Allsorts

Allsorts Weymouth Outdoor Education Centre, Knightsdale Road, WEYMOUTH, Dorset, DT4 0HS

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 14/11/2013 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

 Children access a broad range of learning opportunities, both indoors and out, which target their individual learning needs well, meaning they make good progress in all areas of learning.  Promoting children's safety is a priority in the setting. Staff are vigilant and follow thorough procedures to ensure children are kept safe from harm.  Strong leadership and management mean that staff fully understand their individual roles and responsibilities and are continually improving their practices to meet the needs of children attending.  Trusting relationships established with parents help to ensure they are well informed of their child's progress and encouraged to work together with staff and other professionals to support children's all-round needs.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Role play areas are not always well presented to stimulate children's interest and imaginations fully.  Sometimes, staff do not encourage children to experiment with writing or engage in mark making during their play.

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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 in the playrooms and the outside learning environment and took account of the provider's self-evaluation.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector completed a joint observation and held meetings at appropriate times with the supervisor and manager.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at children's assessment records and planning documents and a sample of documentation relating to children's welfare.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector checked evidence of staff suitability and qualifications of practitioners working with children.  The inspector took account of the views of parents spoken to on the day.

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Information about the setting

Allsorts re-registered at this site in 2013, having operated at a previous location since 1991. It is a committee run group. The group operates from areas within the Outdoor Education Centre in Weymouth, Dorset. They have access to several rooms, including a main playroom. There are kitchen and toilet facilities within the building. There are several areas available for outdoor play. The group are open from 8.30am to 3.30pm, Monday to Friday during term time only.

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Information about the setting

Allsorts are registered on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. The group receives funding for the provision of free early education for children aged two, three and four years old. The group supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. There are currently 42 children on roll, all of these are in the early years age group.

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Information about the setting

There are 12 staff working directly with the children, including a manager and supervisor. The supervisor has Early Years Professional status. Nine staff hold qualifications to level 3 or 4 and two members of staff are working towards a level 2 and 3 qualification.

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

 provide more opportunities for children to develop early writing skills as they play

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

 improve the organisation of role play areas, to stimulate children's interest and encourage them to use their imaginations.

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who attend

Children are very happy at the group. They are keen to learn and settle quickly to an activity of their choice. Staff get fully involved as children play, making good use of discussions to support children's language and learning. For example, as children play in the sand, staff ask them about the different sizes of their containers, if they are full or empty. When one child starts filling up the funnel to make a sand castle, staff talk about what will happen. The child looks quizzically at the hole in the bottom, engaging in problem solving. Staff encourage the children to think critically using questions to help them solve problems. This activity also encourages children's communication skills and introduces them to mathematical language and concepts as they play. Children can freely explore the outdoor play spaces, where they access a wide range of activities to support all areas of learning. They ride around the large playground on their bikes and push the

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who attend

cars along the narrow pathways. This helps children to develop strength, control and coordination, extending their physical skills. Children enjoy books and stories, which are easily accessible both indoors and out. Children sometimes split into smaller groups during group times, to support their individual learning needs and styles. This enables children to concentrate and be fully involved and helps to ensure that all children make good progress based on their individual starting points.

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who attend

A home corner is available to encourage children to act out their own experiences. However, the equipment in this area is not set up well to encourage children to engage in meaningful play to support them in using their imaginations fully. Wide selections of creative materials are easily accessible, providing children with opportunities to make their own models or paint their own pictures. Children are actively encouraged to recognise their own name, such as when they use their name cards to register that they have had a snack. However, children do not always have access to the tools they need to encourage them to engage in mark making and early writing. For example, there is no pencil available on the painting easel to encourage children to have a go at labelling their own art work. Children are encouraged to be interested in nature and the world around them. They investigate objects in the natural environment as they search for mini-beasts in the

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who attend

garden. Children help to grow their own produce, learning about how to care for living things. Activities are planned, which help children to express their own feelings, such as small group activities using the 'Feeling Dolls'. Children learn to value and respect diversity through using resources that reflect different cultures, religions and backgrounds. A homemade book encourages children to talk about and value the different clothing and costumes that people from different countries and cultures wear.

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who attend

Staff complete regular observations, which help them to accurately assess children's development. They carefully monitor the progress children are making in all areas of learning and identify their next steps using a learning journey for each individual child. This information, along with information gathered about children's interests and preferences and starting points, helps staff to plan activities that capture children's interests and prepares them for the next stage in their learning. Staff have implemented the progress checks for children age two years, and share details with parents and healthcare professionals helping to identify and address any individual needs.

