High Cross Playgroup

High Cross Playgroup High Cross Church, John Williams Hall,Colsterworth Rd,, LONDON, N15 4BN

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 20/03/2013 12/03/2009

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early years provision

This inspection: 3 Previous inspection: 3 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 3

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This provision is satisfactory

 Children feel happy, learn to be independent and are comfortable in this playgroup.  Overall most children make sound progress in their learning and development. For example, they begin to recognise letters in their names and begin to read their names.  Adults are caring and engage with children in their play, using open-ended questions to provoke thinking.  The environment is organised to provide a good balance of areas for active and quieter play, so children can play, rest or have privacy as they wish.  The playgroup makes parents feel welcome.

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It is not yet good because

 Planning of activities is irregular and does not always stem from children's interests. As a result some children wander off and do not settle to the learning opportunities on offer.  Assessment of children's progress does not consistently cover all seven areas of learning and development. This results in some children not making the best progress in all areas.  The manager does not regularly monitor children's progress and as a result she does not fully support her staff in consistently making accurate assessments across all areas of learning and development.  Younger children do not experience regular story and singing times and as a result their language development is not always fully supported.  Although parents feel included in the life of the playgroup, their knowledge of their children's progress is not regularly updated so this relationship is not fully used for the benefit of the children.

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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

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Information about this inspection

 scheduled more frequently where Ofsted identifies a need to do so, for example where provision was previously judged 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 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  scheduled at the completion of an investigation into failure to comply with the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector observed children at play in a variety of adult- led and child- initiated activities, both indoors and outdoors.  The inspector carried out joint observations with the manager.  The inspector had discussions with the manager, staff, parents and children.  The inspector looked at a selection of documents.

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Information about the setting

Highcross Playgroup opened in 1982. It operates from a church hall in the Tottenham area, in the London Borough of Haringey. There is a fully enclosed garden for outside play. The playgroup opens each weekday for two sessions from 9am to 12pm and 1pm to 4pm during school terms only. A maximum of 24 children may attend at any one time. There are currently 31 children aged from two to under five years on roll, all in part-time places. The playgroup supports children who speak English as an additional language and children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. The playgroup employs five members of staff who work directly with the children. All the staff have relevant level three qualifications.The playgroup receives support from the local authority and is in receipt of funding for two-, three- and four-year-old children.

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must:

 develop systems for carrying out observations and assessments, based on the individual interests and stages of development of all children; use this information to plan challenging and enjoyable experiences across all areas of learning, for example with regard to developing younger children's speaking and listening skills by telling stories which involve repetition of words or phrases.

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

 develop further opportunities for children to explore and use media and materials, for example by providing resources for mixing colours, joining things together and combining interesting textured materials

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

 develop systems for monitoring children's progress to ensure a consistent approach to supporting children's learning and development

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

 organise regular opportunities for staff and parents to work together to maximise children's learning opportunities at home and in the playgroup.

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who attend

Overall children make steady progress in this playgroup. The manager and the staff have a generally good understanding of young children's needs and mostly respond accordingly. They organise a variety of activities for children to access independently and enjoy, such as water and sand play. For example, one child builds sand castles and paints 'spider worms', using her imagination and playing with words.

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who attend

Children listen and talk in groups, recalling experiences they have had during the day. They are supported in conversations by caring staff who ask them open-ended questions, which helps children to think further and reflect on their day in the playgroup. Some children speak confidently and have a suitable vocabulary. However, younger children find it hard to keep up with conversations that ensue. There are irregular opportunities for singing nursery rhymes and joining in with stories, so younger children have limited opportunities to develop their speaking and listening.

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who attend

Children use modelling materials and building bricks to create models. One child builds his own tower out of plastic construction sets, thinking about his structure and using design skills to make his building stand up. Although children are imaginative and eager builders, they sometimes have limited opportunities to explore diverse materials when model making.

