Playpals Childcare Centre

Playpals Nursery Playpals Childcare Centre, 18 Hermitage Road, SOLIHULL, West Midlands, B91 2LJ

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 27/08/2013 20/05/2009

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early years provision

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

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This provision is good

 A child and family centred approach ensures that all children are cared for well and families' needs are met.  Children play and learn in a calm, homely and welcoming environment.  Children receive high levels of care from a strong and stable team of practitioners.  Children's curiosity is aroused through a wide variety of relevant and interesting learning opportunities.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 There is scope to extend children's very good knowledge of living things and the world around them through practical activities, such as planting and harvesting.  Opportunities to involve parents in their child's learning at home are not yet always fully explored to promote children's learning even further.

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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 activity in the playrooms and the outside learning environment.  The inspector held a meeting with the owner.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at children's assessment records, planning documentation, evidence of suitability of practitioners working within the setting and a range of other documentation.  The inspector interacted with children.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took account of the views of parents and carers and of the information included in the setting's self-evaluation document.

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Information about the setting

Playpals Nursery originally opened in 1989 and changed ownership in 2008. The setting is privately owned and operates from a two storey premises situated just outside Solihull town centre. The toddler unit, nursery kitchen and staff facilities are situated on the first floor to which there is no lift access. The babies and pre-school children are based in separate areas on the ground floor. The nursery serves the local area and has strong links with local schools. There is a fully enclosed play area available for outdoor play.

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Information about the setting

There are currently 52 children on roll and the setting is registered on the Early Years Register. The setting currently supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children with English as an additional language.

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Information about the setting

The nursery opens five days a week, all year round, except for bank holidays and one week between Christmas and the New Year. Sessions are from 8am to 6pm. Children are able to attend for a variety of sessions. There are 15 members of staff employed, all of whom hold an appropriate early years qualification. The nursery owner is a qualified teacher and has achieved Early Years Professional Status. In addition, two other practitioners hold Early Years Professional Status and three practitioners are currently working towards a degree qualification. The setting provides funded early education for three- and four-year-olds and receives support from the local authority.

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

 help children to learn about the natural world by planting, growing, gathering, preparing and using different foods to extend their very good knowledge of living things

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

 enhance opportunities for parents to become involved in their child's learning by, for example, creating story sacks with children for use in the setting and at home.

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who attend

From the outset, practitioners build on children's home-based knowledge and experiences to ensure that their learning is purposeful, progressive and personalised. Children of all ages readily pursue their own interests and are engaged in a variety of enjoyable learning experiences. In the 'Daisy Room', babies are happy, safe and secure. The daily routine is extremely flexible and care is skilfully personalised to ensure their individual needs are accommodated. Babies show their emotions as they gurgle, bounce up and down and vocalise in an attempt to imitate their carers. Relationships are strong and babies are nurtured. After a feed, babies snuggle lovingly into the practitioners and they develop confidence in reaching out for toys and exploring the environment. In addition, they show they are happy to play by themselves when familiar adults are near. Babies beam with delight as they spot themselves in the mirror and they adore sensory play involving jelly,

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who attend

custard and corn flour. All babies respond beautifully to attention and demonstrate that they have built strong attachments. Practitioners talk very positively about 'a real team approach', 'mucking in together' and about sharing 'a common goal to provide quality care'.

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who attend

In the 'Poppy Room', toddlers take pleasure searching for mini beasts. They happily explore soil and woodchip from the garden, finding worms, slugs and centipedes. Art and craft activities are popular and children have fun as they engage in practical, hands-on activities, such as painting and water play. Small world toys are popular and children build stories around the farm animals and begin to make-believe by pretending. Practitioners delight in children's enthusiasm and desire to learn. They describe the room as 'energetic and busy', with children who are 'curious' and 'always on the go'. In the 'Sunflower Room', pre-school children blissfully float from one activity to another. Topics are based on their current interests, which at the moment is fantasy. Children grin with pleasure when they receive a letter from a giant. They have fun as they help to make enormous shoes and talk excitedly about ogres, monsters and fairies. Children revel in making edible 'snot'

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who attend

using melted marshmallows, butter, popcorn and green food colouring. They fashion magic wands out of pieces of fruit and skewers and this stimulates their interest in healthy eating. Practitioners exult in the fact that everyday is different and readily support children's excursions into enchanting imaginary worlds.

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who attend

The stimulating and well-equipped environment successfully reflects children's backgrounds and the wider community. As a result, children are motivated, interested and keen learners. Sensitive observational assessment is used effectively to identify the next steps in each child's learning and to guide planning. The rich and varied educational programme is delivered by a team of competent, knowledgeable and cheerful practitioners, who have a clear understanding of how children learn. Practitioners are well deployed to support children's learning and welfare and schedules and routines flow with children's needs. Children have uninterrupted time to play and explore. Children of all ages develop positive dispositions for learning as they find an interest, explore, experiment and try things out, remain engaged, make choices and play collaboratively with their peers. Practitioners employ many different approaches to engaging children in activities and as a

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who attend

result, children remain motivated. Children who have English as an additional language and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities are well supported. For example, the manager uses Makaton to help communication and a visual timetable is in place.

