Greenacres (Den)

Greenacres Den Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY310089 Inspection date 27/10/2009 Inspector Deborah Jacqueline Newbury

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Setting address 16 Ripley Road, Hampton, Middlesex, TW12 2JH

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Telephone number 0208 783 1400 Email Type of setting Childcare on non-domestic premises to achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children's social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, work-based learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It rates council children’s services, and inspects services for looked after children, safeguarding and child protection. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 08456 404040, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as

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you give details of the source and date of publication and do not alter the information in any way. Royal Exchange Buildings St Ann's Square Manchester M2 7LA

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T: 08456 404040 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Introduction

This inspection was carried out by Ofsted under Sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 on the quality and standards of the registered early years provision. ‘Early years provision’ refers to provision regulated by Ofsted for children from birth to 31 August following their fifth birthday (the early years age group). The registered person must ensure that this provision complies with the statutory framework for children’s learning, development and welfare, known as the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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Introduction

The provider must provide a copy of this report to all parents with children at the setting where reasonably practicable. The provider must provide a copy of the report to any other person who asks for one, but may charge a fee for this service (The Childcare (Inspection) Regulations 2008 regulations 9 and 10).

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Introduction

Children only attend this setting before and/or after the school day and/or during the school holidays. The judgements in this report reflect the quality of early years provision offered to children during those periods.

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Introduction

The setting also makes provision for children older than the early years age group which is registered on the voluntary and/or compulsory part(s) of the Childcare Register. This report does not include an evaluation of that provision, but a comment about compliance with the requirements of the Childcare Register is included in Annex B.

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Introduction

Please see our website for more information about each childcare provider. We publish inspection reports, conditions of registration and details of complaints we receive where we or the provider take action to meet the requirements of registration. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Description of the setting

Greenacres Den is one of four day-care provisions operated by Greenacres DNS Limited. It opened in 2005 and offers out-of-school care and wrap-around care. The Den operates from five rooms in a converted building, which is situated in a residential area of Hampton, Middlesex. Children have access to a secure, enclosed outdoor play area.

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Description of the setting

The provision is registered on the Early Years Register and the compulsory part of the Childcare Register. A maximum of 40 children from three to under eight years may attend the setting at any one time. There are 40 places for children in the early years age group. The number of children on roll varies. Four sessions operate daily during school term-times: a breakfast club from 7.30 - 9.00am; morning activity sessions for children aged three to five years; a lunch club and afternoon session from 11.30am onwards for nursery and reception aged children and after- school care from 3.00 - 6.00pm. A holiday club operates on the premises from 8.00am to 6.00pm during school holidays. Children are collected from three schools in the area, where they attend part or full-time education. The setting welcomes children with special education needs and/or disabilities and those who speak English as an additional language.

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Description of the setting

The setting employs eight practitioners. Of these, four hold appropriate early years qualifications, one of whom holds a Level 4 qualification. Two practitioners are studying for Early Years degrees.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Overall the quality of the provision is good.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Greenacres Den provides a warm, welcoming and friendly environment for children's care, learning and play. Children are happy and secure and they enjoy the time they spend here. Practitioners promote inclusive practice and treat everyone with equal care and concern. They develop good relationships with parents and other providers, liaising with them to ensure continuity and promotion of children’s individual needs. The capacity for sustained improvement at this provision is good. This is because the registered person and her staff team have a realistic view of the provision's strengths and areas for future improvement and plan effectively for how these can be achieved.

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further?

To further improve the early years provision the registered person should:

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further?

 improve existing monitoring systems to ensure the hygienic maintenance of equipment and the replenishment of art and craft materials so items are readily available for children to use  update the record of risk assessment to include any assessments of risks for This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 outings and trips  make use of opportunities that arise as part of the daily routine to further build on children's independence and development of problem solving skills.

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the early years provision

Children are safeguarded because practitioners are secure in their understanding of issues relating to child protection and the procedures they should follow if they have concerns. Senior managers have attended relevant external training and other practitioners have completed in-house training on this subject. Robust recruitment, vetting and appraisal procedures ensure the suitability of adults working with children. These measures also safeguard children. Arrangements for ensuring other aspects of children's safety are mostly very effective. The site is secure; practitioners control access and make sure that any hazards are identified and minimised. Comprehensive risk assessments, which are reviewed annually, are in place for all areas children come into contact with. These are also undertaken for any trips children go on, although the record of risk assessment for these is not kept.

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the early years provision

Qualification requirements are adhered to and the importance of ongoing training, both for individuals' professional development, and as a way of embedding ambition and improving outcomes for children is recognised. Practitioners are effectively deployed with good team work evident. The premises are organised to offer children opportunities to explore each area of learning and to independently access most play materials. This encourages children's free choice and decision making. Comprehensive written policies and procedures underpin the efficient management of the provision in most respects. However, arrangements for monitoring the hygienic maintenance of some individual pieces of equipment and for restocking materials in the creative area are not as effective as they could be. This undermines the other good measures in place to promote children's health and well-being and to support their independent access to items to help them

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the early years provision

express their ideas through free creativity.

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the early years provision

Systems of self-evaluation are very comprehensive and are used to good effect; both as a means of recognising strengths and how these benefit children and identifying areas for further improvement. Action plans are in place to show how these will be addressed. Leadership is proactive and encourages an inclusive culture of reflection by seeking the views of practitioners, parents, local authority advisors and children. This approach has led to improvements that enhance outcomes for children; for instance the refurbishment of the outside play area and an expansion in the range of food items provided, to include hot food.

