First Steps Playgroup Limited

First Steps Playgroup Heston Village Hall, New Heston Road, Hounslow, TW5 0LW

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 21/05/2014 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 have the opportunity to play, explore and learn in a warm, friendly environment.  Good quality learning experiences support children to move on to the next steps of their development.  Children build strong bonds with staff, which supports them to feel safe and secure.  Parents comment that their children make good progress in the playgroup supported by well-trained staff.  Staff plan learning opportunities well, guided by children interests and individual needs. This ensures they are motivated and engaged to learn.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Staff do not consult with all parents regularly on their views of the setting.  Some children are unsure of the transitions from outdoors to indoor activities resulting in confusion.

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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 the interactions between children and staff during activities indoors and outdoors.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector sampled the playgroup's documentation including child development records.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took into account the views of parents to gain their views of the playgroup.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took part in a joint observation with the deputy manager of the playgroup.  The inspector met with the owner of the playgroup.

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Information about the setting

First Step Playgroup Limited re-registered in 2013. The setting operates from the village hall in Heston in the London Borough of Hounslow. The setting is between the local library and park and close to local shops. The setting is open each weekday from 8am to 4pm term time only. Children can attend a variety of sessions.

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Information about the setting

The premises consist of a large main hall and there is an enclosed garden for outdoor play. The playgroup has 55 children on roll and receives funding for the provision of free early education to children aged two, three and four years old. The nursery currently supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and English as an additional language.

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Information about the setting

The setting is registered on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary part of the Childcare Register. The setting employs 10 staff, including the manager, of these eight hold an early year's qualification. The manager is currently working towards an early years degree.

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

 develop a system so that children understand when outdoor play is over and it is time to tidy up to go indoors

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

 ensure that all parents have the opportunity to be consulted on their views regarding the playgroup.

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who attend

Staff have a good understanding of the learning and development requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. They plan the learning environment inside and outside well and support children's individual needs and interests. Consequently, children are happy to learn and make good progress in their learning.

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who attend

Activities and resources support the seven areas of learning and development. Staff interaction with children in these activities ensures they are motivated and engaged to learn. This is because staff support children using a range of communication and language support methods and tailor their language to support children's individual needs. Staff implement ideas from the Every Child a Talker programme including observe, wait and listen, giving children time to talk. Staff extend children's learning by introducing new words and using a combination of open and closed questioning. Staff include parents in this training by offering workshops to support children at home. Parents comment that this helps them support children's communication and language development. Staff support children well during a story of Goldilocks and the three bears. Staff use pictures and children learn about sequencing and counting. Staff teach children about big, little

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who attend

and tiny in the story and language is supported by songs and repetition.

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who attend

Children are able to choose freely from easily accessible resources. They can choose what they want to make using a variety of art and craft materials indoors and outdoors. Children play with lentils and pasta and learn to pour and measure, they learn to count the spots using large wooden dominoes. Staff encourage children to be creative and learn about mixing colours. Children paint with sponges and brushes. Older children follow lines on sheets, which support their pencil control ready for school. Staff write comments on the children's work describing the child's communication and actions undertaken during the activity. This supports parents to understand their child's development and encourages parents to talk to children about their pictures.

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who attend

Staff know how to engage the youngest children in their learning and development. They provide numerous planned opportunities throughout the day to support communication and language, personal, social and emotional, and physical development.

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who attend

Staff plan activities for children to play outside whatever the weather. They recognise the benefit to children of physical play and exercise. Children run around, climb and balance on wooden logs, pedal on tricycles, play with water and dig in the mud. A range of resources including mark making equipment and musical instruments provides children with the opportunity to extend learning outside. Staff are Forest School trained and provide opportunities for children to learn about the environment. They play with resources outdoors supported by good quality teaching from staff who question and provide narrative to the children's activities, which supports their language development. Staff support the characteristics of effective learning as they encourage children to think about how they can make something.

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who attend

Staff assess children's starting points by completing initial observations of the child as well as input from parents in the form of base line assessments. From this initial assessment, staff track children's progress with ongoing observations. Staff use the observations to plan activities to support children to move on to the next stage of their development. Staff plan ongoing activities for individual children using their knowledge of the child's interests and abilities from focussed observations and 'wow' moments. Parents acknowledge that children are making good progress overall in the nursery.

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who attend

Children have positive relationships with their key person as well as with the other members of staff in the nursery. The staff make child's development records available at any time and staff work closely with parents to support and extend their learning at home. Partnership with parents is strong and the playgroup has a parent champion who supports the two-way communication between staff and parents. For example, in partnership with the playgroup the parent champion organises workshops to support home learning. Parents learn how to support children's communication and language at home and how to manage children's behaviour positively. Parents comment that their children are making good progress in their language and social skills and that they are provided with information to support their child's learning at home.

