts a significant, beneficial influence over all aspects of the nursery; she is a good role-model for the staff. She has clear goals for the school and promotes a spirit of review and development. There is excellent co-operation among the staff; their shared view of the curriculum creates a unified team. The school development plan is reviewed regularly to ensure that the priorities have been implemented.

2.18The quality of the accommodation is excellent. The purpose-built premises are well matched to the needs of young children. The space is used effectively to provide the children with a wide range of experiences. The outdoor area has been imaginatively designed and provides excellent resources for physical play and for exploring the natural environment. The nursery has a good supply of resources which are well used to support learning in all aspects of the curriculum.

2.19The strengths of the nursery include:

  • the excellent ethos based on good relationships at all levels;
  • the good communication and links with the parents;
  • the good organisation of the daily timetable, and the variety and high quality of the children’s learning experiences;
  • the excellent provision for outdoor play;
  • the high standard of the staff’s involvement with the children which effectively promotes language and learning;
  • the good quality provision made to support the children with SEN;
  • the dedication and leadership of th`e Principal and the sense of team-spirit among the hard-working and dedicated staff.

2.20There are major strengths in all aspects of the educational and pastoral provision in this nursery. The needs of the children are being met very effectively.

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 CROWN COPYRIGHT 2005

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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, Co Down BT19 7PR. A copy is also available on the DE website: