Super Camps at Blackheath School

Super Camps at Blackheath School Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY372440 Inspection date 27/07/2012 Inspector Liz Caluori

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Setting address Blackheath High School Gpdst, Senior School, 27 Vanbrugh Park, London, SE3 7AG Telephone number 01235 832222 Email Info@supercamps.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

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

Super Camps at Blackheath School registered in 2008. It operates from Blackheath High School in Blackheath, within the London Borough of Greenwich. The camp has access to a number of rooms and the outside play area of the school.

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Description of the setting

The camp is registered on the Early Years Register and the voluntary part of the Childcare Register to care for a maximum of 80 children from four years to the end of the early years age group. There are currently 24 children on roll in this age range. The camp also accepts older primary school aged children. The camp opens from 8am to 6pm from Monday to Friday, during school holidays with dates advertised in advance.

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Description of the setting

Staffing levels vary depending on the number of children booked to attend each day. The majority of staff hold appropriate childcare qualifications.

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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

Children play in a suitably secure, positive and welcoming environment, although, some play resources are limited. They generally engage happily in activities, although, these are planned in advance and do not specifically reflect their individual interests or abilities. Overall, systems in place to safeguard children's welfare are generally effective; however, risk assessment procedures do not fully meet requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage framework. Some monitoring and self-evaluation takes place, demonstrating a satisfactory capacity for continuous improvement, but this does not routinely include the views of staff. Friendly relationships exist with parents and arrangements are in place to work with other professionals should the need arise.

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further?

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

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further?

 maintain a record of the risk assessment clearly stating when it was carried out, by whom, the date of review and any action taken following a review or incident (Documentation) 20/08/2012

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further?

To further improve the early years provision the registered person should: This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006  improve the range of resources, including those that reflect the diversity of children and adults within and beyond the setting  strengthen the arrangements for gathering information about children's interests and abilities and review the planning and organisation of activities to fully meet their individual needs  include staff in the self-evaluation process to lead and encourage a culture of reflective practice.

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the early years provision

There are a number of precautions in place to protect the children. A member of staff with first aid training is present during each session and staff use two-way radios to communicate around the site. Staff's induction includes the child protection procedures and the manager takes lead responsibility for safeguarding. General risk assessments are displayed for staff to see and a visual risk assessment of the premises is carried out each day. However, there are no records of these daily checks, which is a breach of the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage framework.

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the early years provision

The staff team includes qualified, experienced individuals who work elsewhere during term time, in a variety of play and educational roles. They receive training and induction, including the aims and objectives of the organisation, prior to attending each holiday session. Senior leaders devise working practices and recording systems. These are issued to the camp staff team to implement. This arrangement is, for the most part, effective in supporting the safe and efficient running of the service. Staff working with the children receive information about any of their allergies and other medical details. Information is sought from parents about children's swimming ability, but other than this, very little information is gathered about children's previous experiences and abilities. Planning is set in advance, allowing parents to see what is on offer each day. However, the rigidity of this planning does not encourage staff to provide a service that reflects the

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the early years provision

individual interests and abilities of the children attending.

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the early years provision

Self-evaluation is generally undertaken by senior leaders and does not routinely involve the staff working directly with the children. It does include feedback from parents, which is sought for each holiday period. Ongoing appraisals successfully identify the particular skills of each staff member, as well as any areas for development. The systems for monitoring do not extend to collecting staff views on the effectiveness of activities. As a result, the do not contribute to shaping future improvements.

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the early years provision

The range of resources available for children to explore and investigate independently is limited. Children in the early years age group have a base room where they take part in activities, such as music and crafts. There are adequate art materials available, but the presentation of these, and other items such as books, is not appealing and does not particularly stimulate children's interest. Children also visit different areas of the camp throughout the day, depending on the activities planned for each session. The equipment provided for physical games, This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 including a bouncy castle, is more successful in promoting children's development and enjoyment. Policies and procedures are in place to promote equality and diversity and tackle unfair discrimination. All activities are equally accessible to all children in each age group, although there are very few resources and images that

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the early years provision

Parents are welcomed with a friendly greeting as they arrive at the camp. There is information about policies, procedures and planned activities on the company website and hard copies are available on site. Required information, such as the certificate of registration and insurance details, are displayed prominently. As information about children's backgrounds, preferences and abilities is generally obtained verbally, the quality of this information varies, depending on level of interaction between parents and staff.

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the early years provision

There are no formal arrangements in place to liaise with any other childcare providers attended by children in the early years age group. However, parents are free to provide any information that they feel is necessary to meet their child's needs, including details of any other professionals involved in their care and development. The manager and staff team have a lot of experience in their term time roles working with other agencies to help meet children's individual needs.

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and outcomes for children

Children join in the planned activities happily and respond well to the encouragement offered by staff. In the group room, the sing enthusiastically and enjoy playing with the musical instruments. Art and craft activities are offered, but these tend to be planned by staff with a specific end product. For example, children colour and stick in pre-drawn letters that spell out the name of the camp. This does not offer any real opportunity to create expressive and individual artwork.

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and outcomes for children

Activities to explore the natural environment within the school grounds are planned into the timetable and support children to develop their knowledge and understanding of the world. There are also themes in place each week of the holiday, such as space and aliens. However, these are scheduled in advanced and are not planned specifically around the interests expressed by the children attending. Children lack meaningful opportunities to make choices and decisions. There are times when they have completed the planned activities and are free to play, but the limited range of resources does not support this. This is compensated for, to some degree, by the skilled interaction of most of the staff team.

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and outcomes for children

Children chat with their peers as they play. Snack and lunch times are particularly sociable occasions, with many animated conversations taking place. Children are polite and friendly and generally behave well. They are beginning to develop co- operation skills; for example, they wait patiently for their turn to have their face painted and compliment each other warmly. While children have few opportunities to make choices about their learning, they do show an interest in the activities This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 taking place and ask questions about things around them. The experience of mixing with large groups of children and following instructions in a school setting helps to prepare them for some of the challenges they will face in the future.

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and outcomes for children

Children generally demonstrate an appropriate sense of security in the camp. They listen well to staff; follow instructions promptly, and move sensibly around the premises. When questioned, they confidently share the procedure to follow if the fire alarm goes off.

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and outcomes for children

Children follow appropriate personal hygiene routines, although sometimes need prompting by adults to remember to wash their hands. They enjoy the regular opportunities to engage in physical activities, both indoors and out, and say they particularly like playing on the bouncy castle. Children bring in snacks and lunches from home and parents receive information of the organisation's healthy eating policy. Drinks are set out in the group rooms for children to take independently. 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 3 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 voluntary part of the Childcare Register are: Met

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