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who attend

Children enjoy counting to ten and beyond as they play in the double see-saw. They learn about shapes as they use these in their play. Children learn to recognise their written names and letters in their names. Such skills prepare them well for the next stage in their learning. Adults make notes about children's favourite activities and collect these in folders. However, this knowledge is not always reflected in the planning of activities. The plans follow a set topic which, at times, disrupts rather than enhances learning. Staff use the Development Matters from the Early Years Foundation Stage document to guide them in understanding children's stages of development. This is not always effective and the planning of activities does not consistently reflect children's development needs. As a result, some younger children wander away from activities and do not make the most of the learning opportunities on offer.

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who attend

The manager and the staff communicate regularly with the children's parents, finding out about children's interests and activities at home. Each child is allocated a key person who develops a mutually trusting relationship with parents. Each key person aims to draw up a personalised plan for next steps in learning for each child. As a result, children who need additional support are indentified in good time and make steady progress. However, individual plans are sometimes irregular and do not consistently refer to all the areas of learning and development.

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

Children feel happy and enjoy their time in this playgroup. The manager and the staff share responsibilities in providing individual care for all the children, as their key persons. Children feel safe and well looked after because they form secure attachments with their key persons.

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

Staff are good role models and provide clear guidance for children's behaviour and what is expected of them. Consequently children are friendly towards one another, learning to wait their turn and share toys and equipment. Children learn to appreciate healthy foods; for example morning snacks consist of carrot sticks, raisins and apples. Children learn to be independent, helping themselves from trays placed on a low side table. They have access to drinking water throughout the session.

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

Overall, the play environment is well resourced. Children can independently choose resources they need in their games, developing their self-confidence. For example, a child selects modelling tools to form shapes in playdough. Staff organise relaxing areas for the children to rest in andhave privacy. For example, children use a camp bed in a quiet area, as well asseveral soft cushions and mats on which they sit and look at books.

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

The playgroup staff take children on outings to the local play centres and once a year on a trip to the seaside. Parents accompany their children on such trips, which contributes to very good relationships between staff and families.

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

The children have daily exercise in the fresh air. They ride tricycles and play football with the adults who supervise them well. Children have physical exercise indoors too, using a range of apparatus such as a double see-saw, a small slide and soft play equipment. Staff make children's safety their priority and support them in their explorations and play with much care and individual attention. Children are confident and well prepared for the next stage in their learning.

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provision

Staff compile progress folders for each child and plan for their individual learning and development needs, but these assessments are not always fully consistent. As a result, experiences offered do not always provide sufficient challenge for some children while for others, activities are too advanced for their stage of development. The manager is keen to develop her role as leader of the educational programmes and plans to monitor all children's progress, by supporting staff to regularly assess children's learning and development across all seven areas. However, these systems are not yet fully embedded in practice. Staff have access to some training opportunities and have attended training on the revised Early Years Foundation Stage framework.

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provision

The manager and her staff make safeguarding a priority. The manager has a secure knowledge of child protection issues and organises staff to carry out regular safety checks of the environment. Children are supervised at all times and accidents are recorded as required. Staff use preventative measures to prevent the spread of infection. For example, they support children in learning to wash their hands thoroughly and children use swing bins to dispense with used tissues.

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provision

The playgroup has developed strong collaborations with outside agencies such as the local authority early years team and health professionals. Overall staff and the manager are effective in identifying any additional support for children and engage other professionals in providing early interventions.Staff make parents feel included and welcome. They compile folders with samples of children's work and at the end of each year, parents receive this folder to keep as a souvenir. However, parents and staff do not meet regularly to discuss children's progress and as a result, home experiences do not always complement children's learning in the playgroup.The manager is considering ways in which regular meetings between key persons and parents can be organised, so that home experiences can complement children's learning in the playgroup.

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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 action. 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 140419 Local authority Haringey Inspection number 813981 Type of provision Sessional provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 2 - 5 Total number of places 24 Number of children on roll 31 Name of provider High Cross Playgroup Date of previous inspection 12/03/2009 Telephone number (0208) 2169111

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Setting details

set out in the guidance ‘Complaints procedure: 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, which are usually the childminder’s 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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