Little Academy

Little Academy Tividale Community Primary School, Dudley Road West, Tividale, OLDBURY, West Midlands, B69 2HT

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 17/01/2013 Not Applicable

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early years provision

This inspection: 2 Previous inspection: Not Applicable How well the early years provision meets the needs of the range of children who attend The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children 2 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 2

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This provision is good

 All children are valued, display a strong sense of belonging and form positive relationships with others.  Children are welcomed into a familiar and well-equipped environment which offers varied experiences that keep both the younger and older children interested and occupied.  Relationships with parents and carers are good and links with the host school and other schools the children attend are strong to help support their continuity of care and education.  Staff place a good emphasis on ensuring that the inside and outdoor environment is used well to provide physical play opportunities for all children.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Children do not have access to a broad range of arts and craft materials, such as paint, glue and a variety of materials to cut and stick daily at their own leisure, to further increase enjoyment.  Cereals offered at breakfast and some of the choices on the menu after school include high sugar foods, and therefore this does not promote the children's understanding of eating healthy habits.

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Information about this inspection

Inspections of registered early years provision are scheduled:  at least once in every inspection cycle. The current cycle ends on 31 July 2016  more frequently where Ofsted identifies a need to do so, for example where provision was previously judged as inadequate  brought forward in the inspection cycle where Ofsted has received information that suggests the provision may not be meeting the legal requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage; or where assessment of the provision identifies a need for early inspection  prioritised for inspection where we have received information that the provision is not meeting the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage and which suggests children may not be safe  at the completion of an investigation into failure to comply with the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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Information about this inspection

The provision is also registered on the voluntary and compulsory parts of the Childcare Register. This report includes a judgment about compliance with the requirements of that register.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector observed activities in the play room and the sports hall.  The inspector held a meeting with the manager of the provision.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at children's assessment records, evidence of suitability of practitioners working within the setting, the provider's self-evaluation and a range of other documentation.  The inspector also took account of the views of parents spoken to on the day.

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Information about the setting

Little Academy is a privately owned out of school club which re-registered in 2012 under new ownership. It operates from one large room within Tividale Community Primary School in Tividale, Dudley, West Midlands. The club serves the host primary school and schools within the local area. There are fully enclosed areas available for outdoor play and the club has use of the school sports hall. The club is open Monday to Friday from 7.30am to 8.55am and from 3.30pm to 5.40pm during the school term. The holiday club runs from 8am to 5.45pm during every school holiday. Children are able to attend for a variety of sessions. There are currently 61 children on roll, seven of whom are in the early years age range. The club is registered by Ofsted on the Early Years Register and on both the voluntary and compulsory parts of the Childcare Register.

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Information about the setting

There are four members of staff employed. Of these, one holds an early years qualification at level 6, two hold level 3 in early years and one is unqualified and working towards level 3.

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To further improve the quality of the early years provision the provider should:

 develop further the range of arts and crafts materials available for children, to increase enjoyment, such as making freely available the paint, glue and a variety of materials for children to cut and stick

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To further improve the quality of the early years provision the provider should:

 increase the range of healthy choices at breakfast and on the after school menu, such as providing low sugar cereals, and decrease high sugar foods, such as jam and chocolate sandwiches.

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who attend

Children's personal, social and emotional development is fostered well. Children are active and independent learners and all are fully involved and make good use of what is available. The relaxed approach of the club complements their school day and children show good levels of interest in their chosen play. All children develop close relationships which are warm and caring with both adults and each other. They thoroughly enjoy the routine and show a real sense of belonging. Children are confident within their environment and are regularly consulted about their views and ideas for the club. Staff know the children well and plan well for their individual needs, likes and interests. For example, staff make and record observations on what the younger children like and do, and use this information to plan activities for their enjoyment and to increase their learning.

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who attend

Children's communication and language and literacy is supported well. They benefit from time to develop spoken language and develop their listening skills through sharing conversations and their stories in their friendship groups. Children spontaneously interact with adults, who engage them well in conversation during their play about what they are doing and how they are feeling. Many children freely choose to colour, draw and write and show sustained levels of interest in their creations. Staff place a good emphasis on providing opportunities for children to make marks outdoors, such as using the mounted chalk boards and taking writing materials and paper outdoors.

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who attend

Staff incorporate daily opportunities for children engage in a wide range of physical activities outdoors and indoors. For example, outdoor play is extremely popular with the children and they use a good range of large and small physical play equipment to test and challenge their physical development. Indoors children have use of the school sports hall to play team and ball games to increase their physical fitness.

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who attend

Staff provide good playful opportunities for children to problem solve, count, sort, match and make pattern through a varied range of construction toys and games. For example, children enjoy playing cards with adults and count and solve problems as they play board games. Children begin to increase their understanding of the world as they explore the natural environment. For example, they plant sunflower seeds and learn how to take care of them. Children are introduced to a range of cultures through themed activities and learn to respect others' customs and beliefs.

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who attend

Children express their thoughts and ideas as they play imaginatively with the role play resources and small world toys. The keyboard and musical instruments are thoroughly enjoyed by the children as they create their own sounds and music and happily dance along to their creations. The arts and crafts table is popular with the children and many of them spend a long time colouring and drawing. However, an extended range of arts and crafts materials, such as the paint, glue and a range of materials for children to cut and stick, are not made readily available to further increase choice and enjoyment.

