Sedbergh Playgroup

Sedbergh Playgroup Spooner Room, Settlebeck High School, Longlane, Sedbergh, Cumbria, LA10 5AL

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 03/03/2014 30/03/2011

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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

 Teaching is good because the vast majority of practice is very strong and staff are skilled in engaging children's interest and motivating them to learn. As a result, children make good progress in relation to their starting points.  Children receive warm, nurturing care and attention from the staff, promoting their emotional well-being at all times.  The manager ensures that safeguarding and welfare policies and procedures are understood and implemented by staff at all times, so that children remain safe and secure.  Very strong partnerships with external agencies and other providers ensure that children's individual needs are well supported. Staff are extremely proactive in ensuring that children receive excellent support through early intervention from a variety of supportive health and education professionals when required.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Children are not always given enough thinking time to put their thoughts into words when practitioners ask them questions, which does not fully support their communication and language skills.  Arrangements are not fully embedded to encourage all parents to contribute information about what their children are learning at home, so that staff can take this into account when planning their activities and fully extend children's learning.

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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 and spoke to children and staff undertaking activities in the playroom and the outdoor play area.  The inspector conducted a joint observation with the manager.

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Inspection activities

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

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Inspection activities

 The inspector checked evidence of suitability and qualifications of the staff, the self- evaluation and monitoring forms and policies and procedures.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took account of the views of parents spoken to and by reading a number of questionnaires.

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Information about the setting

Sedbergh Playgroup was registered in 2010 and is on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. It is run by a committee and is based in premises in the grounds of Settlebeck High School in Sedbergh, Cumbria. The playgroup operates from a playroom and enclosed outdoor play area which is shared with the children's centre. It serves the local area and is accessible to all children.

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Information about the setting

The playgroup opens Monday to Friday during term time only. Sessions are from 8.50am until 11.50am. Children attend for a variety of sessions. There are currently 23 children on roll who are in the early years age group. The playgroup provides funded early education for two- and three-year-olds. There are four members of staff, including the manager, who work directly with the children. Of these, one holds Qualified Teacher Status, one holds an appropriate early years qualifications at level 3 and two hold level 2. The playgroup receives support from the local authority and is a member of the Pre-school Learning Alliance.

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

 develop staff's teaching strategies in skilfully asking children open-ended questions and providing more time for children to respond, in order to further support their communication and language skills

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

 increase the opportunities for all parents to contribute information about what children do at home, and make more use of this shared knowledge to plan together and think through ideas of how to move children forward in their learning.

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who attend

The quality of teaching is good because the staff group work hard together to ensure children have a broad range of learning opportunities to make good progress in all areas of their learning and development. This is because staff have a good knowledge and understanding of the seven areas of learning. Consequently, this enables them to observe and efficiently assess and monitor children's progress over time. Staff record observations of children and use this information to inform planning based around children's interests and needs. Children's current interests and their individual areas of development are very clearly reflected in planning, which shows how well staff know the children. The assessment and tracking processes of the children are robust enough to enable each child's key person to successfully complete the progress check at age two years and identify any gaps in children's learning. This enables them to identify when early

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who attend

intervention is needed, so that children receive the appropriate support to meet their learning needs. Children confidently explore their environment and are well supported by enthusiastic and friendly staff. They support children's learning well by talking to them as they play and joining in where appropriate. For example, staff teach children to develop excellent skills in the use of laptops and tablet computers. They are able to switch the machines on, select their favourite programmes and use the mouse with accurate control. Children match colours as they use the mouse to click on their chosen colours. They also count and recognise shapes, such as rectangles, while playing educational games with their friends. Children learn to share and take turns as the staff make sure all children have equal opportunities to use the equipment. Staff encourage children to count in a variety of situations. They ask children to identify numbers on a card and then count out

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who attend

the correct number of counters. Some children can count up to 30 in sequence. Others know that the number six is one more than five. Staff acknowledge that they are right and praise them for their efforts.

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who attend

Staff support children's communication and language skills throughout the session by talking to them and encouraging them to join in singing and story times. They ask children appropriately challenging questions to make them think, problem solve and extend their vocabulary. For example, some children can name dinosaurs and birds, such as pterodactyl and toucan, as they look at books with the staff. However, children are not always given enough thinking time to put their thoughts into words when staff ask them questions. This sometimes does not fully promote their communication and language skills as much as possible. From a young age, children make marks in various ways. They use paints and brushes, pencils, crayons, felt-tips and chalks. This leads to them developing early writing skills as staff help them learn how to start to form recognisable letters, which leads to the oldest children writing their names. Children develop an appreciation of books

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who attend

and enjoy regular visits to the library to choose new books to read with the staff. Some books encourage children to enthusiastically join in and do some of the actions. This fully involves children in the stories, shows them that print has meaning and helps their listening and attention skills. Overall, children's learning and development is in line with, and on occasions exceeds, the expected developmental ranges for their age. As a result, they are obtaining the good skills, attitudes and dispositions they need to be ready for nursery and school.

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who attend

Staff are working hard to ensure they include parents in their children's learning and keep them well informed about activities planned for the children by displaying this information on the parents' notice board. Parents regularly participate in activities at the playgroup which support the children's learning. For example, some parents share their skills, such as dancing, by leading regular dance sessions for the children to enjoy. Other parents and grandparents who are local farmers bring in animals, such as lambs, for the children to pet. This teaches children about how to care for animals and also about their community. Staff encourage parents to share information about their children's learning and development by looking at their learning journeys and talking to their key persons on a regular basis. Staff are beginning to receive written comments and photos from some parents of what the children are learning at home, and these are incorporated into

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who attend

children's learning journey records. However, arrangements are not fully embedded to encourage all parents to contribute this information for staff to use in their planning and make more use of this shared knowledge to plan together and think through ideas of how to move children forward in their learning.

