Childcare on Domestic Premises, Full day care in Surrey

Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY388826 Inspection date 30/08/2011 Inspector Fay Shelton

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Type of setting Childcare - 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. 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

Little Tinkers is registered as a childcare setting on domestic premises in 2011. It operates from a house in a residential road, situated in Hersham, Surrey. Children mainly use the playroom, conservatory and toilet facilities on the ground floor. A bedroom upstairs is used for sleeping during the day. There is a fully enclosed outdoor play area. The setting opens from 8am to 6pm for 51 weeks of the year. There are six members of staff working at the setting. Two of the staff hold recognised childcare qualifications at level 3, one at level 2 and two members of staff working towards a relevant qualification. Little Tinkers is registered on the Early Years Register and both parts of the compulsory and voluntary Childcare Register. A maximum of 15 children may attend at any one time and there are currently 19 children on roll, all of whom attend for a variety of sessions, and all of whom are in the early years age range.

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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

Children's welfare is not effectively promoted as staff do not manage some children's challenging behaviour effectively. This affects other children's ability to play purposefully, although the setting provides some suitable learning and development experiences. Coupled with weak planning processes, this results in children making limited progress overall, despite access to a wide range of resources. Generally positive partnerships with parents help the staff know children's individual preferences but they do not implement an effective system to help all children settle and feel secure. While the setting acts on advice from outside professionals to make some improvements, evaluation systems do not identify weaknesses effectively, so the capacity to improve is weak.

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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:

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further?

 maintain an effective record of risk assessment that states when it was carried out and by whom (Documentation) 28/09/2011

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further?

 ensure that there is a balance of adult-led and child- initiated activities, delivered through indoor and outdoor play (Organisation) 28/09/2011

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further?

 plan and provide experiences that are tailored to meet 28/09/2011 This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 the individual needs of all children (Organisation)  ensure the behaviour management policy is adhered to by all members of staff. (Safeguarding and promoting children's welfare) 28/09/2011

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further?

To improve the early years provision the registered person should:

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further?

 implement the key person system effectively, in order to help children settle and feel secure  extend self-evaluation in order to identify more accurately where systems need improvement, to better meet children's individual needs.

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the early years provision

Although the provision has many useful policies and procedures in place to support aspects of children's welfare and learning, these are not consistently understood and followed through by all staff. The staff team should maintain daily safety checks of the environment to help identify potential hazards. These are not always carried out effectively, however, placing children's good health and safety at risk. Additionally, the record of risk assessment does not meet legal requirements. Suitable risk assessments for outings are in place. Security of the premises is appropriately maintained and visitors are asked to sign in and out. There are suitable systems in place to record the children's attendance, any accidents and administered medication. Focus is given to ensuring that all staff undergo appropriate suitability checks to demonstrate that they are safe to work with children.

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the early years provision

Generally positive relationships with parents result in some improvements to the provision, such as healthier meals, as staff act on parents' views. There is a regular and suitable two-way exchange of information about children's routines, so individual requirements are known. Parents comment they are generally happy with the care provided, so some positive partnership working is evident. However, staff do not consistently implement the behaviour policy that is in place within the setting. This does not promote a coherent approach to promotion of good behaviour and supporting all children to enjoy and achieve.

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the early years provision

An abundance of resources is available and these are of satisfactory quality and well maintained. The staff have organised these suitably in the available space with designated areas of learning. While resources offer exciting choices and motivating learning experiences to the children, lack of direction and weak interaction from staff results in poor outcomes for the children, so their learning needs are not met. For example, some staff rarely stimulate children's thinking during their play, through suitable questioning. The leadership and management team has suitable partnerships with outside professionals and understands the importance of working with other early years settings. This team demonstrates a willingness to improve the provision for children, but they have not succeeded in enthusing the wider staff team sufficiently, in order to drive improvement effectively. They have tackled recommendations raised by an early years advisor

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the early years provision

This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 which have included developing aspects of policies and procedures, and successfully revising the room lay out. They are aware that more work is required to continually review the quality of the provision offered to children. Currently, however, the setting's self-evaluation and monitoring systems do not identify all areas for development effectively, so some important specific legal requirements are overlooked.

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and outcomes for children

Activity planning covers all of the six areas of learning; however, this planning is not tailored to the interests or development of the children. The staff team organises the learning environment suitably, so children make some choices about their play, but there is not a balance of adult-led and child-initiated activities, as required. Suitable observation systems follow children's learning and development, however, these are not used effectively to assess and plan for the individual needs of the children, which limits progress.

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and outcomes for children

Mark-making and pre-writing skills are evident as some children use chalk to draw when in the garden. As children receive minimal attention and direction from staff, however, they are not engaged in meaningful conversations during their play. This lack of interaction means children are not helped to develop their language skills and ability to communicate, which limits skills gained for the future. Various festivals are celebrated throughout the year, for example, Christmas, Halloween and Chinese New Year, to help children learn about other families. Children develop their physical skills in the outside area on equipment, such as climbing frames, swings, a trampoline and wheeled vehicles.

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and outcomes for children

Children enjoy balanced meals and healthy snacks. Children follow some suitable hygiene practices. Staff do not help them understand the benefits of a healthy diet and regular exercise, however, as well as the importance of adopting good hygiene practices. They do not engage with children during such routines, to develop their understanding of healthy lifestyles. Staff do not always check that the outdoor area is clean, before children go out to play. Children do not always behave well. Staff do not help them resolve disagreements, for example, when arguments erupt over toys. This affects other children's ability to feel safe and, consequently, on their enjoyment of play. Children are not helped to develop habits and behaviour that are conducive to learning and that promote respect towards each other. Additionally, staff do not always implement the 'key person' system effectively, to help children settle quickly and feel secure. Thus, overall, significant weaknesses in

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and outcomes for children

the provision hinder children in developing secure foundations to support their future learning success. 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 4 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 4 The extent to which children develop skills for the future 4

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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: Not Met (with actions)

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Annex B: the Childcare Register

The provider confirms that the requirements of the voluntary part of the Childcare Register are: Not Met (with actions)

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Annex B: the Childcare Register

The registered provider does not meet the requirements of the compulsory and or voluntary part/s of the Childcare Register.

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Annex B: the Childcare Register

To comply with the requirements of the compulsory part of the Childcare Register, the registered person must take the following action/s by the specified date:

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Annex B: the Childcare Register

 ensure that children's behaviour is managed in a suitable manner (How the childcare provision is organised) 28/09/2011

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Annex B: the Childcare Register

To comply with the requirements of the voluntary part of the Childcare Register, the registered person must take the following action/s by the specified date:

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Annex B: the Childcare Register

 take action as specified on the compulsory part of the Childcare Register (How the childcare is organised) 28/09/2011

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