Armfield Playgroup

Armfield Playgroup

Inspection report for early years provision

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Armfield Playgroup

Unique Reference Number EY288707 Inspection date 31 January 2006 Inspector Moreen Johnson

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Armfield Playgroup

Setting Address U.R. Church Hall, Armfield Road, Enfield, Middlesex, EN2 0DL

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E-mail

Registered person Sandra Ann Dimond Type of inspection Integrated Type of care Sessional care

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E-mail

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000

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ABOUT THIS INSPECTION

The purpose of this inspection is to assure government, parents and the public of the quality of childcare and, if applicable, of nursery education. The inspection was carried out under Part XA Children Act 1989 as introduced by the Care Standards Act 2000 and, where nursery education is provided, under Schedule 26 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998. This report details the main strengths and any areas for improvement identified during the inspection. The judgements included in the report are made in relation to the outcomes for children set out in the Children Act 2004; the National Standards for under 8s day care and childminding; and, where nursery education is provided, the Curriculum guidance for the foundation stage. The report includes information on any complaints about the childcare provision which Ofsted has received since the last inspection or registration or 1 April 2004 whichever is the later.

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The key inspection judgements and what they mean

Outstanding: this aspect of the provision is of exceptionally high quality Good: this aspect of the provision is strong Satisfactory: this aspect of the provision is sound Inadequate: this aspect of the provision is not good enough For more information about early years inspections, please see the booklet Are you ready for your inspection? which is available from Ofsted's website: www.ofsted.gov.uk.

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

On the basis of the evidence collected on this inspection:

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

The quality and standards of the care are good. The registered person meets the National Standards for under 8s day care and childminding.

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

The quality and standards of the nursery education are good.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

Armfield Playgroup registered in July 2004. It operates from church premises in Enfield and have access to a two halls and two sets of toilets, kitchen and garden. The group opens five days per week, during term times. Opening hours are 09:30 to 12:00. There are currently 40 children aged from 2 years to 4 years on roll. Of these 24 children receive funding for nursery education. The group currently supports a small

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 number of children who speak English as an additional language. The group employs seven staff. Over half of the staff, including the manager, hold appropriate early years qualifications. Three staff members are unqualified.

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is good. Children are learning the importance of good personal hygiene through well-planned routines. They are encouraged to wash their hand before eating and after using the toilet. There are effective hygiene procedures in place and staff adhere to good practice by sterilising children's cups and by maintaining an excellent standard of hygiene throughout the premises. Children benefit from a healthy diet. Staff promote healthy eating well by offering children healthy snacks. Children are offered drinks at regular intervals throughout the day. Staff ensure that they obtain information from parents on children's dietary requirements. This ensures children remain healthy. Children enjoy engaging in physical exercise. They have daily opportunities for outdoor play and they enjoy energetic play in the garden. They show good co-ordination when balancing, running, bouncing and kicking. However, there are

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Helping children to be healthy

insufficient opportunities for children to develop their climbing skills. Staff are developing an understanding of the Birth to Three Matters and generally meet the needs of the under 3s well. Children confidently move about indoors and outdoors and are developing independence by freely choosing activities. Children under 3 are also given regular opportunities to engage in outdoor play to develop their physical skills.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is good. Children are cared for in a clean, bright and comfortable environment. The good organisation of toys and equipment means children can move around safely to independently access available resources, which are positioned appropriately at their height. Children enjoy playing with a wide range of good quality toys which help them to progress in all areas of their development. Children are cared for in a safe environment. There is a good security system in place for the safe arrival and departure of children and to protect children from intruders. Children are kept safe whilst moving around the playgroup because staff are well deployed and provide children with good supervision. There are effective procedures for carrying out risk assessments to protect children from potential hazards.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 Children are well protected by staff who have a clear understanding of how to implement the settings child protection policies, which is in line with the Area Child Committee guidance.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is good. Children are well settled into the playgroup and receive good individual attention from staff. As they play harmoniously together in mixed age groups, children enjoy each others company. Children are given good opportunities to initiate their own play. Staff demonstrate good skills in striking a good balance between child-led and adult-led activities. Staff are always on hand to encourage and support children. This makes children feel secure and increases their sense of wellbeing. Nursery Education The quality of teaching and learning is good. Children are making good progress towards all of the early learning goals. Staff have a good knowledge and understanding of the Foundation Stage and use this knowledge to provide children with a stimulating learning environment. Staff have a good understanding of children individual needs. However, observation and assessments do not always clearly

