Kingston Park Playgroup

Kingston Park Playgroup Kingston Park Community Centre, Brunton Lane, Kingston Park, NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE, Tyne and Wear, NE3 2SW

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 05/12/2013 12/01/2010

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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 requires improvement

 An effective key person system is in place, which means that the children benefit from being nurtured and supported emotionally and, therefore, they settle very well.  A variety of resources and play experiences are provided so that children make adequate progress in their learning and development.  Staff interact playfully with the children. As a result, the children engage well in play activities and confidently communicate with staff and each other.

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It is not yet good because

 Staff sometimes do not give children sufficient time to solve problems before providing assistance.  Story-time is not always planned appropriately; as a result, not all children are engaged in story-telling.  Opportunities for children to explore and investigate outdoors are not always maximised due to the area being cluttered with large toys.

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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 toured areas used for childcare, observed play and learning activities and spoke to staff and children.  The inspector carried out a joint observation with the manager.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at a selection of children's learning journals and progress tracking information.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector carried out a discussion with the manager and looked at and discussed a range of policies and procedures.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took account of the views of parents spoken to on the day of the inspection.

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Information about the setting

Kingston Park Playgroup was established in 1981 and is located within the community centre at Kingston Park on the outskirts of Newcastle. The playgroup is registered by Ofsted on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. Children have access to the main hall within the community centre. The playgroup has an enclosed garden available to children for outdoor play. Kingston Park Playgroup is open from 9.30am to 12.15pm each weekday, during school term time. Kingston Park Playgroup has entered into partnership arrangements with local schools and childcare providers. Funded places are offered to two-, three- and four-year-olds. The playgroup serves children from the immediate and extended areas. Kingston Park Playgroup is managed by a voluntary management committee and employs a total of five members of staff. Four members of staff hold appropriate early years qualifications.

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must:

 monitor the quality of teaching outdoors in order to ensure challenging and enjoyable experiences are planned across all areas of learning.

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

 review and update regularly policies to reflect changes within the playgroup and ensure important documents are available on the premises

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

 increase the availability of information technology resources in order for children to explore cause and effect

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

 share stories with small groups of children in order to maximise the impact of direct teaching upon all children's communication and language development.

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who attend

Staff have sound knowledge of the learning and development requirements of the Statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage. They provide a welcoming, clean, well-maintained environment for children to learn in. A variety of resources are made available for children to explore, such as jigsaw puzzles, small world resources, role- play opportunities in a large home corner, a variety of books and mark making resources. However, there is a lack of natural resources and information technology equipment to support children's learning and explorations of cause and effect. Also because staff have to set out and pack away the environment, staff choose which resources are made available. The planning system in place means that staff circulate the toys made available. This lack of continuous provision is limiting children's choices and opportunities to learn through repetition.

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who attend

Staff support young children's speaking and understanding very well. They use a mixture of strategies, such as repeating what children say. They repeat words back to children using the correct pronunciation, rather than correcting a child's mistake. As a result, children enjoy communicating. Children are given lots of choices, for example, choosing what and who they play with. Therefore, children are learning how to make decisions. This ensures they are acquiring some of the necessary skills needed to prepare for moving onto the next stage of their learning and school.

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who attend

Staff are deployed well and move around between groups to respond to children's interests and needs. This means that children's play and explorations are well supported. Subsequently, children become deeply engaged in their play and maintain their interest and level of concentration. Staff understand how to support young children's learning and development, however, occasionally interventions prevent children from persisting and solving their own problems. Staff interact playfully with children and support their language development well. As a result, children are making good progress. However, whole group story sessions do not consistently meet the needs of all of the children in attendance. The group is too large, younger children are unable to maintain their interest which inhibits some children from developing a love of stories.

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

Children's well-being is good as an effective key person system is in place which enables children to develop very secure relationships with staff. Children are calm and happy as they move around and explore freely. Staff position themselves on the floor alongside the children and give the children lots of praise and encouragement. Staff interactions with children are playful and effective, for example, they provide lots of encouragement, cuddles, eye contact and smiles. Therefore, children are supported emotionally to be secure, happy and confident. Parents share appropriate information with staff, such as comforters used, health needs, dietary requirements, allergies, likes and dislikes, before children take up their place and this means that planning for children's transition is effective and children's needs are met.

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

The well-established team knows the routines and understands the roles and responsibilities. This results in a seamless flow to the session where children move into snack time without having to wait around. The variety of food provided at snack time is healthy. For example, children are offered milk or water to drink and slices of fresh banana and pear as well as buttered crackers to eat. Staff are good role models and children behave well in the playgroup; they are encouraged to develop friendly behaviour, such as sharing, taking turns and caring for each other. Staff respond calmly to unwanted behaviour and speak gently to children.

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

Children are provided with daily opportunities to develop their physical skills and enjoy energetic play outdoors. They have access to a covered yard as well as a large fenced-off lawn. The covered outdoor area is small and becomes easily cluttered with large play equipment which hampers children's ability to move around freely. The lack of natural resources for children to explore outdoors hinders children from learning about the natural world around them.

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provision

The manager and her staff fully understand their responsibility for safeguarding children and have effective policies and procedures in place to ensure children are kept safe at all times. Safer recruitment procedures are robust and in place and ensure that suitable staff are employed to work with the children. Risk assessments are thorough which results in risks being consistently well managed by staff. Therefore, children are safe.

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provision

The manager is an effective practitioner. She works alongside the staff with the children and has key person responsibilities herself. The staff team is well established and they clearly enjoy working with children. The manager carried out a joint observation and her evaluation of the activity was accurate and the suggestions she made for improvement were appropriate. However, monitoring of the quality of teaching is not embedded, which results in some inconsistencies with regard to the quality of teaching. For example, the interactions outdoors are limited to instructions, behaviour management and praise, there are limited interactions to scaffold children's learning, and limited natural resources to encourage explorations of the natural world. The recently completed self-evaluation form shows that the manager has competently identified the need to improve learning opportunities in the outdoor area. The majority of staff have appropriate qualifications.

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provision

Professional development priorities for staff are planned through supervision. As a result, staff are effective in supporting children's learning and children make adequate progress.

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provision

Parents speak highly of the positive relationship they have developed with the staff. They describe how they speak to staff each day about their children's care and well-being. Parents are pleased with the support they and their children receive when they start attending the group. Parents also state that they confidently leave their children in the care of the staff team as their children are happy at the playgroup. The parents are also happy with the level of progress their children are making with regard to sharing and taking turns, as well as their speech and language development.

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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 319226 Local authority Newcastle Inspection number 877038

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 26 Number of children on roll 27 Name of provider Kingston Park Playgroup Committee Date of previous inspection 12/01/2010 Telephone number 01912869825

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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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