The Dawn To Dusk Club LTD

The Dawn To Dusk Club LTD Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY414795 Inspection date 22/06/2011 Inspector Julie Larner

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Setting address Thomlinsons C of E Middle School, Silverton Lane, Rothbury, MORPETH, Northumberland, NE65 7RJ Telephone number 01669621918 Email admin@drtomlinson.northumberland.gov.uk 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

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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 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

The Dawn To Dusk Club opened in 2010 and is run by a limited company. It operates from Coquet House, at Thomlinsons Church of England Middle School, in the Rothbury area of Northumberland. The out of school club is open from Monday to Friday from 7.30am to 9am and 3pm to 6pm during term time and during some days in the school holidays from 7.30am to 6pm. They are registered by Ofsted on the Early Years Register, and both the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Registers for a maximum of 16 children at any one time. There are currently 51 children on roll, of whom nine are in the early years range.

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Description of the setting

The setting is able to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children who have English as an additional language. The club employs three staff, including the manager who works between two sites that the clubs operate on. All staff hold a Level 3 early years qualification. The setting drops off and collects children from Thropton First School, Rothbury First School and the school in which the club is based.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Overall the quality of the provision is satisfactory.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

The staff team creates a warm and welcoming atmosphere for the children. Children benefit from free play where they can make choices. However, a lack of adult-led activities means there are limited opportunities for children to enjoy a broad range of activities and be challenged. The staff team use effective policies to ensure that all children are included in the setting and resources mainly promote diversity. Space and equipment is mainly well organised to ensure children are cared for in a safe and secure setting, and hygiene is mostly adequately promoted. The setting is beginning to develop partnerships with other settings, and looking at how they can continually improve the service they offer. All of the relevant records are in place which contribute to children's welfare and most contain the relevant details.

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further?

To meet the specific requirements of the EYFS, the registered person must:

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further?

 ensure fresh drinking water is available at all times (Safeguarding and welfare) 07/07/2011

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further?

 ensure that there is a balance of adult-led and freely chosen or child-initiated activities, delivered through outdoor and indoor play (Organisation) 07/07/2011

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further?

 ensure the risk assessment clearly states who it was carried out by (Documentation). 07/07/2011 This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 To further improve the early years provision the registered person should:

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further?

 provide opportunities for children to learn about good personal hygiene habits, for example, by ensuring routines encourage them to wash their hands before eating food  develop resources to ensure that children have good opportunities to explore people's differing needs, cultures and beliefs  develop further partnerships with other settings to provide continuity and coherence in children's development.

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the early years provision

Children are adequately safeguarded in the setting due to the policies and procedures that are followed by the staff team. They complete daily checks on the areas and equipment that children use to ensure it is safe and suitable for its purpose. Additional checks are completed by the manager to ensure that any areas identified as posing a risk are made safe. These measures contribute towards promoting children's safety in the setting. Written safeguarding procedures are followed by staff to ensure children remain safe in their time at the setting. The staff team complete additional training in child protection to ensure they have current knowledge about up-to-date guidelines and procedures. All staff know what to do if they have concerns and this results in children's welfare being protected. A thorough recruitment and selection procedure ensures that adults are safe and suitable to look after the children in their care. Children play with an

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the early years provision

adequate range of resources. Space is organised sufficiently to ensure that children benefit from areas to socialise with each other, rest or play quietly.

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the early years provision

The manager shows a commitment to improve her service by identifying suitable training for staff, which in turn, benefits the care of the children. The setting is beginning to use self-evaluation systems to enable them to identify areas they feel will continually improve the outcomes for children. Secure policies and procedures that are regularly reviewed and updated contribute towards the smooth running of the setting. The staff team show a sound awareness of these and also an adequate awareness of their roles within the setting. All of the required records are in place, however, the risk assessment lacks details about who conducted them. This is a breach of the welfare requirements.

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the early years provision

Partnerships with parents are good. Parents are provided with a wealth of information to ensure they are fully informed of how the setting operates. The staff team show a dedicated approach to working in partnership with parents and are keen to engage with them to discuss their views about the service, and involve them in improvements. The setting have established sound links with others who provide the Early Years Foundation Stage for the children attending their setting. However, these mainly focus on children's welfare and less information is shared to ensure the setting can provide a continuous learning journey for the children and support them with their development. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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and outcomes for children

The staff team build up positive relationships with the children in their care. They involve them in conversations about their home life and take an interest in them by carefully listening to what they say. This contributes towards children beginning to develop a sense of belonging in the setting. Although children receive the majority of the Early Years Foundation Stage at school, successful systems are lacking to ensure that the group builds good links with others to share and seeks information about children's individual development. Children have free-play opportunities during the sessions in the group. Although this means they are competent at making decisions about what they want to do and enjoy their self-chosen play, there is little challenge for them due to there being a limited range of planned adult-led activities. This is a breach of the welfare requirements.

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and outcomes for children

Children are reminded by some staff, on some occasions during the sessions, to wash their hands at appropriate times, however, this is not sufficiently consistent to ensure good procedures contribute towards children constantly developing sound personal hygiene habits. For example, children are not encouraged to wash their hands before snack time. This results in the children's health and safety being compromised. Children are provided with biscuits and juice during the session, however, access to fresh drinking water throughout the session is lacking. This is a breach of the welfare requirements. The staff team show an adequate understanding of the sick children policy. They use this consistently which further contributes towards limiting cross-infection and illness. Children have regular opportunities to exercise and enjoy the fresh air outdoors. Staff provide the children with an adequate range of equipment, such as bats, tennis rackets and

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and outcomes for children

skipping ropes. Children relish being outdoors as they laugh and squeal with delight when they play tag.

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and outcomes for children

Children behave well in the setting. They act kindly and considerately towards others who attend by sharing toys and equipment. The manager shows high levels of dedication to involving parents and seeking their views on how to manage behaviour. She shows a very accurate understanding of children's individual needs and works closely alongside the parents to ensure that they meet these. The team follow a written behaviour policy which all of the staff show a sound understanding of. This enables children to gain a clear understanding of the expectations and boundaries in the setting and results in behaviour being handled in a consistent way which is also appropriate to the needs of individual child. Children begin to learn about diversity, through discussions with staff, however, toys and equipment to help children learn about others with differing beliefs and values are not always readily accessible. Children remain safe and secure in the setting. Regular checks

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and outcomes for children

are conducted by staff to ensure the areas that the children use are safe and suitable. Fire drills are practised on a regular basis. This results in children being confident about what they need to do in the event of an emergency. During the sessions the adults provide sensitive reminders about how to stay safe and some basic explanations about why they must not do certain things. This enables children to begin to develop an understanding about how to keep themselves safe This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 in their environment. 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 3 The effectiveness with which the setting promotes equality and diversity The effectiveness of safeguarding 3 The effectiveness of the setting’s self-evaluation, including the steps taken to promote improvement The effectiveness of partnerships 3 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 3

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Stage

The extent to which children achieve and enjoy their learning 3 The extent to which children feel safe 3 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 3

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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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