Orton Longueville Playgroup

Orton Longueville Playgroup Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number 256797 Inspection date 12/05/2011 Inspector Emma Bright

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Setting address Longueville Lakeside Centre, Oundle Road,Orton Longueville, Peterborough, Cambs, PE2 7EA Telephone number 0780 3871737 01733 239283 Admin 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.

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You may copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as 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

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

Orton Longueville Playgroup opened in 1967. It is run by a voluntary management committee made up of parents whose children attend the setting. The playgroup operates from Longueville Lakeside Centre, adjacent to the local primary and secondary schools in Orton Longueville, Peterborough. Opening times are 9.05am to 2.50pm on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. On Monday sessions are from 9.05 to 11.35 and 12.20pm to 2.50pm, and on Friday sessions are from 8.35am to 11.35am and 12.20pm to 2.50pm during term times. All children have access to a secure outdoor play area.

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Description of the setting

A maximum of 35 children may attend the playgroup at any one time and there are currently 94 children on roll who are within the Early Years Foundation Stage. The playgroup is registered on the Early Years Register and both the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. The playgroup currently supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children who have English as an additional language.

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Description of the setting

The playgroup employs 12 members of staff; eight staff hold appropriate early years qualifications, including an Early Years Professional, and three staff are working towards a qualification.

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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

Exceptionally strong leadership and management ensure the setting offers outstanding levels of care and learning to every child. Children's individual needs are effectively met because of the excellent communication between staff, parents and others. The highly effective use of space and resources enables children to be active learners in a range of challenging and exciting experiences so that they make outstanding progress in their learning and development. Self-evaluation is given a high priority and involves staff, parents, children and others, which helps to ensure consistently high standards are maintained.

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further?

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

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further?

 developing further opportunities for children to use, hear and see their home language within the playgroup. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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the early years provision

All adults demonstrate an excellent knowledge and understanding of safeguarding children procedures and they attend child protection training regularly to ensure their knowledge is always up-to-date. Stringent recruitment processes ensure all employees with access to the children are safe and suitable. Rigorous systems are in place for induction of new staff and students and this ensures they have a very good understanding of their responsibilities to keep children safe. The playgroup is exceptionally well organised; staff are effectively deployed so children are safe and supervised at all times. Thorough risk assessments are carried out on a regular basis to ensure that hazards are identified and minimised to safeguard children. As a result, children play in a very safe and secure environment. Comprehensive documentation is in place for the safe running of the playgroup and underpins the consistently good practice at the setting; policies and procedures are implemented

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the early years provision

effectively by all staff and shared with parents. All these factors contribute to the effective safeguarding of children and ensuring they are kept safe from harm.

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the early years provision

Leadership and management of the playgroup is a key strength. The manager has high aspirations and is successful in inspiring the staff team to continually work towards ambitious targets. Morale is high and all staff are very enthusiastic, working extremely well together as a cohesive team to ensure that children have an excellent early years experience. This has a highly positive effect on children's achievement and well-being, and consequently outcomes for children are exceptionally high. Systems for monitoring and improving the quality of the provision are given a very high priority; parents, children and staff contribute, which effectively helps to bring about change, such as parents attending the lunch club with their child. Commitment to regular and well-chosen training programmes promotes the continuous professional development for all staff, ensuring a highly skilled and enthusiastic team that promotes exceptionally high outcomes for

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the early years provision

Staff are highly committed to working in partnership with others and have established effective channels of communication between all partners and professionals involved with individual children. Staff have very clear strategies in place to care for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and they work closely with parents, carers and other agencies. This effectively promotes children's learning and development and ensures they can fully participate in the life of the playgroup. The playgroup works very closely with parents, who speak highly of the staff and say they are extremely happy with the quality of their children's care. Parents spoken to during the inspection say they would happily recommend the playgroup to others.

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the early years provision

Staff strive to provide frequent opportunities for parents to become involved in their child's learning. For example, parents share their cultural traditions or with the children, such as learning Spanish and first aid, or they bring their pets in for children to observe. In addition, parents have regular opportunities to contribute to their child's records of achievement, sharing what they know about their child, and they receive information on activities they can do at home to further support their This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 child's learning. Excellent settling-in procedures that are based around their individual needs help to support children in the transition between home and the setting. For example, staff carry out home visits before children begin at the playgroup, which enables them to gather very good information to be used as starting points for care and learning. In addition, two-way partnerships with

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the early years provision

schools ensure successful transitions for children.

