Grange Kindergarten

Grange Kindergarten Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number 303231 Inspection date 04/07/2011 Inspector Helen Blackburn

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Setting address Broom Lane Methodist Church, Broom Lane, Broom, Rotherham, South Yorkshire, S60 3NE Telephone number 07887 947722 Email mandy.grangekindergarten@live.co.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 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

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

Grange Kindergarten opened in 1992 and it is managed by an individual owner. It operates from rooms within Broom Methodist Church in the Broom area of Rotherham. There are schools, parks, shops and public transport links in the local area. Children have access to a fully enclosed outdoor area. The setting is open each weekday from 9am to 3pm and offers flexible session times between these hours. The setting is open term time only.

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Description of the setting

The setting is registered on the Early Years Register. A maximum of 32 children may attend at any one time. There are currently 57 children aged from two years to under five years on roll. The setting supports a number of children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children with English as an additional language.

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Description of the setting

There are 10 members of staff, of these; eight hold early years qualifications to level 3. In addition, two members of staff are currently working towards a qualification.

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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

Practitioners have good relationships with parents and they work well with others involved in children's care. The children are central to the planning of the environment, which means they are happy and have a positive and enthusiastic approach to their learning. Children benefit from a learning environment that supports them in becoming well-behaved, independent learners who develop a respectful attitude towards diversity and difference. Overall, most documentation, policies and procedures contribute to promoting and safeguarding children's welfare. Practitioners' ambition and commitment towards promoting good quality care and education is good and in the main, their self-evaluation processes contribute to bringing about improvement.

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further?

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

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further?

 ensure before a child is admitted to the setting that information is routinely gathered on who has legal contact and parental responsibility for children and that written parental consents include permission to seek emergency medical advice (Safeguarding and promoting children's welfare). 18/07/2011

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further?

To further improve the early years provision the registered person should: This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006  improve the safeguarding children policy to ensure the procedure for dealing with allegations against a member of staff takes into account guidance set out in the publication 'What to do if you are worried a child is being abused- Summary' and information detailed in the Local Safeguarding Children Board procedures  improve self-evaluation processes to ensure they effectively monitor all aspects of the service, especially documentation, policies and procedures.

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the early years provision

Practitioners have a good understanding of their responsibilities in promoting and safeguarding children's welfare. For example, all practitioners access safeguarding training, which means they have a good understanding of the signs of abuse, neglect and the procedures to follow if they are concerned about a child's welfare. The setting has written policies regarding the procedures they follow when reporting concerns, however, these are brief in regard to how they deal with allegations of abuse against practitioners. In addition, when devising these policies they do not have access to guidance set out in the publication 'What to do if you are worried a child is being abused-Summary'. The majority of practitioners have worked at the setting for a number of years; therefore, staff retention is good. There are good recruitment, vetting and induction procedures in place to ensure all adults are suitable to work with children. This contributes to protecting children

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the early years provision

from harm. Overall, the setting maintains a varied range of documentation, policies and procedures. However, there are some omissions in their documentation and information they gather from parents, which means they do not meet some specific legal requirements. For example, although they seek written parental consent to seek emergency medical treatment, this permission omits seeking advice. In addition, although they are aware of who has parental responsibility and legal contact for the children once they have been at the setting a while, they do not routinely seek this information before admittance. Practitioners provide a safe environment for children to play. They manage this through checking the premises on a daily basis for hazards, carrying out annual risk assessments and because they supervise children at all times. The organisation of resources is good to ensure children make safe and independent choices in their play. Practitioners

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the early years provision

work well as a team, they deploy themselves well around the setting and they maintain adult to child ratios. This ensures children receive the support they need to meet their individual needs. In addition, by inviting a wide range of visitors from the community into the setting, practitioners extend children's experiences.

