Schools Out Cool Club

Schools Out Cool Club Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY422928 Inspection date 05/01/2012 Inspector Jenny Read

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Setting address Glenfall County Primary School, Glenfall Way, Charlton Kings, CHELTENHAM, Gloucestershire, GL52 6XZ Telephone number 07974 207759 Email 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

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

Schools Out Cool Club has been operating since 1990 and has been under the current ownership since 2011. The privately owned club is registered on the Early Years Register and both the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. The club operates from Glenfall County Primary School in the Charlton Kings area of Cheltenham, Gloucestershire. The club shares the playroom with a pre-school. Areas include a base room, a cloakroom, one section of the partitioned school dining hall and toilet facilities. Children have access to two outside playgrounds and the school playing field with adventure play area for outside play.

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Description of the setting

The club is registered to care for a maximum of 24 children under eight years, none of whom may be under four years at any one time. There are currently three children on roll in the early years age group and 30 children in the later years age group. The club supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. The club employs five staff to work directly with the children. The manager holds the National Vocational Qualification at Level 3 in Playwork. The club is a member of and receives support from the Parent and Toddler Association.

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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

Children are busy, engaged and appear happy and settled. They demonstrate a strong sense of belonging and have a clear identity within the club, planning their own play and activities, and managing their own behaviour successfully. Outcomes for children are good and effective arrangements exist to ensure their safety and health. Partnerships with parents and carers are sound and strong links with the school support continuity and progression. The manager has sound understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the club and implements suitable plans aimed at improving many of them. Overall, actions taken from the last inspection have been fit for purpose, and there is evidence of their beneficial impact on children's welfare, learning and development.

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further?

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

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further?

 develop further the systems to monitor and evaluate the quality of the provision, for example by seeking the views of staff, children and parents and carers so that they may contribute to the self-evaluation process  improve the organisation of records and documentation to support the smooth management of the club. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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the early years provision

Arrangements for safeguarding are robust, and staff demonstrate a high level of commitment to promoting children's safety. Staff are clear about their roles and responsibilities for supporting children's welfare through good knowledge of the club's well-written policies and procedures. They demonstrate a secure understanding of child protection issues and the procedures to follow for any child welfare concerns. The premises are secure, and suitable risk assessments devised by the staff and children are in place. These identify areas of risk appropriately and the steps necessary to provide a safe environment for children to play and learn inside and out. Staff are now committed to updating their qualifications, skills and knowledge by completing relevant online training and by enrolling on level 2 and level 3 Playwork training courses. Records and documentation to support children's welfare are now in place and contain all the required detail, including updated and

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the early years provision

maintained records of criminal records bureau disclosure numbers and the date on which they were obtained. While all the records are stored securely in a locked filing cabinet and are available for inspection, they are not well organised or easy to access to support the efficient management of the club.

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the early years provision

The good range of available games, toys and resources are used well to support and promote children's interests and challenge their skills. The playroom is suitably clean, and the children use the available space well to enhance their play and experiences. The management and staff actively promote equality and diversity and take effective steps to close identified achievement gaps by working closely with the school to provide purposeful support. Attending regular meetings with the reception class teacher to share information about children's achievements and progress, and to agree targets for future development, ensures progression and continuity of learning. Good, well-planned activities successfully raise children's awareness about their own and others' cultures. During Diwali, children made their own saris out of material and decorated lanterns. They designed and decorated their own clay tea-light candle-holders. They gain a strong sense of belonging to

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the early years provision

and a strong identity with their club by actively helping to plan the cultural celebrations. For example, they are starting to plan what they wish to do or things they would like to learn about Chinese New Year and Scottish New Year later on in the month.

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the early years provision

Friendly, positive relationships between parents and carers and staff support children's needs well. Parents and carers receive basic information about the setting through the children's registration form and have access to policy and planning files in the playroom. A talk with prospective parents at the reception class open day helps to inform them about the club and what it provides. There are some general strategies to keep parents and carers up to date about the main events taking place. Occasional informal discussion with parents and carers provides them with adequate information about their children's achievements. Systems to monitor and evaluate the quality of the provision are improving and, overall, actions from the last inspection have been successfully addressed. The This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 dedicated and motivated manager is largely responsible for identifying the

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the early years provision

strengths and weaknesses within the club to secure future improvement. The recent introduction of a monthly staff meeting is beginning to involve staff in helping to reflect on some aspects of practice and start to focus their efforts on priorities. Methods to seek the views of children and parents and carers to help inform important decisions about the club are yet to be developed.

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and outcomes for children

Outcomes for children are good. They show good awareness about what constitutes a healthy lifestyle. Children adopt good personal hygiene routines, using the small children's sink and three bowls of fresh water with soap and paper towels for hand-washing. Regular discussion about the different food groups and good quantities of healthy and wholesome snacks help to raise their awareness of healthy eating. By regularly reviewing the safety rules and helping to devise some risk assessments, such as playing with small beads and using apparatus in the adventure playground, children know what is expected of them and recognise and confidently talk about dangers and how to keep themselves safe. Displaying the large, annotated photographs of some safety issues, such as how to use a knife safely at snack time or how to sit safely on their chairs, enables the children and staff to refer to them regularly to help reinforce their awareness. Regular practice

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and outcomes for children

of the escape plan on different days ensures all children practise and learn safe action to take in an emergency.

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and outcomes for children

Children are happy and settled, and participate willingly in activities. They know what is expected of them by taking it in turns at the start of each session to read out the rules and boundaries they helped devise. As a result, behaviour is good and they show good awareness of responsibility in the club. For example, they take it in turns to help clear and clean the table after their snack, which illustrates their ability to take an active role in daily routines. Children show good levels of confidence and self-esteem and build strong relationships with their friends. For example, the youngest children take the initiative in setting up their own impromptu meetings to plan their play. Children confidently share their ideas and express their feelings with their older friends. They participate equally during play, cooperating and negotiating what they are going to do as they go to the cupboard to select the resources for their activity.

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and outcomes for children

Children participate in a wide range of highly stimulating and fun activities across all areas of learning, which skilfully challenge key skills and enable them to build on what they already know and can do. Planning skilfully radiates from a balance of children's interests and creative ideas, enabling staff to provide the resources, equipment and tailored support that empowers children to initiate and plan their own play. As a result, children take an active role in planning during their weekly small group planning meetings, making decisions on activities they would like to do the following week. They also make good use of the suggestions whiteboard to record during each session their wishes for future activities, games or resources. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 They confidently contribute ideas for themed weeks and plan very creative and innovative activities. For example, during marshmallow week they made

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and outcomes for children

marshmallow kebabs and threaded string through marshmallows to make jewellery. They developed this further using other media and materials, such as popcorn and pasta, to design different sorts of jewellery like bracelets and necklaces. The children enjoy cooking, using number cutters to make biscuits and choose the vegetables to prepare and make soup. They have fun experimenting with different pulses to design and create collages and enjoy the challenges created by games such as using chopsticks to pick up beads and having races using straws and little cars. 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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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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