Halterworth Kidz Club

Halterworth Kidz Club Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY416798 Inspection date 28/03/2011 Inspector Loraine Wardlaw

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Setting address Montfort Hall, Benedict Close, ROMSEY, Hampshire, SO51 8PN Telephone number 07701 089 428 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 assesses 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 0300 123 1231, 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.

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T: 0300 123 1231 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

Halterworth Kidz Club first registered in 2000 and re-registered in 2010. It is one of 15 settings owned by Kidz Play (UK) Limited. The club operates from a community hall in the Romsey area of Southampton. The after school club is open each weekday from 3.30pm until 6pm during school term-time only. All children have access to an outdoor play area.

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Description of the setting

The club is registered on the Early Years Register and both the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. It is registered to care for a maximum of 30 children aged from four years to under eight years at any one time. Currently there are 59 on roll, 47 of whom are under eight years and 13 of whom are in the early years age range. There are six members of staff employed by the owner to work with the children. The manager is qualified in play work and early years to level three and three play assistants hold either early years or play work qualifications to level two and above. One member of staff is working towards level two in play work.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Overall the quality of the provision is outstanding.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Children are extremely keen and eager to attend the club and are very happy and well-motivated individuals. There is high focus by staff on ensuring that all children's play and care needs are successfully met. Most of the staff are knowledgeable about how play work and the Early Years Foundation Stage weave together and, overall, are skilled at building on children's learning within a culture of fun and play. A key strength of the club is the excellent relationship the staff have forged with off-site Early Years Foundation Stage practitioners and the parents. Staff at the club are very self-aware and continually work to improve their already excellent practice.

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further?

To further improve the high quality early years provision the registered person should consider:

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further?

 extending the less experienced play practioner's Early Years Foundation Stage knowledge and skills with regards to purposefully and consistently, interacting with children to build on what they know and can do. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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the early years provision

The excellent leadership skills and high aspirations of the manager plays a key role in ensuring that staff practice is of high quality. This in turn ensures the best possible outcomes for children, with a strong focus on safeguarding. Many systems contribute to this. For example, all staff hold a clear criminal records bureau check, visitors and volunteers are never left unsupervised with children. They read information on arrival at the club about the signs and symptoms of abuse, as well as other vital information. All the adults mobile phones are kept in a box in the kitchen until the end of the session. Staff demonstrate confidence with regards to reporting concerns of possible abuse and the club has extensive risk assessments in place, which includes a critical incident response timeline. Children participate in the written risk assessments as much as possible. For example, they talk about the

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the early years provision

risks of a play activity which involves small nails, shapes and small hammers. A very stimulating and enabling environment is available for the children, with excellent emphasis on indoor and outdoor play, covering all learning areas. The adults take time before the club opens to set up a rich, inviting and fun play space. It enables children to enjoy their leisure time after school, with a high emphasis on independent choice and building positive relationships with others. Very robust systems are in place to ensure staff are aware of children's home backgrounds and know their care and play needs. Parents speak and write knowingly and glowingly of the setting; of the friendly communicative staff, their professionalism, of how difficult is for the children to leave the club at the end of their day and of the craft activities on offer. An extremely rigorous three-way system is in place to liaise with the Early Years Foundation Stage practitioners in

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the early years provision

the school and parents. This ensures particularly effective continuity of care and progression in learning by the sharing of relevant information and information on observational assessment. The manager and staff work as an exceedingly good, cohesive team; the high standards set are embedded across all areas of practice. The play practitioners are highly committed individuals who evaluate all their practices to ensure they meet children's individual needs to the best of their ability. This includes an Ofsted self-evaluation form which all staff contribute to and a parent questionnaire with action points for the small improvements identified. There is a strong commitment to equality and diversity which is threaded through all the practice that takes place at the club. The manager ensures that positive images of all people in society are seen in books in the book corner, on colouring in sheets in the mark-making/writing area. In addition, the dressing up area

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the early years provision

includes multi-cultural clothes. The club finds out about children's cultural background and includes play resources in the club to give them an extremely good, positive sense of identity.

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and outcomes for children

Children relish their time in the club, clearly benefitting from the excellent use of resources and play space. For example, five-year-old children enthusiastically sit at This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 the painting table making fruit and vegetable prints and are encouraged to write their name on their picture, forming all the letters correctly. They sit for extended periods of time making a coloured, small bead, creative shape which melts together when it is ironed in the kitchen by a member of staff. Children are tremendously proud of their achievements. Staff are highly receptive to children's play and care needs and provide a wealth of activities which includes direct consultation with the children. For example, there is a children's planning board with hand-written suggestions of their play preferences and future ideas, such as having a goal net. Children contribute fully to shaping what happens at the club

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and outcomes for children

through the club council which meets regularly. The club council, which includes early years children, has daily helpers on hand to work with other children in the club, if needed. Staff are consistently vigilant with regards to safety matters and carry out their tasks to ensure they work collaboratively to ensure children's safety. For example, in the garden they take turns to sit and guard a small risky escape route for children and provide effective supervision. Children are very confident, settle well and develop excellent relationships at every level with adults and their peers, showing admirable cooperation skills. For example, when the adult says their cooked pasta snack is ready they run eagerly in from the garden, wash their hands and sit with their peers at the attractive dining table. They engage in conversations willingly with others, including visitors, talking about their favourite foods and the play activities they enjoy at club. When a child spontaneously talks

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and outcomes for children

about numbers the member of staff picks up on this and asks how many types of food they have to eat. This prompts good discussion on number and comparisons. Children are encouraged to use technology finding their favourite song on the CD player and talk about what numbers come next. Two five-year-old children independently work together to try and find the correct numbered track. Most of the staff have a good knowledge of early years practice, which shines through. They understand that having the bug boxes and magnifying glasses in the garden encourages children to explore and investigate living things, such as slugs. However, not all staff are skilled and experienced in purposefully interacting with young children to consistently build on children's knowledge and skills. The key person practitioners complete good observational 'snap shots' of the children at play. As a result, they know where children are in their development towards most

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and outcomes for children

of the early learning goals. They discuss with teachers their targets and observations and use this information on observational assessment to weave children's next targets into the routines of the club and their play activities. Children engage in a wide range of physical activities both indoors and out, such as football outside and jumping on the trampoline inside. Their dietary needs are met to an exceptional standard because at any time they can go to the snack bar and independently make a sandwich and pour themselves a drink of water. All children show a strong sense of security and feel safe within the club. Children demonstrate an excellent understanding of what standards of behaviour are expected of them. For example, when the lights are switched on and off by the manager the room instantly goes quiet and the children listen to what she has to say. When two, five-year-old children go to stand on the small trampoline, the

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and outcomes for children

member of staff swiftly shows them the trampoline rules on the window, re- enforcing with them that only one is allowed at one time. Children have an extremely good sense of identity because staff take time to include books in a child's second language. They set up play experiences to widen children's knowledge about culture and diversity, such as having a home corner with a This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 Chinese theme. 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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Early Years Foundation Stage

The effectiveness of leadership and management in embedding ambition and driving improvement The effectiveness with which the setting deploys resources 1 The effectiveness with which the setting promotes equality and diversity The effectiveness of safeguarding 1 The effectiveness of the setting’s self-evaluation, including the steps taken to promote improvement The effectiveness of partnerships 1 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 1

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Stage

The extent to which children achieve and enjoy their learning 1 The extent to which children feel safe 1 The extent to which children adopt healthy lifestyles 1 The extent to which children make a positive contribution 1 The extent to which children develop skills for the future 1

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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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Annex B: the Childcare Register

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

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