/ 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
Shaftesbury Nursery School
Belfast
Inspected: May 2003
STATISTICAL INFORMATION - NURSERY SCHOOLS
School: Shaftesbury NurseryRef No: 111-0038
Date of Inspection: W/C 19 May 2003
Number of teachers (including Principal and part-time teachers): 2
(Full-time equivalent = 32.4 hours)
Number of nursery assistants (including part-time assistants): 3.06
(Full-time equivalent = 30 hours)
Total Enrolment:
Number of children attending full-time:
Number of children attending part-time:
Average attendance for the previous school year: (this should
be calculated from the date when the intake is complete)
Percentage of children entitled to free school meals:
/
51
51
0
87.7%
31.4%
Duration of sessions:
/
Full-time:
Part-time:
/
9.00 am-1.45 pm
1. INTRODUCTION
1.1 Shaftesbury Nursery School is situated in Percy Street, in Belfast. The nursery provides full-time education for the 51 children enrolled. The children attending come from a wide surrounding area. Thirty-one percent of the children are entitled to free school meals.
1.2 The arrangements for the inspection of pastoral care included the completion of questionnaires by the parents as well as meetings with parents and governors. Approximately 59% of the questionnaires were returned. The comments indicated that almost all of the parents and governors were satisfied or very satisfied with nearly all aspects of the school’s provision. A minority of parents were less satisfied with the information they received about their child’s progress, how they could help their child, and child protection matters. The issues have been shared with the principal and are addressed in paragraphs 2.2, 2.3 and 2.9.
2. SUMMARY OF MAIN FINDINGS
2.1 Throughout the school there is a caring, welcoming atmosphere. The children are at ease with the adults and turn to them confidently to meet their needs. At the start of the day, the staff take time to talk to those children who wish to relate a story, tell some interesting news or ask questions. Recently, particular attention has been given to making the entrance area more attractive for parents and children. More needs to be done to create a stimulating and interesting learning environment in the playrooms in order to arouse the children’s curiosity and to promote the children’s exploration and understanding of the world around them.
2.2 The communication with the parents is good; visits are made to the children's homes; there is an open evening and written information to guide the parents before their children start attending the nursery. Appropriate settling-in procedures are operated. The parents are kept informed about the nursery events through newsletters and information boards which are updated regularly. There are good opportunities for the parents to be involved with the children through the refurbishment, and organisation, of, the lending library and helping on school visits. There are good opportunities for the parents to approach the staff informally at the beginning and end of the sessions, as well as more formal discussions of their children’s progress twice a year. The principal reports that written transition forms prepared for each child are discussed with the parents before being forwarded to the receiving primary schools.
2.3 The nursery has in place appropriate procedures for pastoral care and child protection which are in line with guidance outlined in the Department of Education Circular 1999/10. The school’s procedures are outlined clearly in the school policy which has been reviewed recently. The school informs parents about the school’s policy on pastoral care and child protection. The staff plan to develop further their procedures and to share this information more fully with parents.
2.4 The principal has recently organised opportunities for the staff to meet together to plan the educational programme as a team. The provision of materials is planned through weekly rotas; an additional format has also been introduced for planning which outlines some themes and topics, appropriate for the time of school year and the interests of the children. This planning, however, should now be developed in a more systematic way to provide details of the learning to be promoted in all areas of play, to take account of the differing needs within the classes and to guide the day-to-day work of the school.
2.5 The organisation of snack time promotes some social skills, develops the children’s independence and growing sense of responsibility and introduces them to a variety of healthy foods. The staff provide a period of time when the children choose freely from a range of play materials and activities. The benefits of this period in promoting the children’s concentration and sustained interest are reduced however, by the organisation of outdoor play when the children take turns to play outside in small groups. The staff need to develop further the arrangements in the afternoon in order to attract and sustain more effectively the children’s interest and attention.
2.6 The staff intervene sensitively in the play, encouraging the children to co-operate and to use the materials purposefully. During the inspection, there were some instances when the staff’s involvement in the activities stimulated the children’s thinking and helped them to observe. At times, however, the roles adopted by the staff over-emphasise the organisation of materials, the orderliness of the playroom and the supervision of children and activities. They need to develop methods which help the children to extend their play, to develop their ideas, and to explore and investigate independently.