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who attend

Staff ensure children attending the holiday club benefit from a broad range of physical play opportunities. They plan visits to places of interest and leisure activities, and organise activities on site which capture the children's interests. Staff make time at the end of each session so they are available to update parents and carers about what their children have been doing and to pass any messages on from school. Parents spoken to on the day of the inspection are positive about the care their children receive and state they are kept well informed about the club.

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The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children

Children are well behaved and staff use positive strategies to help them understand and learn what is right and wrong. Consequently, all children are happy, play well together and feel fully included and valued. An effective assigned key person system ensures sensitive staff help children to develop their independence and increase their enjoyment. For example, staff focus on supporting the younger children, in particular, so they are not overwhelmed by the older children and have every opportunity to take part in what is available. The environment, both indoors and outdoors, is managed well and plays a key role in supporting and extending children's enjoyment and achievement. Staff provide good strategies for helping children to understand the importance of staying safe. For example, children know the safety rules as they travel from their school to the club and understand what areas of the school are accessible to them. Regular risk

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The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children

assessments conducted by the staff team ensure the environment is safe indoors and outdoors and children are able to move safely and freely.

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The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children

Children benefit greatly from the wide range of physical activities, both indoors and outdoors, and develop a positive attitude to physical activity as they thoroughly enjoy what is available. Staff and children adopt good hygiene practices to prevent the spread of infection, such as clear hand washing routines and wiping the tables prior to snacks. Children attending in the morning before school are provided with breakfast which consists of cereals and toast. However, many of the cereals provided are high sugar cereals. In addition children attending after school have a choice of a variety of sandwiches, such as, cheese, ham, tuna, chocolate and jam. This results in some children choosing the chocolate and jam varieties regularly. Consequently, although these high sugar varieties are enjoyed by the children, they do not promote their understanding of eating healthy and its benefits.

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The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children

The manager of the club also works in the school during the day. Consequently, communication with the school and the children's teachers is strong to help promote the sharing of information. Links with the other schools that the children attend are good and continue to strengthen to support their care, education and transition to the club.

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provision

The manager of the club works well alongside her deputy to ensure the implementation of the requirements of the revised Early Years Foundation Stage. The manager works alongside staff and is involved in the care of the children, and therefore is in a good position to monitor, supervise and model good practice daily. Consequently, staff are supervised well and she has a good overview of the club and areas for further development. The well-established and experienced staff team work well together and are clear about their roles and responsibilities.

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provision

There are clear policies and procedures in place to ensure the safeguarding and welfare of children. Staff understand their role and responsibilities in relation to safeguarding children. There are effective recruitment and induction procedures in place to ensure adults caring for children are suitably vetted, qualified and experienced. All records, policies and procedures required for the safe and efficient management of the service and to meet the needs of all children are in place and regularly reviewed. Effective risk assessments are conducted of the environment indoors and outdoors, and good safety arrangements are in place to ensure children are transported safely to and from the club.

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provision

Partnership with parents and carers, the schools the children attend and other agencies are well established and make a strong contribution to promoting the children's welfare, care and well-being. Daily discussion with parents and carers ensures a good two-way flow of information to keep them up to date about their children's time at the club. The use of a notice board, prospectus and regular newsletters keeps them informed about the club and its policies.

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The Childcare Register

The requirements for the compulsory part of the Childcare Register are Met The requirements for the voluntary part of the Childcare Register are Met

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Grade Judgement Description

Grade 1 Outstanding Outstanding provision is highly effective in meeting the needs of all children exceptionally well. This ensures that children are very well prepared for the next stage of their learning. Grade 2 Good Good provision is effective in delivering provision that meets the needs of all children well. This ensures children are ready for the next stage of their learning. Grade 3 Satisfactory Satisfactory provision is performing less well than expectations in one or more of the key areas. It requires improvement in order to be good. Grade 4 Inadequate Provision that is inadequate requires significant improvement and/or enforcement. The provision is failing to give children an acceptable standard of early years education and/or is not meeting the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. It will be inspected again within 12 months of the date of this inspection.

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Grade Judgement Description

Met The provision has no children on roll. The inspection judgement is that the provider continues to meet the requirements for registration. Not Met The provision has no children on roll. The inspection judgement is that the provider does not meet the requirements for registration.

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Inspection

This inspection was carried out by Ofsted under Sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 on the quality and standards of provision that is registered on the Early Years Register. The registered person must ensure that this provision complies with the statutory framework for children’s learning, development and care, known as the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY450004 Local authority Sandwell Inspection number 809268

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 3 - 12 Total number of places 40 Number of children on roll 61 Name of provider Dee Willan Date of previous inspection Not applicable Telephone number 07733 222 186

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Type of provision

set out in the guidance ‘raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk.

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Type of provision

For the purposes of this inspection the following definitions apply:

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Type of provision

Full-time provision is that which operates for more than three hours. These are usually known as nurseries, nursery schools and pre-schools and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage. They are registered on the Early Years Register and pay the higher fee for registration.

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Type of provision

Sessional provision operates for more than two hours but does not exceed three hours in any one day. These are usually known as pre-schools, kindergartens or nursery schools and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage. They are registered on the Early Years Register and pay the lower fee for registration.

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Type of provision

Childminders care for one or more children where individual children attend for a period of more than two hours in any one day. They operate from domestic premises that are usually their own home. They are registered on the Early Years Register and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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Type of provision

Out of school provision may be sessional or full-time provision and is delivered before or after school and/or in the summer holidays. They are registered on the Early Years Register and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage. Where children receive their Early Years Foundation Stage in school these providers do not have to deliver the learning and development requirements in full but should complement the experiences children receive in school. 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,

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Type of provision

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Type of provision

T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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