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

Children enter the playgroup happily. The staff plan a range of activities and resources to meet the children's needs and interests, which they can independently choose. Children build warm relationships with their key person. This is because staff know their key children well and take time to get to find out children's interests as they settle in to the playgroup. Consequently, children feel safe and secure. Parents have good relationships with the key person. The key person keeps parents informed of their child's development and progress.

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

Children's behaviour is good overall in the nursery. Staff teach children how to behave positively. They allow children time to manage their own behaviour and only intervene when necessary. Staff remind children to use 'kind hands' and why they must not run indoors. They use Makaton signing consistently and praise good behaviour constantly. Children learn to become independent. Staff remind children to wash their hands before snack time and go to the toilet on their own. They are happy to help tidy toys away and make choices throughout the day, which helps build their confidence and self-esteem.

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

Children sit together at snack time and build friendships. This is a sociable occasion and staff talk to children about healthy foods and drinks. Children learn to cut up fruit safely and pour their own drinks. Staff meet children's individual needs by strictly adhering to children's dietary requirements. Children benefit from fresh air and exercise daily. Staff recognise the importance of healthy lifestyles, children benefit from a range or adult led, and child initiated activities outdoors. Children play happily together or in groups outside splashing in the water tray.

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

Staff and children sing songs using musical instruments and children listen to the different sounds they make. Staff take music and movement outdoors and children learn the letters of the alphabet together. They develop confidence, build friendships with other children and become independent learners. Older children are well prepared for their move onto school. Staff include school uniforms in the dressing up area to support children with their self-care skills. Children go on walks to local schools to become familiar with the environment and they learn about road safety.

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

Staff provide lots of opportunities for children to practice mark making inside and outside and staff teach them letters and numbers during circle time. Staff support children to manage their transitions well indoors. A tambourine is used as a signal for tidy up time and move on to the next stage of the day. However, transitions outside are not so well supported as some children continue playing and need to be reminded that it is time to tidy up.

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provision

The management and staff have a good understanding of the requirements of the Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage. They support children to move on to the next stage of their development and complete progress checks for children when they are between the ages of two and three. Staff share these with parents as well as individual learning plans and a system for tracking their development. Parents comment that they feel very involved with their child's learning and appreciate the support from the staff. Consequently, children are progressing well in relation to their starting points.

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provision

The management and staff understand the importance of keeping children safe. They explain the signs and symptoms they watch out for in order to safeguard children. Staff confidently explain the actions they would take if they had concerns about a child. They also understand the procedures to follow if they had concerns about the behaviour of another member of staff. Further discussions take place regarding safeguarding and staff are reminded regularly of their responsibilities to safeguard children.

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provision

The management and staff ensure the premises are safe and well maintained. Checks are made of all of the premises indoors and outdoors daily before children arrive. Clear emergency evacuation routes, procedures and fire safety equipment keep children safe. Management ensure staff and children take part in regular fire drills to enable childrento learn how to keep themselves safe.

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provision

The management have robust recruitment and induction procedures to keep children safe. Management and staff review the policies and procedures regularly and follow procedures for the safe running of the playgroup. Parents are shown a copy of the policies and procedures when they start at the nursery. A copy in the entrance to the nursery serves as a reminder. Therefore, parents can see the procedures that support children's health and well- being.

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provision

The management team monitor staff performance regularly through supervisions and appraisals. This helps support the staff to enhance their development and continue to be suitable to work with children. The management team organise ongoing training for staff to support their continuous development. The staff's training has a clear impact on the children progress towards the early learning goals, with good learning experiences to help children progress.

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provision

The management and staff work closely with other professionals when needed to provide support for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities to ensure they achieve their full potential. Parents are positive about the care their children receive at the nursery. They state that staff are supportive in providing information on their child's development and further support is available for children's development if necessary. Parents are also appreciative of the additional support offered in the form of workshops to support their child's learning at home. Management and staff consult parents for their views of the playgroup during workshops. However, these do not take into account the views of all parents of children who attend. A comprehensive self-evaluation has been undertaken and the management team have clear plans in place for the future. These include implementing the healthy settings award

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provision

for packed lunches and providing further support for the emotional well- being of children in partnership with 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 EY473132 Local authority Hounslow Inspection number 948243 Type of provision Sessional provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 2 - 5 Total number of places 55 Number of children on roll 55 Name of provider First Step Playgroup Limited Date of previous inspection not applicable Telephone number 07850540483

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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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