Earlsfield After School Centre

Earlsfield After School Centre Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY293297 Inspection date 23/01/2012 Inspector David Thomas Hatchett

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Setting address Earlsfield Primary School, Tranmere Road, London, SW18 3QQ Telephone number 07958566122 Email playservices@wandsworth.gov.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

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

Earlsfield After School Centre has been registered since 2004 and takes place within Earlsfield Primary School, situated in the London Borough of Wandsworth. The Centre is registered to care for 32 children aged three to under eight years of age, with children up to the age of 11 also in attendance. It is registered on the Early Years Register, and both the voluntary and compulsory parts of the Childcare Register. The majority of children who attend are from Earlsfield Primary School, although the Centre also collects children from Beatrix Potter Primary School. Children have access to the ground floor dining hall, main school hall, toilets and a large outside playground shared with the host school. A contractor provides onsite meals for children who attend the Centre. There are currently 35 children on roll at the Centre, of which seven children are of early years age. At the time of the inspection, there were four children of early years age in attendance. The setting

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Description of the setting

has experience of supporting pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities and a large number with English as an additional language. The setting operates Monday to Friday, term time only from 3.15pm until 6pm. Five staff currently work at the Centre, four of which hold a National Vocational Qualification (NVQ) at level 3. The setting manager works three days a week, and is supported by a deputy manager who works full-time.

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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

Earlsfield After School Centre provides children will a satisfactory standard of education and care. It meets the needs of children in the Early Years Foundation Stage adequately because of a range of satisfactory activities and input from adults. Children generally enjoy attending the setting, and as a result, most make reasonable progress in all areas of learning. Although satisfactory overall, safeguarding procedures are not as rigorous as they should be. Self-evaluation is adequate but at the early stages of development and not always sufficiently evaluative or based on evidence. Nevertheless, the manager is aware of the broad strengths and weaknesses of the setting and has addressed the recommendations from the last inspection, demonstrating a satisfactory capacity to improve provision further.

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further?

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

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further?

 urgently designate a practitioner to take responsibility for safeguarding children, who is based within the setting, and ensure that this person or persons attend an appropriate child protection training course. 30/03/2012 This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 To further improve the early years provision the registered person should:

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further?

 develop self-evaluation processes further by ensuring that judgements are fully supported by evidence and involving all staff in ongoing self-evaluation and review  raise expectations and develop the role of key workers in assessing and recording children's development and progress and keeping parents and carers regularly informed of this  increase the detail in medium and short term planning of activities for early years aged children, and identify how activities will help children progress within the six areas of learning

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the early years provision

Although satisfactory overall, aspects of safeguarding require improvement. The manager has a sound understanding of safeguarding and safe recruitment processes, and is aware of the procedures to follow should a concern arise about a child's welfare and protection. However, there is currently no designated person for child protection and safeguarding within the setting itself, and neither the manager or deputy manager have received recent child protection training. This is a statutory requirement. Risk assessments are in place on a daily and longer term level, and these are comprehensive and robust. As a result, children say they feel safe in the setting. An appropriate policy is in place for safeguarding and child protection, supported by detailed procedures. Since the last inspection, the setting has addressed the need to install smoke alarms, practise the fire evacuation procedure and improve safety and access to the setting for parents and carers.

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the early years provision

There is satisfactory leadership and management within the setting, which is beginning to embed ambition and drive some improvements. For example, the recommendations from the last inspection have been addressed satisfactorily and action plans are in place to make further improvements over the academic year. This is beginning to feed into self-evaluation, although currently some of the setting's judgements are over-generous in relation to the evidence provided. The setting is currently in the process of updating its self-evaluation and is starting to involve all staff in this process. Equality and diversity are promoted well within the setting. Leaders make good use of children's diverse backgrounds to promote empathy, respect and understanding of other cultures, beliefs and customs, and a range of diverse toys and resources for children to use positively promote a range of backgrounds. Activities involve

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the early years provision

and engage all children, irrespective of background or ability. Other resources are used satisfactorily in the setting, to promote satisfactory learning and keep children safe; for example the setting has invested in improved CCTV equipment to improve security since the last inspection. There are satisfactory partnerships in place to promote and support learning where necessary, and good links with the host school. The setting is beginning to build on this and provide progress information to children's teachers and their parents and carers. Overall the engagement with parents and carers is satisfactory. Parents and This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 carers feel their children enjoy their time at the setting; as one stated, "My child enjoys it and is always happy". A notice board provides a variety of useful information to parents and carers on activities, the structure of the afternoon, key

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the early years provision

contacts, and opportunities to make comments, suggestions, complaints or compliments. It also contains all required statutory information. The setting also issues a newsletter every half term. However, parents and carers are not always kept up to date with the progress their children make while attending the setting. The manager recognises that children's key workers do not play a sufficiently prominent role in communicating with parents and carers about their children's learning and development.

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and outcomes for children

Satisfactory provision for children's welfare, learning and development, means that children make satisfactory progress in all areas of learning, and generally enjoy their time at the setting. Staff provide a range of activities for children to explore, for example painting, reading, role play in designated areas and outdoor football, which motivate children and enable them to develop in self-esteem and confidence. However, although activities are usually well-pitched to children's needs, they are not always planned in sufficient detail. For example, although short and medium term activity plans outline a general topic or activity and which areas for learning are covered, they are too broad and planning does not take into account children's prior learning, experiences and attainment. Planning also does not identify which aspects of the areas of learning are being addressed. There are adequate numbers of staff within the setting to ensure that children

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and outcomes for children

receive the support that they need, for example most activities are led by a different member of staff, and care is taken to ensure that the required adult to child ratios are adhered to at all times. Key workers make informal observations of their allotted children, but these are rarely recorded formally or used to feed into assessments and subsequent planning of future activities. The setting is beginning to explore how progress information on children can be shared with teachers and parents and carers through their key worker. Provision and activities are mapped against all of the Every Child Matters (ECM) outcomes and areas of learning, but only broadly. Plans and records show that children experience a reasonable balance of activities over time across the ECM outcomes, and make satisfactory progress overall. However they make good progress in adopting a healthy lifestyle, because of good provision, and a good

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and outcomes for children

range of nutritious, healthy food and drink is provided and prepared daily at the setting. As a result, children are confident and aware of which foods and drinks will contribute to a healthy lifestyle, and which to avoid. For example, during snack time, the deputy manager explained to the children the importance of eating fruit and vegetables, and explained what the sandwiches contained that had been prepared. She also explained the importance of washing hands prior to and after eating, and then monitored the situation to ensure that children complied. Children enjoy and achieve satisfactorily overall. Most children say that they enjoy their time at the setting. For example, a number of children were enjoying the 'reading corner', where they chose from a number of fiction books and read to This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 each other quietly, developing an appreciation for a range of genres, and

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and outcomes for children

improving their reading skills with support from adults. In the playground, a group of children were enjoying a football activity with one of the playleaders, where, through a series of activities and as a result of this input, they developed confidence and self-esteem as their skills improved. 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 3 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 3 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 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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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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