Squiggles Day Care & Activity Club Ltd

Squiggles Day Care and Activity Club Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY429350 Inspection date 03/11/2011 Inspector Jan Burnet

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Setting address 21 Station Road, Hagley, STOURBRIDGE, West Midlands, DY9 0NU Telephone number 01562887892 Email office@squigglesdaycare.co.uk Type of setting Childcare - Non-Domestic 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

Squiggles Day Care and Activity Club opened in 2011 and is a privately run provision. It operates from a self-contained building in Hagley, Worcestershire. Children have access to an open-plan playroom with associated facilities and there is a fully enclosed area available for outdoor play. There is a small step at the entrance and all facilities used by the children are on ground floor level.

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Description of the setting

The provision is registered by Ofsted on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. Operational hours are Monday to Friday from 7.45am to 6pm all year round. Registration is for a maximum of 42 children aged from two years to under eight years at any one time and all may be in the early years age group. There are currently 25 children on roll, 12 of whom are in the early years age group.

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Description of the setting

A team of four staff care for the children, two of whom hold early years qualifications to level 3, one is working towards level 3 and one is working towards level 2. The provision holds National Day Nurseries Association membership.

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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 provider, manager and staff promote children's individual developmental needs well and address their care needs appropriately. Health and safety is addressed satisfactorily, but the risk assessment does not include everything. Staff ensure that all children are valued and included, and information obtained from parents helps them to identify and address children's differences effectively. However, systems to ensure that children learn to recognise their own unique qualities and the characteristics they share with others are not fully effective. The partnership with parents is good, but links with other early years providers are not established. The provider and manager are aware of strengths and areas for improvement and they are beginning to use this awareness to review practice.

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further?

To further improve the early years provision the registered person should:

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further?

 make sure that the risk assessment includes anything with which a child comes into contact; with specific reference to the decking that covers the outdoor area and use of equipment and resources, such as scissors and water  develop practice for promoting and valuing diversity and difference to extend children's knowledge and understanding of their wider society  develop links with other early years providers to ensure coherence of care and learning. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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the early years provision

Staff create a warm and welcoming environment. They assess and satisfactorily minimise risks on a daily basis and risk assessment records are kept. However, children's safety is not fully addressed because the risk assessment does not identify the potential risks due to the whole of the outdoor area being decking. Accident records show that in dry weather splinters have been a cause for concern, and in winter or damp conditions the surface is very slippery. The risk assessment does not identify potentially hazardous activities, such as children's use of scissors or water play. Procedures for recruitment, selection and induction are sound. The provider ensures that staff members' suitability is checked before they have unsupervised access to children. Staff are satisfactorily aware of their responsibilities with regard to protecting children from abuse in accordance with the Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage requirements and

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the early years provision

the Local Safeguarding Children Board procedures. Good procedures and practice protect children's health and prevent the spread of infection.

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the early years provision

Systems to ensure sustained improvement are sound. The nursery has been registered for five months and prior to opening, the provider made sure that all required policies and procedures had been drawn up. These are now being reviewed by the provider and the manager. A priority for improvement identified by the provider is to make changes to the outdoor area and to continue to access training and seek advice from local development workers in order to improve outcomes for children. Required documentation and records are kept up to date. A good variety of resources are chosen for their quality and durability as well as to meet children's different developmental needs effectively.

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the early years provision

The partnership with parents is strong. A settling-in procedure is arranged with each parent according to their child's needs. Written information provided for parents includes a full range of policies and procedures. Information obtained from parents is good with regard to each child's backgrounds and needs. They are involved in their child's learning and development and are able to access development records at all times. A questionnaire has been provided, although these are not currently returned by parents. They are being asked for their views on issues, such as whether activities are varied and match the interests of their child, the atmosphere in the nursery, security, sharing information, food and the procedure for dealing with any concerns. Staff ensure that they provide effective inclusive care for children and they demonstrate an awareness of each child as an individual. Staff are aware of the benefits of establishing links with other providers

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the early years provision

in order to provide consistency of care and education for children attending, but these links are at a very early stage between the nursery and the local school. Consequently, continuity of care and learning is not currently maximised. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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and outcomes for children

Children are happy, settled and secure, and their personal, social and emotional development is strong. Staff make sure that they organise a balance of adult-led and freely chosen or child-initiated activities. They plan in accordance with each child's stage of development to make sure the child is challenged effectively in order to reach next steps in their learning. Each child has a folder that contains observations, examples of artwork and next steps planning. The range of resources and activities meet their needs well and resources include ones that reflect positive images of culture. However, opportunities for children to learn about diversity and difference in order to extend their knowledge and understanding of their wider society are limited.

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and outcomes for children

Young children play cooperatively alongside each other and enjoy the involvement of staff in their play. Older children are beginning to involve others in their play situations and are learning to share and take turns. A group of children aged two and three years are inspired by a staff member to link Bonfire Night to their role play. They build a bonfire with wooden blocks and then find toys that they can pretend to be hoses so that they can put out the imaginary fire. The staff member asks open questions to promote safety, such as 'why must we not stand near a fire?' Young children wear firefighters' hats and make the sound of the water coming out of the fire hose. Children enjoy joining in with the actions of songs. One of these includes a reference to fireworks and children move their arms and bodies in different ways as they pretend to be fireworks.

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and outcomes for children

Children learn to recognise their name in print as they self-register with name cards. They develop good pencil control as they draw and make marks to represent their name on their drawings and artwork. Children enjoy easy access to a good range of books and they visit the library each month and choose a book to take home or keep in their own drawer at the nursery. Younger children enjoy looking at picture books with a staff member, and older children choose favourite stories for a staff member to read. Children learn to count with one-to-one correspondence. They play a giant ludo game and confidently count the dots on the dice and then move their counter across the corresponding number of spaces. Activities, such as baking, include counting spoonfuls of ingredients onto scales and weighing. Cooking activities also encourage children to learn that information can be obtained from print as a recipe book is used and they explore change as

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and outcomes for children

Children benefit from learning and play opportunities through visits and outings, for example, to farms, nature centres and parks and trips on a train and a barge. Children are active and large equipment for physical development at the nursery and the park ensures that all are challenged appropriately. Healthy eating is addressed well and children learn how to keep themselves safe. 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 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 2 The extent to which children feel safe 3 The extent to which children adopt healthy lifestyles 2 The extent to which children make a positive contribution 3 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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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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