Ferry Link Club Ltd

Ferry Link Club Thewall Parish Hall, Bell Lane, THELWALL, Warrington, WA4 2SX

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 12/05/2014 14/11/2011

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early years provision

This inspection: 4 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 4 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 4

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This provision is inadequate

 Some records are not effectively maintained and available for inspection to ensure that children are fully protected. In particular, evidence of staff identity checks, vetting and qualifications including first aid and insurance for the vehicles in which children travel.  The transfer to school is not sufficiently risk assessed or agreed with parents. As a result, staff are not always deployed well and children are not always adequately supervised.  Supervision and appraisal of staff is not sufficient to identify their training needs or to secure their professional development. Staff do not regularly refresh their knowledge of child protection as training is not sufficiently focused on safeguarding.  Monitoring and reviewing of practice is not strong enough to ensure specific legal requirements are fully met, risks are not minimised and procedures, such as restricted mobile phone use are not effectively followed.

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This provision is inadequate

 The key-person role and partnership working are not strong enough to ensure that the club complements the learning that takes place at home and in school. Cosy space is not always available for children to sit and chat to each other after their day at school.

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It has the following strengths

 Children are happy to attend the club, are well mannered and behave well.  Children develop healthy lifestyles. Their nutritional needs are well met and they enjoy the time and space to enjoy daily energetic 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 main hall and the outside area.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector conducted a joint observation with the provider who manages the club.  The inspector held a meeting with the provider of the club.  The inspector looked at a range of documentation including children's records.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector checked for evidence of suitability and qualifications of staff working with children and discussed the provider's self-evaluation and improvement plan.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took account of the views of parents and carers spoken to on the day and from information included in the setting's own parent survey.

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Information about the setting

Ferry Link Club was registered in 2011 and is on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. It is situated in a parish hall in Thelwall near Warrington and is managed by a private provider. The club serves the local area and is accessible to all children. It operates from the main hall and committee room. There is an enclosed area available for outdoor play. The club employs eight members of childcare staff. Of these, seven hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 3. The club opens Monday to Friday, from 7.30am to 9am and from 3pm to 6pm during term time. It opens from 7.30am to 6pm during school holidays. Children attend for a variety of sessions. There are currently 65 children on roll; of whom two attending are in the early years age group.

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must:

 improve risk assessments and assess the risk and hazards which may arise when taking children to school and ensure staff are aware of how to manage those hazards

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must:

 inform parents and/or carers about staff deployment, and agree the arrangements for transferring children to school. Make sure children are usually within sight and hearing of staff and always within sight or hearing when making the arrangements for supervising children

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must:

 ensure evidence is available for inspection to show that the vehicles and drivers used to transport children are adequately insured

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must:

 ensure sufficient staff hold current first aid certificates so that at least one person is on the premises when children are present and on outings

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must:

 train staff to understand the safeguarding policy and procedures and ensure that all staff have up-to-date knowledge of safeguarding issues

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must:

 improve partnerships with parents and other settings children attend and plan challenging experiences to complement children's learning at home and at school

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must:

 maintain records to ensure they are easily accessible and available for inspection so that children are fully protected, in particular evidence of staff qualifications, identity checks and vetting processes, including the Disclosure and Barring Service check number, date obtained and who obtained it

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must:

 monitor and evaluate the provision in order to ensure the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage are met

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must:

 define the key-person role and identify and address the training and development needs of all staff and encourage their continuous improvement through appropriate arrangements for the supervision and appraisal of staff.

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

 create cosy spaces or areas in which children can sit and chat with friends.

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who attend

The manager and staff have a sound understanding of the Early Years Foundation Stage. Staff set up the hall before children arrive with a range of activities, which are suitable for their age and stage of development. Generally, children access a sufficient range of experiences to promote their skills in communication and language and in their physical, personal, social and emotional development. They develop some suitable skills to support their future learning in school. For example, staff encourage children to develop ideas, solve problems and acquire new skills, through competitions, such as design a robot. Children learn about their culture as they design Easter eggs. Children communicate confidently and happily engage staff and visitors in conversations. However, staff do not always create areas, such as cosy spaces, in which children can sit and chat with friends.

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who attend

Children help themselves to paper and craft materials. This enables children to refine their drawing and early writing skills. They learn to use technology as they punch shapes from paper with a shape puncher. Easy access to paper, pencils and pens enable children to refine their literacy skills as they write messages in cards they have made. A staff member draws alongside children, offers guidance and effectively fosters children's speaking and listening skills. Children occupy themselves with toys they choose from a simple range set out for them. Some incidental learning takes place due to the types of toys available. For example, children develop hand-to-eye coordination as they build with a construction set. They learn to take turns and some aspects of children's mathematical skills steadily increase as they play board games involving dice and money and as they count during parachute games. Staff provide word puzzles themed to cultural events and special days,

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who attend

such as Chinese New Year and Saint David's Day. These raise children's awareness of their own culture and those of others as they practise writing. Children's physical development is effectively promoted indoors and outdoors.

