PARC (Essex)

PARC (Essex) Great Notley Country Park, Great Notley, Braintree, Essex, CM77 7FS

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 20/04/2013 09/04/2009

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early years provision

This inspection: 3 Previous inspection: 1 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 3 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 3

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This provision is satisfactory

 Staff work well in partnership with parents and external professionals to meet the needs of the children, who attend.  Children enjoy playing outdoors, in the well-resourced outdoor play areas, which supports their good health and well-being.  Children enjoy spending time in the calming sensory room, which allows them to use their senses to explore a range of light, touch and sound sensations.  Children are settled and secure in the setting, as they have formed trusting relationships with the adults, who care for them.

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It is not yet good because

 Induction and supervision does not ensure that all staff receive effective coaching to review their understanding of the importance of following the setting's safeguarding procedures.  Staff are not supported to request additional help from other members of staff, when they are finding children's challenging behaviour difficult.

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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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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 the children playing outside and in the main room.  The inspector spoke to management, committee members and some staff.  The inspector looked at a sample of children's learning journals and care plans.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector checked a range of documentation, including safeguarding policies and procedures and risk assessments.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector sampled a range of documentation relating to the suitability of staff and their qualifications.

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Information about the setting

PARC (Essex) registered in 2004 on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. It operates from purpose built premises in Great Notley Country Park in Braintree, Essex and supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. A ramp into the building and a range of specialised equipment means that the premises are easily accessible. It is committee owned and managed.

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Information about the setting

The out of school facility employs 95 members of childcare staff. Of these, 22 hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 3, including one with Early Years Professional Status and three with Qualified Teacher Status. Staff work various shifts.

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Information about the setting

PARC (Essex) holds under-five's sessions Tuesday, Thursday and Fridays from 10am until 12 noon. It runs an After School Club Monday to Thursdays from 3.30pm until 7pm and a youth club for children 12 to 25 years, which runs from 6pm until 9pm on Friday. PARC (Essex) runs Saturday sessions from 10am to 1pm, and then from 2pm to 5pm. They also run sessions in the school holidays from 10am until 5pm as well as 10am until 1pm and 2pm until 5pm. There is also a Sunday Family Activity Club for parents to stay with their children, which runs from 10am until 1pm. Children attend for a variety of sessions. There are currently 30 children attending, who are in the early years age range.

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must:

 ensure that all staff, especially bank staff, are trained and supported to fully understand the safeguarding policy and procedures of the setting.

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

 implement systems to enable staff to indicate through non-verbal means that they need support or time out, in particular, when dealing with children's challenging behaviour.

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who attend

Staff demonstrate a secure knowledge of the Early Years Foundation Stage, which enables them to support all children to make good progress in their learning and development. The activities and experiences that staff provide for the children cover all seven areas of their learning. This means that children have suitable challenges and enjoy learning through play. Therefore, children are able to make consistent progress in relation to their starting points and learn despite any disabilities, which they overcome well. Staff observe children regularly to see what they can do, which enables them to provide activities to support their next steps in their learning. Staff follow children's interest and include feedback from parents, which means that they enjoy their learning through play that reflects their interests.

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who attend

The dedicated one-to-one support, which all the children receive, means that they are supported in the prime and specific areas of their learning and development. Staff make good use of the range of specialist equipment, which enables children to develop their physical skills. For example, a sensory room, which is equipped with various light boxes and visual equipment encourages children to move and respond to the different stimuli in the room. This helps them to develop hand and eye co-ordination as they reach out to touch the fibre-optic threads and bubbles in the bubble tubes. Staff reinforce the children's communication and language skills through repeating back to them what they have said. This enables the children to hear the correct pronunciation and develop their language skills. Staff support and promote children's learning well. For example, they encourage children to participate in group games, such as with a large parachute. Children learn to

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who attend

take turns and respond to instructions given by staff. Staff use the opportunity to promote children's counting skills as they work together to raise the parachute together on the count of 10.

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who attend

Parents receive comprehensive verbal feedback at the end of each session, which means that they are aware of what their children have done during the day. Learning journals are full of photographs and annotations of children's achievements, which parents are able to view when they would like to. Regular meetings between the staff, parents and other relevant professionals enables staff to maintain up-to-date care plans, which support children's physical, social, emotional and medical needs.