2.7 The programme promotes effectively the children’s personal, social and emotional development. Although the children experience some appropriate learning opportunities in the other areas of the curriculum, the programme overall is developed insufficiently to provide stimulation and challenge. More needs to be done to meet the children’s differing needs and to ensure that they make sufficient progress in learning in all areas of the pre-school curriculum.
2.8 The staff work hard to foster the children’s independence and consideration for others; they encourage the consistent implementation of the necessary rules and routines. Approximately half of the children will spend two years in the nursery before they transfer to primary school; these younger children are well integrated within both classes.
2.9 The school has an enclosed outdoor play space and an established garden area, which is attractive and inviting. The children enjoy outdoor play; however, the provision observed during the inspection offered insufficient variety and challenge. There are useful opportunities for the children to develop their fine manipulative skills and most of them manage small tools and equipment with confidence.
2.10 The school has secured funding from the Belfast Regeneration Office to fund a visual artist to work in the school for two days a week for three years. Through this initiative, the children have suitable opportunities to paint and draw; a wide variety of art techniques is being introduced over the year. Some of the children’s work includes representations of familiar aspects of their environment. There are daily opportunities for informal singing and an introduction to rhythm; the children have acquired a good repertoire of rhymes and songs which they clearly enjoy.
2.11 The children’s language development varies widely; some of the children can express their ideas fluently; others do not yet talk confidently or clearly. The majority of children listen attentively to story telling and they respond eagerly to questioning about the story they have heard. Each playroom has a book area; during the inspection, the children were regularly attracted to this area and asked the adults to read to them. The children are
encouraged to take a library book home each week. Materials are provided to encourage the children to experiment with drawing, marking and writing. The staff need to promote further the children’s interest in books and experimental writing through incorporating more stimulating opportunities within the various areas of play.
2.12 The staff make some observations of the children’s responses to play and have begun to compile basic records; these do not yet provide a profile of the progress being made in all areas of learning. More needs to be done to ensure that the information from assessment is used effectively to guide the planning process in order to ensure that the programme meets the needs of individuals and groups.
2.13 Formalised assessment procedures have been initiated for some of the children who have special educational needs (SEN). The records for these children need to be clearer with realistic targets set to enable the staff to address particular aspects of development.
2.14 The school has developed valuable links with local nursery and primary schools. Joint activities are well planned with a nearby maintained nursery school and the principal reports that the majority of parents are very supportive of the activities.
2.15 The principal reports that the school’s involvement, some three years ago, in the Effective Early Learning project has enabled the staff to reflect on the work of the nursery and to begin to implement appropriate changes. As a result of this initiative, an outline plan has appropriately identified aspects of the provision for improvement and development. The principal has worked hard to identify priorities for the school and to lead the staff in developing policies, reviewing the planning and assessment procedures and extending the level of resources. She promotes a sense of teamwork and values the contributions of every staff member. The school reports that they value the support received from the parents and the governors.
2.16 The purpose-built accommodation is well matched to the needs of young children. More imaginative use needs to be made of the available space and additional items of interest acquired, to provide the children with a wider range of learning opportunities both indoors and outdoors. The school has a basic supply of equipment and resources of good quality.
2.17 The strengths of the nursery include:
· the friendly and generally well-behaved children;
· the children’s purposeful play and the overall quality of their personal, social and emotional development;
· the effective way in which the children are helped to acquire a love of rhymes and songs and to pay attention during story sessions;
· the potential of the outdoor play area to promote learning experiences;
· the principal’s thinking about practice and her efforts in bringing about change;
· the parents’ and the governors’ support for the school.
2.18 The inspection has identified some areas which require action. In addressing the most important areas, the nursery needs to:
· improve the quality of the planning in order to ensure that the staff identify the potential of the play activities to promote the children’s all-round development and meet their individual needs;
· provide a more stimulating environment in order to ensure the children’s play is more productive throughout the session;
· develop the staff’s skill in recognising and exploiting fully the learning inherent in the play activities and materials in order to promote effectively the children’s language and learning.
2.19 Overall, the quality of the education provided in this nursery school is satisfactory but improvements are needed in the areas identified if the needs of the children are to be met fully.
APPENDIX
HEALTH AND SAFETY
1. The cover for the outdoor sand pit is broken.
2. There is a shortage of appropriate storage facilities for large items of equipment.
3
ã CROWN COPYRIGHT 2003
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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: www.deni.gov.uk