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the early years provision

Practitioners' ambition, drive and commitment towards promoting improvement is good. Through a number of quality improvement processes, overall, they appropriately evaluate and monitor their service. For example, they have yearly action plans that clearly outline their goals and they get involved in projects endorsed by the local authority, such as Every Child a Talker and Healthy Foundations. This contributes to promoting good outcomes for children. In addition, practitioners have addressed the recommendations made at the last inspection, which demonstrates their capacity to improve. For example, by fitting This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 sinks in the playrooms and extensively developing the outdoor area, they have taken positive steps to promote children's health and physical development. However, there are some gaps in the self-evaluation process around monitoring

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the early years provision

the effectiveness of documentation, policies and procedures resulting in breaches in requirements and missing data. For example, medication records do not always include information from parents about the time of the next dosage, although they do consistently provide detail when it was last given so it can be administered according to prescriber's instructions. Self-evaluation is an inclusive process, for example, practitioners welcome any feedback from parents, children and other professionals. Practitioners access a good range of training courses to extend their skills and experiences. This includes the majority of practitioners gaining a level 3 qualification and this supports their ongoing professional development.

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the early years provision

Practitioners have good relationships with parents and others involved in children's learning. They regularly share and exchange relevant information with them, which contributes to meeting children's individual needs. This includes parents providing regular feedback on their child's likes, interests and achievements. Policies, procedures, newsletters and notice boards provide parents with good quality information about the service and their child's day. Parents' comments regarding the setting are positive. For example, they speak highly about the flexible service, the good range of activities on offer, the happiness of their children and the friendly and welcoming environment created. Practitioners work well with any external agencies that may be involved in children's care. This ensures children receive the best learning and care opportunities if they need any additional support or help.

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and outcomes for children

Practitioners have good relationships with the children and they ensure they support and meet all their needs. This contributes to children feeling safe and secure in their care. Practitioners have a good understanding of how young children learn. For example, they are actively involved in children's play and they ask open-ended questions so that children become active learners. Observation, planning and assessments arrangements are good. For example, practitioners observe children on a regular basis; they match these to the expectations of the early learning goals and use this information to plan for their next steps in learning. This means they know children well and ensures they effectively challenge them so that they make good progress in their learning. The children access a good range of activities across all areas of learning, which incorporate their individual interests and likes and this results in children having an enthusiastic

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and outcomes for children

and positive approach to their play. For example, children use their imagination when engaging in role play activities, such as dressing up and playing at being travel agents. They learn about simple number, shape and other mathematical concepts through fun activities, such as rhymes, songs, matching, sorting, measuring and weighing activities. The children engage easily in conversations, they enjoy looking at books, they listen attentively to stories and they confidently name objects, sounding out the letters with ease. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 Through everyday routines, such as hand washing, children are developing a good understanding of the importance of effective personal hygiene practices. Through nutritious snacks and providing good information to parents about what to provide in children's packed lunches, children are learning about the importance of making

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and outcomes for children

healthy choices. This includes children tasting some of the foods they have grown, such as lettuce, tomatoes and radish. Opportunities for children to be active are good, which supports their physical development. For example, children demonstrate their balance and climbing skills when using the outdoor apparatus and they thoroughly enjoy moving their bodies in different ways when taking part in the 'finger song'. In addition, children are developing their dexterity and coordination skills well. For example, they pour, rake, dig and manipulate different objects, medias and textures.

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and outcomes for children

The children's behaviour is good and practitioners promote this by providing consistent boundaries, established routines and positive role models for children. Through play, children talk about being kind, sharing and taking turns and this helps them to develop cooperative and respectful relationships with their peers. The children have good self-esteem because practitioners praise and value their contributions. The children are learning well about diversity and difference. For example, children's individual backgrounds, needs, cultures, beliefs and likes are embraced within the setting, which provides them with a sense of belonging. In addition, through talking about differences, different festivals and traditions, and accessing a good selection of resources that promote positive images of all people in society, they are learning about the wider world. The children are also developing a respect for their environment and living things. For example, they

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and outcomes for children

actively recycle their lunch packaging and food waste, they care for caterpillars and watch them evolve into butterflies and they encourage wildlife into the setting by providing sensory plants and habitats for different creatures. 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 2 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 2 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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