Ashburton Playgroup

Ashburton Playgroup 246A Cortis Road, LONDON, SW15 3AY

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 17/07/2013 09/11/2011

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early years provision

This inspection: 1 Previous inspection: 2 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 1 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 1

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This provision is outstanding

 Staff plan an excellent range of exciting activities and learning experiences that reflect all areas of learning and successfully support children's individual learning needs. Children, therefore, make excellent progress.  Exceptional care is taken by staff to support all children and their families. As a result they meet their needs extremely well.  Excellent partnerships with the local authority enable staff to provide highly effective support for children with additional needs. This helps to ensure that they are fully included in all aspects of the playgroup and reach their full potential.  Staff provide excellent information to parents to enable them to support their children's learning at home. This shared approach to children's learning enables them to make the best possible progress.

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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 activities throughout the nursery and outside play area.  The inspector had discussions with parents, staff and children.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector undertook joint observations with staff and sampled children's assessment files.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector sampled a range of documentation including children's records, safeguarding procedures and parental consent forms.

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Information about the setting

Ashburton Playgroup has been established since 1985 and has been registered by the current management committee since 2004. The playgroup operates from the ground floor premises of a low rise block in the Putney area of the London Borough of Wandsworth. The playgroup has access to a playroom, kitchen, toilet facilities, an office and an enclosed outdoor play area. It serves the local community. The playgroup is open each weekday from 9.15am to 12.15pm, during term time only. The playgroup is registered on the Early Years register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. There are currently 15 children on roll in the early years age range who attend from two years old. The playgroup receives funding for nursery education for two-year-olds and three- and four-year-olds. The playgroup currently supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children who speak English as an

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Information about the setting

additional language. The playgroup employs four members of staff, all of whom hold appropriate early years qualifications. The playgroup receives support from Wandsworth Local Authority and the Wandsworth Primary Play Association.

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

 enhance further the use of the outdoor areas by providing a cosy place for children to enjoy a range of fiction and non-fiction books that further promote their learning.

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who attend

Excellent systems are in place to meet the needs of all children. Staff know the children exceptionally well as all children attend each session. Staff keep excellent track of children's progress through highly effective observations and assessments which clearly show children's individual abilities and areas for development. Staff obtain resources aimed at supporting children's individual learning needs. They successfully plan activities for one to one or small group sessions with their key children so that children's priorities for learning are targeted highly effectively. In addition, staff show exceptional skill in providing stimulating and challenging activities relating to themes which reflect all areas of learning. As a result, children are very happy and keen to learn. For example, in their recent growing theme, children grew their own plants and watched a caterpillar change into a butterfly. This fully promotes their understanding of the world. They made written

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who attend

signs of the names of the flowers and written price tags when they made their own flower show, developing their literacy and mathematical skills as they recognise numbers. Children excitedly develop their creative skills while using paint, collage and malleable materials, for example, while making a giant caterpillar. They develop their literacy skills while drawing their own pictures of the caterpillar story and show very good early writing skills while writing their names. Staff encourage children's learning at home extremely effectively by sending home their activity books which include the pictures of the story for the children to put into the correct sequence and tell their parents the story. Staff promote a consolidated approach to promoting children's learning and work closely with parents to ensure they are successfully involved in their children's learning. For example, staff provide well-written information about the themes for parents which includes activities

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who attend

that they can do at home, the aims of the theme and information about songs and festivals.

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who attend

Children relish taking part in a broad range of activities during indoor and outside play. They are developing their independent learning skills as they make choices during play. Children are well prepared for school as staff embed routines and activities that encourage their independence and self-care skills. Staff also show high regard to supporting children in developing their speaking and listening skills. For example, children enjoy daily circle times where they discuss the events of the day. They show a great sense of belonging as they talk about the children who are not present that day. They develop their counting skills as they confidently count the number of children present and sing lots of familiar songs which aid their language skills. In addition, children use exciting resources such as the earphone with story tapes where a group can listen to the story and then discuss it with staff, developing their speaking and listening skills. Children also use sound tubes,

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who attend

enabling them to talk to each other at a distance.

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who attend

Children benefit hugely from using a vast range of books and resources that promote their literacy skills. However, this area of learning is not fully explored while children are playing outside. Children greatly enjoy exploring while using sand and water; they use the guttering set to make water cascades, developing their design and construction skills. They relish playing with bubbles, taking turns to blow or catch them. Children learn about different cultures and beliefs during well planned activities relating to themes. They play imaginatively and re-enact real life experiences while using the home corner or small world resources such as cars, train sets and people figures. Children keenly engage in conversations with staff and each other during play. As a result, their language and communication skills are successfully promoted as staff ask lots of questions which extend their learning. In addition, staff show high regard to supporting children who have

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who attend

additional needs, enabling them to be fully included in play with their friends. Children are making excellent progress in relation to their individual starting points.