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who attend

Parents are fully involved in children's learning. They provide information when children first start, which helps staff to get to know and understand children's previous learning and interests. Parents enjoy daily discussions with staff. They can look at their child's learning journey at any time as these are always available. Parents have more formal opportunities to review children's progress and discuss next steps with the key person on a regular basis. Staff give parents ideas for activities which they may want to share with their children outside of the group. This encourages parents to continue to support children's learning at home.

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

Children separate from parents or carers confidently, showing how settled and secure they feel at the group. Children form strong bonds with their key person and other members of the friendly staff team who greet them at the door. On arrival, two children join hands and confidently wander off to play together. This demonstrates the firm friendships children are making. Staff support children's ability to work well together as they teach them to share and take turns through discussions during their play. Children have a clear understanding of boundaries and expectations. The pictorial golden rules are displayed at child height, enabling staff to remind children of these. Children's independence is encouraged as they help to cut up their fruit at snack time. Due to the location of toilet facilities, children are always accompanied by staff when using them. However, when using the toilet, staff encourage children to manage by themselves as much as possible, to

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

help prepare them for the next stage of their learning, such as school.

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

Staff are vigilant about safety and complete regular and thorough risk assessments. This helps them to monitor safety, thereby reducing hazards to children. Children are very well supervised by staff at all times. Equipment such as 'walkie talkies', help staff to maintain communication links to support children's safety when using outdoor areas or other rooms in the building. Children sometimes complete their own simple risk assessment, recording on the chart the areas they have checked. This helps children to become increasingly aware of the steps they can take to keep themselves and their friends safe. All staff have an excellent awareness of safeguarding and child protection procedures. They attend training and receive regular reminders during in-house training and staff meetings about the steps to follow should they have a concern. Arrangements are regularly reviewed to ensure they support the needs of all those attending. This helps staff to protect children

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

The environment is bright, welcoming and well maintained. Positive practices help to promote children's health. For example, a mobile hand-wash station is available in the playroom to encourage children to follow good hygiene routines throughout the day. Indoor and outdoor play areas are used well to support children's learning and benefit their health. Children are able to 'free flow', enabling them to choose if they want to play indoors or out. Many resources are easily accessible to children in clearly labelled boxes, which means children are able to make choices in what they want to play with and can organise and direct their own play.

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provision

Strong leadership and good team work means that all those working with children have a very good understanding of their responsibilities in meeting the Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage requirements. All staff follow thorough induction procedures and receive ongoing supervision and appraisals to ensure they have the support and training they need to carry out their individual roles and responsibilities well. Senior members of staff frequently monitor staff performance, identifying and addressing any weaker areas of practice. This means children's care and learning needs are supported very well. Regular reviews and updates to policies and procedures reflect changes in requirements and support practice. New information is cascaded through meetings to ensure staff are consistent in their approach. This helps children to feel secure and settled. Recruitment and vetting procedures are thorough and detailed to confirm the suitability of

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provision

staff working with the children, helping to protect children's safety. Effective use of documents such as a record of visitors and details of any existing injuries, help to support children's ongoing safety.

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provision

Staff demonstrate a commitment to continuous improvement. Supervisors review educational programmes and children's progress on a regular basis. This helps them to identify how well they are supporting children's individual needs and what they need to do to make it better. This ensures children benefit from a broad curriculum, which supports their individual learning needs well. The staff team continually reflect on the day-to-day provision for children, taking prompt action to make improvements to benefit children's learning, health and enjoyment. For example, staff have reviewed the organisation of lunch times, to ensure children are encouraged to eat more of their packed lunch. Staff receive advice and support from early years professionals and willingly reflect on their ideas for improvements. Parent questionnaires gather parents' views about the group, to help identify where further improvements may be required to meet the individual needs of

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provision

Staff work extremely hard to build secure and trusting relationships with parents. This enables them to better identify and support children's and families' needs. Staff are welcoming and sensitive and are always on hand to chat to parents and reassure them of their child's well-being. Newsletters and notice boards keep parents well informed about forthcoming activities and events, helping them to feel fully included. The group has established links with other settings which children also attend, which helps to promote consistency. Ongoing partnerships established with other professionals working with children, help staff to work together to help each child reach their full potential.

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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 Requires improvement The provision is not giving children a good standard of early years education and/or there are minor breaches of the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. It will be monitored and inspected within twelve months of the date of this inspection. 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

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Grade Judgement Description

the Early Years Foundation Stage. It will be monitored and inspected again within six months of the date of this inspection. 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 EY463901 Local authority Dorset Inspection number 917007 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 2 - 8 Total number of places 33 Number of children on roll 42 Name of provider Allsorts Playgroup Committee Date of previous inspection not applicable Telephone number 01305750444

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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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