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

Staff are extremely caring and nurturing towards children and treat them with respect and affection. This results in the warm, happy atmosphere that is clearly evident at the playgroup and means that children's emotional well-being is fostered well. Settling-in visits help children get to know their new surroundings, the staff and other children prior to starting. This means that there is a smooth transition from home to the playgroup. Children are assigned a key person who they form close attachments to. Children show that they feel safe and secure because they happily separate from their parents. Children confidently select their chosen activity, become engaged in their play and chat happily to their friends. This supports them in developing trusting relationships. Children are supported well as staff help them learn how to manage their own behaviour and become tolerant of others, for example, sharing and waiting their turn. Staff talk to children in a

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

calm manner, explaining how to behave. They give lots of praise to develop children's self- esteem when they do well, such as helping to tidy resources. Children learn how to be safe in a variety of ways. Staff give timely reminders about not running indoors and explain that it is better to run outside where there is more space. They teach children how to use scissors carefully and safely. Children visit the local fire station and police station to learn about safety issues. On their outings, staff teach them about road safety and reinforce their learning during role play, using toy zebra crossing resources from the toy library.

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

Staff provide a very stimulating environment for children. The outdoor environment is well resourced with a wide range of good quality equipment, activities and positive interaction, which engages their interest and exploratory instincts. The playroom is attractively set out with resources at child level which are easily accessible so that children can make their own choices about what they want to do, developing their independence. Children learn about good hygiene routines as they are reminded to wash their hands before eating and after using the toilet. Staff help children to learn self-care skills by showing them how to put on their coats and fasten their zips. This supports children's growing independence as they do things for themselves. Children's good health is promoted really well through sensible routines and a commitment to a healthy lifestyle. They are provided with a range of freshly prepared, nutritious snacks, including different fruits. This helps children to learn

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

about healthy eating. Physical development is positively promoted as children's active play is effectively encouraged. Children are frequently asked by staff if they would like to play outside. Management ensure that there are sufficient staff working with the children so that those who want to stay inside can do so, while those that want to play outside are supervised appropriately. Children have a wide variety of activities to take part in which promote their good physical development. Outdoor play is supplemented by children being able to access dance classes run by a parent, encouraging a wide range of movements. The children's transitions to nursery and school are well planned and children receive effective support from their key persons. Children are invited to the nursery and school to meet the reception teachers, and their progress records are shared and discussed to aid their transitions.

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provision

The playgroup is led by an enthusiastic manager who is genuinely committed to providing high quality care and education for children. All staff understand their roles and responsibilities to protect children. They are vigilant regarding child safety and are proactive in minimising potential hazards, enabling children to explore safely and freely. Excellent adult-to-child ratios are maintained and staff are very well deployed, ensuring that children are well supported in their play and learning. Recruitment procedures are robust and all staff undergo checks to ensure they are safe and suitable to work with children. They are all required to complete key courses, such as safeguarding and first aid training, and are clear about what to do in these situations. Staff cascade their training to other staff, so everyone benefits from shared ideas and practice. New staff benefit from an induction, which ensures they are quickly aware of the routines, policies and

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provision

procedures that apply to the playgroup. Regular supervision meetings and annual appraisals are held with the manager to discuss staff's strengths and weaknesses in practice and to identify any training needs. This means that their ongoing suitability is closely monitored.

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provision

Documentation for the safe and effective management of the setting is very well organised, regularly reviewed and updated to take account of revised legislation and best practice. This ensures children's safety and well-being are effectively promoted. The manager ensures that ratios are well maintained at all times, effectively supporting the safety and security of all children. The manager and staff undertake regular self-evaluation to identify strengths, weaknesses and areas for improvement. Feedback is sought from parents through the comments they provide in questionnaires, which seek their views on the running of the playgroup. This shows that the manager and staff are able to continuously improve the playgroup and improve the care and learning for the children. The recommendations raised at the last inspection have been implemented. Good processes are in place to monitor children's overall progress in their learning and

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provision

development. The manager works very closely with staff. She reviews the tracking sheets that staff complete for their key children, which helps them to identify if there are any delays or gaps in children's development that need to be addressed.

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provision

Extremely strong partnership working with other providers and education and health professionals ensure that children's needs are fully identified and met. Very positive and trusting partnerships are established with parents and daily verbal dialogue is encouraged. Parents can review detailed notice boards and displays in the hallway to gain further information about the playgroup. For example, attractive displays explain what the Early Years Foundation Stage means and how staff implement it through planning and reviewing children's progress. Parents' comments received during the inspection are very positive. They state that they are kept well informed about their child's day and they highly recommend the playgroup to other parents.

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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 317591 Local authority Cumbria Inspection number 868451

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 16 Number of children on roll 23 Name of provider Sedbergh Playgroup Committee Date of previous inspection 30/03/2011 Telephone number 07855 609 524

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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

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk. You may copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as you give details of the source and date of publication and do not alter the information in any way. To receive regular email alerts about new publications, including survey reports and school inspection reports, please visit our website and go to ‘Subscribe’.

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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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