Woolaston Under Fives

Woolaston Under 5s Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY418248 Inspection date 08/07/2011 Inspector Jenny Read

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Setting address Woolaston Under 5s, Netherend, Woolaston, Gloucestershire, GL15 5TA Telephone number 01594843226 Email chocoholic1507@aol.com 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

Woolaston Under 5's has been operating since the 1960's but has been under the current registration since 2011. The playgroup is registered on the Early Years Register. It operates from a purpose built, single storey building next to Woolaston Primary School, in the rural town of Woolaston, Lydney in Gloucestershire. The playgroup has use of an entrance area, large room, sensory room, kitchen, office and toilet facilities. There is an enclosed outdoor area with grass, hard standing and soft play surfaces for outdoor play. The playgroup serves the local community and surrounding areas. It provides full day and sessional care each week day, between 9am and 3pm, during school term times. The playgroup is registered to care for a maximum of 28 children. There are currently 36 children on roll in the early years age range. The playgroup receives funding for the provision of free early education to children aged three and four. The playgroup supports children

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Description of the setting

with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children who are learning English as an additional language. The playgroup employs six part-time staff, including the manager, to work directly with the children. The manager holds an Early Years Foundation Degree and all other staff have relevant childcare qualifications.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Overall the quality of the provision is inadequate.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Outcomes for children are inconsistent due to several weaknesses and breaches of regulation. The premises are bright and spacious and most children are making sound progress in their learning. However, use of the outside play areas is not planned for to enhance children's experiences and use of some resources is inconsistent. This means that not all children's individual learning needs are fully met. Leadership and management, including the capacity for sustained improvement are inadequate. Poor self-evaluation means that staff do not set targets effectively to improve outcomes and learning for children. As a result, there are significant gaps in the quality of the provision that impact on children's health and safety.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Overall, the early years provision requires significant improvement. The registered person is given a Notice to Improve that sets out actions to be carried out.

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further?

To comply with the requirements of the EYFS the registered person must take the following action by the specified date: This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006  keep a record of accidents and first aid treatment. Ensure parents are informed of any accidents or injuries sustained by the child and of any first aid treatment that was given (Safeguarding and promoting children's welfare) 19/08/2011

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further?

 carry out a full risk assessment for each type of outing undertaken and ensure the assessment is reviewed before embarking on each specific outing (Safeguarding and promoting children's welfare) 19/08/2011

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further?

 obtain necessary information from parents, including; written parental permission, at the time of the child's admission to the provision, to the seeking of any necessary emergency medical advice or treatment in the future (Safeguarding and promoting children's welfare) 19/08/2011

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further?

 obtain necessary information from parents, including information about who has legal contact with the child; and who has parental responsibility for the child (Safeguarding and promoting children's welfare) 19/08/2011

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further?

 ensure records of staff's Criminal Record Bureau Disclosures are made available for inspection 19/08/2011

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further?

To improve the early years provision the registered person should:

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further?

 provide well-planned experiences which support children to learn with enjoyment and challenge, with particular regard to the outdoor play area, the sensory room and information and computer technology  promote the good health of children, with particular regard to ensuring that hand washing is routinely carried out and that children develop an awareness of its importance to their health  encourage a culture of reflective practice, self-evaluation and informed discussion to identify the setting's strengths and priorities for development that will improve the quality of provision for all children

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the early years provision

Recruitment, vetting and induction procedures ensure necessary checks are carried out to confirm staff's suitability; however, records of staff?s Criminal Record Bureau Disclosures were not made available for inspection. Staff demonstrate generally good awareness of safeguarding issues. They are suitably trained and know what action to take with any child welfare concerns. Policies and procedures are in place and most contain accurate, up-to-date information. These are generally well understood and implemented. Leadership is weak, providing minimal support for the management and staff team and displaying an inadequate knowledge of the Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage. This has a negative impact on the quality of the provision and outcomes for children. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 Systems to monitor and evaluate the quality of the provision are insufficient. This

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the early years provision

means that leaders and managers lack relevant information about the playgroup's performance to help them drive and secure improvement. As a result, there are significant weaknesses and several breaches of regulation which have not been identified. These relate to safeguarding children and impact on their health, safety and welfare. They include: not keeping an accurate or consistent record of accidents and first aid treatment and not informing parents of these; not carrying out risk assessments for each type of outing to ensure children's safety; and not checking or regularly monitoring and updating children's registration forms. As a result, written parental permissions are in not place as required and information about who has legal contact with and parental responsibility for the child are not sought for each child attending.