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who attend

Practitioners know children well and as a result, learning is relevant, varied and progressive. Parents are, generally, kept very well informed about their children's progress and there are some creative strategies to help to engage parents in their children's learning at the provision and at home.

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

Care practices are good. Strong relationships help children form secure attachments and children learn to respect and tolerate each other's differences. A successful key person system ensures that parents are confident to make key persons aware of their child's changing needs. Practitioners set the scene for effective learning and are committed to helping each child reach their full potential. Consequently, children make strides in their learning. Children happily pursue their own interests and there is a good balance of structured, adult-led activities and child-initiated free play. Children develop a positive sense of identity as practitioners encourage, listen and respond to their communications. The carefully planned environment supports children's choices to be active or to rest. Children gain an understanding of safety as they learn about spatial awareness, using equipment sensibly and applying the nursery rules. The environment is safe, secure and

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

supportive. School readiness is a key feature of the nursery and children learn to express their feelings, use good manners and make decisions. In addition, they take pleasure assuming responsibility for simple tasks. Children are competent at managing their personal needs relative to their ages and are well prepared for the next stage in their learning. This is fully supported by tangible links with various local schools and other settings, which helps to promote continuity of care.

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

Children thrive within a warm and welcoming environment. They demonstrate a positive approach towards eating healthily and gain a good understanding of the need for physical exercise. Children are very active and relish opportunities to play outdoors. They learn about the impact of exercise and enjoy regular outings around the local area. In addition, children are actively involved in recycling. Although, children are involved in baking and growing sunflowers, there is more scope to enhance their knowledge of living things and the world around them through practical activities, such as planting and harvesting. The nursery is very proud to have received a recent five star rating from the Environmental Health Officer. All food is freshly prepared on the premises and the wishes of children and parents are happily accommodated. Meals include fajitas, curry and chilli, cauliflower cheese, spaghetti and meatballs in tomato sauce, fish and veggie fingers with boiled

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

potatoes and baked beans. Children enjoy the food provided and eat very well. Children are content and settled because their health, physical and dietary requirements are well met.

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provision

Concise policies, procedures and strategies are in place to protect children's welfare. Promotion of equality of opportunity is at the heart of the nursery and documentation reflects a positive approach to meeting children's individual needs. All children are valued and provision for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities is good. A culture of reflective practice, self-evaluation and informed discussion improves the quality of provision for children. Practitioners are committed to improving outcomes for every child and building the foundations for future success. As part of this, practitioners are fully supported to improve their professional development. Recommendations from the last inspection have been fully addressed to enhance the learning, development and care on offer. The passion of the owner shines through and she clearly galvanises the enthusiasm of her team. The owner, who 'loves coming to work everyday' and likes 'seeing everybody

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provision

be the best that they can be', maintains her focus on 'what is it like for a child here?' She talks positively about 'giving back to the community' and 'making a difference'. Team morale is high and this promotes achievement for all children. The educational programme is constantly evaluated and reviewed to ensure children make good progress and the nursery improves.

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provision

Children are well protected through robust recruitment procedures, which ensure all staff are suitable to work with them. Staff are well aware of safeguarding procedures and work closely with other professionals to ensure children's safety is paramount. Their safety and welfare is further promoted through the robust risk assessment processes in place.

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provision

Partnerships with parents and other settings are well established and make a strong contribution to meeting children's needs. Parents are involved and included from the outset and are kept well informed about their child's progress. The nursery constantly strives to encourage parental interest in their child's learning at home. However, opportunities to promote parents' active involvement in their child's reading and literacy skills are not yet fully explored, so children's progress in this area is not always as well promoted as in others. Nevertheless, practitioners understand that parents have a crucial role in their child's global development and regular information about activities is provided. A community bear has been introduced and parents now benefit from formal opportunities to discuss their child's progress. The owner rates the nursery's commitment to 'going the extra mile with families'. Practitioners routinely attend 'Team around the Family' meetings

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provision

and other meetings to support the wide ranging and holistic needs of children and their families. The owner is committed to the development of sustained shared thinking and this is evident through solid links with the local children's centre and a number of external professionals. This collaborative working secures children's development and progress across the early learning goals.

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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 EY384875 Local authority Solihull Inspection number 915237

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 5 Total number of places 30 Number of children on roll 52 Name of provider Lynne Catherine Townend Date of previous inspection 20/05/2009 Telephone number 01217030618

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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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