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

The highest regard is given to promoting children's well-being. Children and staff have developed very strong bonds and excellent relationships. Children are extremely happy and freely approach staff during play. They keenly tell staff about what they are doing and are pleased when staff give them lots of praise for their efforts and achievements. Children show a strong sense of belonging as they make a point of saying good-bye to their friends and staff. They take great pride in their learning environment and help to tidy away the toys after use. Excellent systems are in place to ensure staff work closely with parents to help children in developing their personal, social and emotional skills. Staff have successfully embedded daily routines which help children understand about expectations of their behaviour. Staff also support children exceptionally well in talking about their feelings and dealing with any disagreements between children. As a result, children learn

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

how to use language to negotiate and understand about sharing and taking turns during play. Parents spoken to during the inspection explain how their children were shy and did not interact much with other children before they began at the nursery and now their children have made excellent progress as they are confident and they have made lots of friends. Staff take exceptional steps to support children in settling into the nursery. They promote a gradual settling in programme that is tailored to meet children's individual needs. As a result, children feel safe and secure in the nursery environment and parents are assured that their children are happy and settled. In addition, staff show high regard to helping children to prepare for their next stage of learning when they move on to school.

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

Children learn about safety during regular evacuation drills so that they know what to do in an emergency. They have recently gained hands-on experiences of safety while repairs were completed to the main building and extra care was taken when walking outside. Children also use hard hats and reflective jackets during role play to re-enact these real life experiences. Children have excellent opportunities to develop their physical skills during indoor and regular outside play. They participate in weekly music and movement sessions with an additional teacher. Children also use a broad range of outdoor play equipment, such as bikes, scooters, climbing frames, tents and tunnels, which enable them to develop their movement and physical control. Children also enjoy adult-led indoor games which promote their physical skills such as using a parachute. They learn highly effectively about healthy lifestyles. They are offered a variety of nutritious snacks and their

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

individual dietary needs are known and respected. They learn good personal care routines as they wash their hands before eating and staff maintain high standards of hygiene at all times.

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provision

Excellent systems are in place to help safeguard children and promote their welfare. All staff have completed relevant safeguarding training and have a comprehensive understanding of how to protect children. They work very closely with the local authority and relevant agencies to ensure children's needs are met highly effectively and families are supported fully. Staff successfully implement a broad range of policies and procedures into their practice that promote children's welfare. Staff know exactly what to do if they have any concerns about the children in their care and maintain appropriate records as required. They show the highest regard to promoting children's safety at all times. They conduct thorough risk assessments relating to the premises and outside play area. They successfully managed to keep the playgroup running while external building works were being completed over many months, working cooperatively with the contractors to

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provision

promote children's safety. Ratios of staff to children are met at all times which also helps to keep children safe.

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provision

Excellent partnerships with parents and other agencies ensure children's individual needs are met extremely effectively. Staff have established very good links with local schools and the local community, for example, children have visited the local old people's home. In addition, staff make time to discuss all events of the day with parents when children are collected and offer written reports to parents about their children's progress. The playgroup also offers confidential meetings for parents. Parents are given a broad range of information about the playgroup, activities and topic themes, enabling them to get involved in their children's learning very effectively. Parents spoken to during the inspection state that their children are very happy at the setting. They report that the staff have been exceptionally helpful and they feel confident in talking to staff about any issues. Parents report that their children have made very good progress since they began and

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provision

they have very good relationships with staff. Parents also attend committee meetings, social and fund raising events, enabling them to effectively share their views and contribute to the management of the service.

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provision

Staff use a comprehensive range of methods to evaluate the quality of the service. They clearly identify their strengths and skilfully target areas that they plan to develop. In addition, they have successfully met the recommendations raised from the last inspection. Staff closely monitor and constantly evaluate the educational programme so that children engage in an excellent range of activities which reflect all areas of learning. Children benefit from an extremely well-organised learning environment with high quality furniture and an exceptional range of resources that reflect all areas of learning. Staff show high regard to obtaining resources which support children's individual learning needs and project themes. As a result, children's learning is challenged and successfully promoted in all areas of learning.

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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 EY283590 Local authority Wandsworth Inspection number 917784

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 2 - 8 Total number of places 15 Number of children on roll 15 Name of provider Ashburton Playgroup Committee Date of previous inspection 09/11/2011 Telephone number 0208 785 4494

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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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