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

Children are supported within the setting to learn how to behave and what is acceptable. Staff use a range of techniques, including distraction and redirection to manage children's behaviour. Overall, this works well, however, there is no system in place for staff to be able to indicate when they need help or support without letting the children know. This means that occasionally staff find themselves unsure of how to cope with challenging behaviour or request help. Well-established relationships between staff, the children and their key person, help children to form secure attachments and promotes their well-being and independence. Relationships are strong at all levels and children are able to learn to respect and tolerate each other's differences.

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

Staff encourage parents to attend their Sunday morning sessions to support their children to settle in. Staff spend time at the start of any new care arrangement meeting one-to- one with the parents to discuss the needs of each child. This enables staff to undertake any additional training that they may need, to be able to support each child's needs. Parents provide children's snacks, as many of them have limited or restricted diets, however, the setting provides a range of fresh fruit for those, who are able to eat a wider range of food. Staff ensure that they are aware of each child's individual dietary requirements through the care plans and child record forms. This means that any food identified to cause allergic reactions, such as nuts, are not brought into the setting. Forms are sent out regularly to ensure that the setting is aware of any changes to children's allergies or medication.

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

Staff work hard to support children as they move onto school, which enables the new setting to continue the care plans of them. This helps children move from PARC (Essex) to school. The setting is trying to make links with nurseries, which some of the children attend, so that relevant information is shared.

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provision

Overall, the majority of the managers understand their responsibilities in meeting the safeguarding and welfare requirements. Arrangements for safeguarding children are satisfactory. Incidents resulting in concerns about children's safety and staff's suitability to be working with children have been reviewed following a recent incident after one of the senior managers failed to act in accordance with the setting's policies and procedures. The remaining management team have carefully considered the incident and are in the process of putting new measures into place. However, these measures are still dependent upon staff correctly following the safeguarding procedures. During the inspection, staff demonstrated that they have carefully considered the implications of the incident and have thought through a range of measures that they feel may be appropriate to improve the safety of children. Recruitment procedures are robust, as staff undergo all necessary

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provision

checks to ensure that they are suitable to be working with children. However, weaknesses in induction procedures means that new staff are not fully trained to have a working knowledge of safeguarding procedures, as they only read the policies, which does not always secure their understanding.

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provision

Ongoing training and monitoring of staff enables them to meet each child's needs in both their learning and development. Buddy and mentoring systems are in place to enable staff to share any concerns or worries that they may have. Risk assessment is reviewed when a new child starts at the setting, which helps to promote all children's safety while in the setting. Staff carry out daily visual checks to make sure that the setting is safe before each session. Senior staff carry alarms, which enables them to call for assistance if any accidents or incidents occur. This demonstrates the management team's ability to be proactive and make changes because of concise action plans. All required child record forms, care plans and other documentation are in place to support children's well-being and maintain confidentiality.

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provision

The management and staff understand their responsibility in implementing the learning and development requirements, which they do well. Children receive appropriate support, which means that they make steady progress towards the early learning goals, working at a pace, which they can cope with. This means that children are ready for the next steps in their learning and/or their move into school. Staff, parents and the committee work well together, which enables them to identify areas for future development. This promotes the continuous improvement of the setting and the outcomes for the children, who attend.

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provision

The setting has sound and supportive partnerships with parents, which support children's learning and development. Parents receive plenty of information daily about their children's learning and development progress. Regular meetings also enable longer discussions, which means that staff and parents are able to work together to ensure continuity of children's care routines. Wider partnerships work effectively to support children's care, learning and development. This means that staff are able to seek advice or support, which ensure that all children can make progress in relation to their starting points. These wider partnerships also enable staff from the setting to support children as they move into school or another setting. Staff are able to spend time supporting the children in the school setting until they are comfortable on their own. This dedicated approach helps to support children's self-confidence and emotional well-being and enables

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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 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 EY300336 Local authority Essex Inspection number 913829

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 25 Total number of places 24 Number of children on roll 374 Name of provider PARC (Essex) Date of previous inspection 09/04/2009 Telephone number 01376 528999

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Type of provision

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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