Behind the Inspection Rating: Pre-school promotes teamwork
Tristan Donovan
Monday, March 30, 2015
Fetcham Village Pre-school, Surrey - Early years inspection - January 2015
When Ofsted's inspector came to visit Fetcham Village Pre-school, one of the things she encountered was staff and children gathered around a table laden with bricks, twigs and straws.
"It was about the Three Little Pigs," says head teacher Anna Hamer. "We told the children the story and then spoke to them about what material was strongest. We asked them what they would use to build with and questioned them about it. They were coming out with lots of language like 'blows away', 'breaks' or 'bricks are strong'. They were saying things like 'if you put glue on them they will be able to stick together'."
The storytime-turned-science lesson continued in the pre-school's garden as children donned hard hats and began constructing dens from building blocks and wooden planks with the imaginary aid of toy cement mixers. "They started building houses and realised that if you've got the big planks of wood you need two people to move it," says Hamer. "So it was also about learning to work as a team and the need to co-operate with each other."
The transformation of the tale of the Three Little Pigs into a practical lesson in architecture and teamwork is just one of the things that inspired the Ofsted inspector to award the pre-school one of the watchdog's coveted "outstanding" grades. Another factor that impressed Ofsted was the "great enthusiasm and commitment" of the staff, something that the pre-school fosters through a planning process that encourages fresh thinking.
Every term each member of staff is assigned responsibility for a particular area of work, such as music, maths or the outdoor area. "So they have these areas they are responsible for and when we plan on a termly basis they come with ideas for that area that we then discuss," says Hamer. "After that meeting we change their area of responsibility. That keeps it fresh for them and keeps the new ideas flowing."
While it is an early education setting, Fetcham Village Pre-school doesn't believe that its work stops at the school gates. "We offer far more than just a pre-school," says Hamer. "We look at all the other social aspects - difficulties at home or whatever. We support parents and put them in touch with the right agencies."
It could be pointing a struggling family in the direction of their nearest Sure Start children's centre, helping single parents hook up with the local Home-Start or just an informal chat. "It may even be that I have a coffee and a chat with them," says Hamer. "It's about having that open-door policy so that all the parents feel that they can come to you. That's really important to us.
"Sometimes, people think that we're in a nice little village so there are no problems, but problems can happen anywhere. We're quite good at getting an inkling when a parent might need help so that we can move in and start chatting and asking to see if there's a way we can support them."
And, of course, helping families get support benefits the education of the children who attend the pre-school, which ties in with the setting's determination to give children the best start in life. "People sometimes think 'oh it's just early years', but early years is the foundation for children starting in education," says Hamer. "If we don't get it right, it can have such an impact when they get into school."
Fact File
- Name: Fetcham Village Pre-school
- Location: Fetcham, near Leatherhead, Surrey
- Description: Located in the grounds of Fetcham Village Infant School, the pre-school provides early education to twoto five-year-olds. The pre-school works from two self-contained classrooms that adjoin the school. It registered with Ofsted in 2006 and is open each weekday during term time. The pre-school has nine members of staff, all with early years qualifications, and receives funding for free places for twoto four-year-olds.
- Number of children: 30 places, 100 children on roll
- Ofsted reference number: EY337910
Helpful Hints
Keep abreast of legislation. Head teacher Anna Hamer says that keeping on top of the latest developments in legislation and policy is crucial. And the support it gets from Surrey County Council on this is particularly useful. "Surrey early years sends out a bulletin that keeps you up to date with any legislation that's going to change and training courses they provide," she says.
Ofsted aren't the enemy. "The impression I get is that people think Ofsted go in looking for the bad but they don't - they look for the good and only if they see bad things that's when they report on them," says Hamer. "We had a really fair inspection. They gave us constructive criticism and ideas. They aren't looking to fail you, they are looking to see your good points."
Listen to the children. "We do a lot of observations of children and asking them for their views," says Hamer. "We give them a camera and say go and take pictures of what you like in the pre-school. When those pictures come back we can say okay, why do they never take any pictures of this?"