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

identify how children are supported to progress to the next stage of their learning. Children are well settled and secure, on arrival they find their coat pegs and put their belongings away. Children separate from their parents confidently and happily join in activities with other children. Children are developing a good understanding of right and wrong and behave well. Children know the routine well and respond positively when asked by staff to tidy up or to line up. Children are independent, they choose activities and many of them are able to put on their coats. Children have good communication skills, most talk confidently in large and small groups. During the play dough and sand activities children talked to staff what they were doing. Children are developing a healthy interest in books and they sat and concentrated well at story time, they participated well and talked about what happened next. Children are developing good writing skills and they confidently

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

identified the letter in their names. Children are able to count in a meaningful way and understand the concept of size, they talked about the numbers of big stones that they found in the sand. Children confidently separated numbers when they counted the numbers of girls and boys in the line. Children are learning about the natural world by using magnifiers to explore the bugs, pine cones and acorns. Children are developing an understanding of seasons, they talk about winter at story time and staff encourage children to do projects about vegetables that grow in the winter and summer. Children use the computer confidently to draw pictures and they demonstrate good coordination skills when moving the mouse.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 Children enjoy role play in the home corner as they cook and feed the dolls. They are encouraged to participate in daily singing sessions, some children spontaneously singing nursery rhymes as they played with their peers. Children have good opportunities to do arts and crafts and to construct by using a wide range of materials.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is good. Children receive good support from staff. Children are giving good opportunities to initiate their own play. They work well together and show pleasure when playing with their friends. Children show a sense of belonging and are self assured as they explore their surroundings with confidence. Children are introduced to a variety of cultural traditions, which helps to develop a positive attitude and respect for others. Children's self-esteem is fostered well by staff giving them individual attention and encouraging them to be independent. They are encouraged to develop an appreciate music. This positive approach fosters children's spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. The partnership between parents and staff is good. This ensures children settle well. Children experience consistent care due to good communication systems between parents and staff, such as the informal sharing of information about children's

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Helping children make a positive contribution

progress. There is no formal system for the setting to inform parents about children progress.

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Organisation

The organisation is good. There are effective recruitment procedures in place, which ensures that staff are appropriately vetted and qualified. Staff work well together as a team and are deployed well to ensure that children are not placed at risk. All policies and procedures are in place and are implemented well by staff, with the exception of a written medication policy and some accidents records which are not signed by staff and parents. Records on children and staff are securely locked away. Leadership and management of the nursery is good. There is a commitment to develop the provision and the manager has clear aims for the future. Staff have a good knowledge of the Foundation Stage and use this knowledge to effectively plan activities. Staff are supported in their work through regular staff meetings. Overall, the setting meets the needs of the range of children for whom they provides care.

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Improvements since the last inspection

This is the first inspection since registration.

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Improvements since the last inspection

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000

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Complaints since the last inspection

There have been no complaints made to Ofsted since registration The provider is required to keep a record of complaints made by parents, which they can see on request. The complaints record may contain complaints other than those made to Ofsted.

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

On the basis of the evidence collected on this inspection:

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

The quality and standards of the care are good. The registered person meets the National Standards for under 8s day care and childminding.

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

The quality and standards of the nursery education are good.

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The quality and standards of the care

To improve the quality and standards of care further the registered person should take account of the following recommendation(s): • devise a medication policy and ensue that staff and parents sign all accidents records

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The quality and standards of the nursery education

To improve the quality and standards of nursery education further the registered person should take account of the following recommendation(s): • improve opportunities to develop children's climbing skills • formalise the system for informing parents about their child's progress • ensure consistencies with regards to the system for recording of observations and assessment on children and ensure that the next stage of children's development is clearly identified

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The quality and standards of the nursery education

procedures set out in the leaflet Building better childcare: Compliments and concerns about inspectors' judgements which is available from Ofsted's website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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The quality and standards of the nursery education

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000

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