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the early years provision

Partnerships with the local school are well-established. Children have lunch in the school hall and participate in weekly visits with the reception class. The introduction of some play time in the school playground in the summer term successfully supports children's transitions to school. Links with other settings children attend are not formalised and information about children's progress and next steps is not shared to secure progression and continuity of learning. Parents receive useful information about the playgroup and there is a termly exchange of information on how well their children are achieving, their well-being and development.

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the early years provision

Indoor play areas are bright, spacious and conducive to learning and resources are generally well-presented. Children benefit from free-flowing indoor and outdoor play throughout the day enabling them to make some decisions for themselves. However, planning for the sensory room, for the use of information and communication technology resources and to cover all six areas of learning outside is not taking place. This results in resources not being used to their full potential to enhance children's experiences and learning. The setting does not fully meet the needs of the children who prefer to do their learning outside. Satisfactory emphasis is given to promoting equality and diversity. Well-planned activities help children begin to learn about their own and other cultural festivals. For example, parents from different cultural backgrounds come into the setting to show children clothes from their home countries and to do cooking activities.

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and outcomes for children

Children are beginning to show some independence in their personal care: starting to put their coats on; pouring their own drinks at snack time; and accessing their lunch boxes. However, they are not consistently helped to understand the importance of adopting healthy habits and hygiene practices as part of maintaining healthy lifestyles, because reminders and reinforcement of hand washing are rarely given. As a result, children seldom wash their hands after visiting the toilet. This compromises their ability to keep themselves safe and healthy. Healthy eating and This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 exercise activities, such as grouping pictures of food, designing a healthy plate of food and completing a healthy living record, help to raise some children's awareness of their importance on their wellbeing.

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and outcomes for children

Clear explanations given occasionally help some children begin to gain awareness of the impact of taking risks on themselves and others. However, this is not consistent with all staff and half-termly practise of the escape plan is not increasing children's awareness of how to keep themselves safe in an emergency. Children generally know how to behave and most know how to use and care for the resources, helping to tidy away the toys and equipment with reminders from staff. Most children are beginning to form positive relationships with their friends and generally display confidence and self-esteem in response to frequent praise. While, some children remain passive and rarely contribute during circle time or small group work, some children eagerly share news, concentrate and confidently respond to some staff's useful questioning. For example, they successfully calculate that if they add three more men to the two on the table, it will make five.

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and outcomes for children

Children make sound progress in their learning. Assessments, evaluations and monthly reviews of target setting across the six areas of learning, are used successfully in planning to ensure activities are purposeful and most respond to children's interests and skills. Children are beginning to contribute to planning their own play and learning by helping staff to identify topic ideas that are based on their interests. Children benefit from free flowing inside and outside play, enabling those children who prefer to do their learning outside to do things on a bigger scale. However, planning for the six areas of learning outside does not take place. This limits children's experiences and learning because few activities are available for them to explore outside.

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and outcomes for children

Staff use a reasonable range of teaching methods to facilitate some children's play, for example, getting a clip board, paper and pen for children to draw a treasure map while playing on the pirate ship. Small group work is planned well according to ability with clever adaptation of the numeracy focus for each group's activity. For example, counting with care bears, matching number of cubes to numerals and using figures to add and subtract, provides differentiation and suitable challenge. This enables children to generally secure the skills they require in order to progress in their learning. However, they make little progress in information and communication technology because the resources are rarely made available. Children show interest in the interesting sensory equipment, excitedly asking questions and tracking the shapes around the room. However, these experiences are limited because children's access to this area is restricted.

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and outcomes for children

The local environment is used generally well to support children's learning. They enjoy trips to the local church to look at stained glass windows and participate in nature walks, collecting natural materials to explore texture and make a collage. Children benefit from some opportunities to recognise their name in print, for example at snack time and some children write recognisable letters for their name. Children benefit from activities that encourage them to explore different materials. For example, they investigate exploding bangs in science, mixing different ingredients together to make exploding volcanoes. 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 4 The effectiveness with which the setting promotes equality and diversity The effectiveness of safeguarding 4 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 4

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Stage

The extent to which children achieve and enjoy their learning 3 The extent to which children feel safe 4 The extent to which children adopt healthy lifestyles 4 The extent to which children make a positive contribution 3 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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