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the early years provision

There are good systems in place for engaging with parents and carers which ensures they are well informed and are encouraged to become involved. They receive lots of useful information about the provision through discussions with practitioners, displays, and the issue of informative and interesting newsletters. Practitioners seek input from parents about children at the start of any placement to ensure they are aware of their starting points, welfare needs and interests. This This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 ensures a shared approach to children's care and learning. Management plan to issue a monthly topic sheet to parents, a system that is already in operation at other Greenacres provisions, which will contain details of what children are doing and request parental input about children's home learning and what they feel their child has learnt at the setting over the past month. Parents indicate that they are

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the early years provision

very happy with the provision and feel that practitioners have a genuine interest in their children. Practitioners have worked hard to establish links with the schools and nurseries that children attend as they fully recognise the need to ensure a cohesive and consistent approach in respect of children's care, education and any extended support.

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the early years provision

The individuality and uniqueness of every child is recognised and positive measures are put in place to ensure children have a voice. They are encouraged to contribute to planning by sharing their ideas about what they would like to do and to express their views about the provision through general discussion and completion of children's questionnaires. The registered person and setting manager endeavour to meet their requests as far as possible. Practitioners treat all children fairly and with equal concern, and ensure that everyone has equal access to play materials. Resources reflect positive images, in particular through the display of relevant posters. There are systems in place to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities or any additional needs to ensure they enjoy and achieve as well as they can.

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and outcomes for children

Children are happy, settled and have fun in a relaxed but lively atmosphere, where there is a continued buzz of conversation. Children enjoy good relationships with adults and one another, which adds to their sense of security. There is a strong focus on learning through play at this provision and children are encouraged to be active learners who make their own decisions about what they do. Practitioners respond positively to children's interests and facilitate these. They engage them in conversation, show interest in what they are doing and ask questions that encourage children to think. Children happily participate in circle games, organised by practitioners, which necessitates the need to co-operate with one another and take turns. This helps to promote appropriate behaviour. Practitioners record things that children have done well or where they have been helpful or kind to others on the 'Positive Contribution' board which is displayed prominently. This

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and outcomes for children

recognises children's efforts and means that everyone can share in these. Children's self-esteem and confidence grows as they are praised nicely.

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and outcomes for children

Children learn about technology as they explore the computer and other electronic toys. They remain engrossed, for example, as they access electronic books. The provision of digital cameras and the freedom to go around and take photographs of one another, the adults and different places within the setting is a popular activity with everyone. Practitioners provide support as necessary to those children who are a little unsure how to operate them. Thus, the activity becomes accessible to everyone. Children are eager for practitioners to look at their photographs. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 Children develop their physical skills as they freely access the indoor climbing wall and investigate different ways of exploring this. They are keen for practitioners to watch them climb and are very proud of themselves when they get to the top. Children become excited and giggle together as they initiate their own games

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and outcomes for children

when playing in the ball pond and indoor tree house. The newly refurbished outside play area, although small, offers children good opportunities to use different skills and develop their own ideas. They use their problem solving skills as they build dens and play with construction toys.

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and outcomes for children

Every child in the Early Years Foundation Stage has a key person who is responsible for supporting individual children and for making sure their individual learning needs are identified and catered for. They take account of children's interests, any requests they have and incorporate the next steps in children's learning into their planning. Thus, they can support children's progress towards the early learning goals. However, practitioners miss opportunities to encourage children's problem solving skills and further promote their independence as part of the daily routine. Each child has a development profile which tracks their progress and achievements. Plans are in place to develop these further and to incorporate the views of parents and carers on a more formal basis through the issue of the monthly topic planner. Resources, interaction, activities and opportunities provided for children help them to secure the skills they need for the future.

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and outcomes for children

Children have healthy snacks and meals. They are encouraged to make choices about what they would like to eat from a good selection of items and they enjoy creating their own sandwiches at lunchtime. Practitioners ensure that food is available in plentiful quantities so that children can eat their fill and do not go hungry. They sit with them, provide support as necessary and encourage conversation, which helps to ensure that meal-times are a nice, sociable occasion.

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and outcomes for children

Children learn how to keep themselves safe with the support of practitioners. They practise fire drills on a regular basis and display good understanding of expectations for behaviour when they go on trips in the mini-bus. Visits from outside organisations, such as the 'traffic club' raises children's awareness of staying safe when they are out and about. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Annex A: record of inspection judgements

The key inspection judgements and what they mean

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Annex A: record of inspection judgements

Grade 1 is Outstanding: this aspect of the provision is of exceptionally high quality Grade 2 is Good: this aspect of the provision is strong Grade 3 is Satisfactory: this aspect of the provision is sound Grade 4 is Inadequate: this aspect of the provision is not good enough

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children in the Early Years Foundation Stage?

The capacity of the provision to maintain continuous improvement

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and managed?

The effectiveness of leadership and management in embedding ambition and driving improvement The effectiveness with which the setting deploys resources 3 The effectiveness with which the setting promotes equality and diversity The effectiveness of safeguarding 2 The effectiveness of the setting’s self-evaluation, including the steps taken to promote improvement The effectiveness of partnerships 2 The effectiveness of the setting’s engagement with parents and carers

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Stage

The quality of the provision in the Early Years Foundation Stage 2

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Stage

The extent to which children achieve and enjoy their learning 2 The extent to which children feel safe 2 The extent to which children adopt healthy lifestyles 3 The extent to which children make a positive contribution 2 The extent to which children develop skills for the future 2

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Stage

procedures set out in the guidance available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Annex B: the Childcare Register

The provider confirms that the requirements of the compulsory part of the Childcare Register are: Met

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