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the early years provision

The playgroup environment is highly stimulating with bright and cheerful wall displays that show what children can do and celebrate their achievements. The extensive outdoor areas are fully accessible throughout the day and enable children to experience a full range of activities. The playgroup is extremely well equipped with a treasure trove of toys and resources so children play and learn in an interesting and stimulating environment. Thoughtful deployment of the resources enables children to make choices and become active, independent learners. A wide range of high quality resources, such as books and dressing up clothes, provide children with positive insights into other cultures and lifestyles. As a result, they learn to value each other's differences and similarities.

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and outcomes for children

Staff are well qualified and highly skilled and have an excellent knowledge and understanding of how young children learn. They ensure that all activities are personalised to reflect children's interests and abilities. Children play an active role in their learning, show great curiosity and are inquisitive learners. They relish all that the learning environment has to offer and they are highly motivated to explore. High emphasis is placed on outdoor play which promotes children's physical and emotional development through a wide variety of challenging activities. Children benefit from an inclusive, child-centred curriculum that takes into account their individual learning needs. Staff record each child's achievements through a balance of photographs, examples of work, information from parents and their own observations. This effective system of record keeping demonstrates that children are making outstanding progress in relation to their capabilities and

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and outcomes for children

Children learn to feel safe because staff allow them exceptional opportunities to take acceptable risks in a safe environment, such as climbing trees and swinging from a rope. This enables children to be safety conscious without being fearful. Children learn to adopt healthy lifestyles; they readily help themselves to water and know that they need to wear hats on sunny days while they are outside. Children enjoy a range of healthy snacks and take an active part in food preparation, which helps them become independent and competent in handling tools, such as knives and forks. Snack time is offered on a 'rolling' basis so that children can choose when they want to eat; this allows them to continue their activities and enhances the flow of the session.

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and outcomes for children

Children spend much of their time in the challenging outdoor area, where they build, create and observe nature. They grow vegetables and plants, make frog houses and hunt for worms. A wide variety of tools and utensils are used in their This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 endeavours, such as potato peelers to strip the bark when making a 'bug hotel'. Children practise and extend their physical skills as they crawl through holes to other areas of the garden and carefully balance on logs. They confidently climb up small trees and hang upside down. This helps them to develop good muscle control, feel relaxed and develop a sense of overall well-being.

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and outcomes for children

Children are highly independent because staff ensure they can make choices and direct their own play, which enables children to be active learners, think critically and make decisions. Children's behaviour is exemplary and they show an excellent awareness of responsibility within the setting. For example, they devise the playgroup's rules which are displayed for everyone to see. These rules include 'smile', 'share toys' and 'come down the slide on your bottom'. Children readily work together, demonstrating excellent negotiation and cooperation skills, and demonstrate excellent relationships with adults and their peers. Children are relaxed and confident in the nurturing care of staff; they display high levels of self- esteem because staff are attentive and value their contributions.

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and outcomes for children

Children enjoy an environment rich in words and labels, which helps them to understand print carries meaning, and they dictate captions for staff to write with their pictures. All children enjoy looking at books, alone or together; they choose from a wide range of story and reference books to take home to share with their families, which support their continuing interest in the written word. Children learn about their own cultures and those of others; staff value children's home languages to ensure cultural diversity is embraced and respected. However, children have fewer opportunities to use, hear and see their home language within the playgroup.

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and outcomes for children

Children enjoy a wide range of creative activities, such as drawing pictures with chalk outdoors and making collages or models with a range of unusual materials and junk. Children learn about the environment and recycling through visits from the local refuse officers; staff continue the children's interest in activities, such as using junk to create models or collecting food scraps for the wormery. Children count with confidence and demonstrate good problem solving skills as they persevere to create complex structures from crates, tubes and cardboard boxes. Regular cooking activities develop their knowledge of weight and quantity, and they follow the words and pictures for recipes which help them sequence their tasks. These stimulating and innovative activities lay firm foundations and equip children with fundamental skills that they can use to extend their future learning. 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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