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who attend

Staff extend some children's interests, for example, staff note children's interest in gluing with wool so they show them how to make pom-poms, which they make into woollen hedgehogs. However, inconsistent practices in the way staff and parents share information means little is known about some children before they start, which hinders staffs' ability to plan and provide activities that precisely match children's individual needs or interests. Each child in the early years age range has a file in which staff record observations of their abilities. However, staff do not effectively use this information to track children's progress or identify any gaps in their learning. Club staff collect children from school during term time, although little information exchanges to support continuity in children's learning. Partnership working is not strong enough to ensure that the club complements the learning that takes place at home and in the school where children spend most of their

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

Overall, children's safety and emotional well-being is compromised due to failings in management procedures and inconsistent practice. There are breaches of the statutory requirements for safeguarding and welfare, which have a significant impact on children's safety and well-being. A safe procedure is followed for collecting children from school. However, the procedure for taking children to school is not sufficiently risk assessed to take account of all possible situations. Therefore, staff do not have a clearly laid plan to follow when, for example, there are no parking spaces near to school. Children do not receive enough support for their emotional well-being and they are not sufficiently safeguarded when staff drop them off before parking the car.

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

Children visit the club before they start and their parents provide some useful information, for example, details about their health, allergies and dietary requirements. Children in the early years age range have a staff member identified as a key person. However, the role of this key person is not sufficiently defined to effectively monitor their care and education. Children play with some independence. For example, they freely move around the hall and go outdoors. Some children play alone while some children's personal and social skills develop steadily through the relationships they forge with each other. Children's nutritional needs are particularly well met, which is one of the strengths of the club. A choice of breakfast is available in the morning. Children who attend after school club help themselves to a wide range of fruits and enjoy a warm snack, such as beans and toast. Children who attend the holiday club enjoy healthy snacks and a nutritious cooked

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

meal. Children help themselves to drinks of water and cordial when they are thirsty as these are kept accessible.

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

During the club hours, many of the interactions between children and staff are warm and friendly. Staff interact with children calmly and the atmosphere is relaxed, which enables children to feel emotionally secure. Children discuss issues, such as bullying and how this makes them feel. Children's behaviour is managed consistently and, as a consequence, they behave well. Children follow safety rules, for instance, they are aware while playing outside that they are not allowed to leave the grassed area. Children's physical development is purposefully promoted. They have plenty of good opportunities to exercise vigorously as active games and outdoor play are built into the daily planning. Children gain a good understanding of how physical exercise fits in to a healthy lifestyle. They are taught new physical skills by visiting sports coaches. Outdoors, children develop good hand-to-eye coordination with balls and racquets and as they play swing ball. Sometimes,

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

particularly during holiday club, children develop good physical skills as they climb on equipment at the park and have outings to the activity centre.

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provision

This inspection was prioritised following concerns being raised about the provider's ability to safeguard children on the morning school run. The inspection found there are significant breaches in the safeguarding requirements of the Statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage. There are also breaches of the requirements of the Childcare Register. Arrangements for safeguarding children in the club are inadequate. Arrangements for keeping children safe on the premises, indoors and outdoors are too dependent on children obeying the boundary rules and this is not safe. Records to evidence that some staff are suitable or that they have the necessary skills, attitudes and abilities to carry out their roles are not readily available for inspection. Inconsistent record keeping means evidence of some staffs' identity checks and vetting processes is not available for inspection. Similarly, evidence that there are sufficient staff working with

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provision

children who hold a current first aid certificate is not available for inspection. A minibus and two cars are used to transport children. However, records are not available to evidence that all the drivers hold a valid licence or that the minibus and two cars used are adequately insured. The provider has not sufficiently assessed the risks or hazards which may arise for the children being taken to school. Therefore, the steps to manage those risks and hazards are not clearly identified. There are sufficient staff employed to meet the required staff-to-child ratios. However, it is a requirement that children must usually be within sight and hearing of staff and always within sight or hearing and this is not the case. The provider does not sufficiently inform parents about staff deployment or involve them in these decisions. Therefore, it is not clear who takes responsibility for children between being dropped off at school and school opening. The club's safeguarding policy

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provision

and procedure prohibits the use of mobile phones and cameras. However, this is not implemented effectively as staff use them while waiting for children to go into school. Staff are not regularly trained to understand the safeguarding policy and procedures or to ensure that they all have an up-to-date knowledge of safeguarding issues. There is plenty of space for children to move freely and staff take practical steps to ensure that furniture, equipment and toys are suitable and safe. However, staff lack a clear policy for assessing some risks and rely on children being sensible. The required details are available for each child who attends, which means staff are able to respond quickly and effectively in an emergency. Children practise regular emergency evacuations of the building and these are recorded.

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provision

The manager has a sound awareness of the Statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage, however, does not effectively monitor if the safeguarding and welfare requirements are met. Consequently, there are many breaches of the specific legal requirements, which compromise children's safety and well-being. As a result of poor monitoring, there is also a failure to meet the requirements of the Childcare Register. The induction of new staff includes access to the policies and procedures and information about their role and responsibilities. However, staff do not receive coaching to improve their personal effectiveness as supervision and appraisal of staff is not carried out to identify their training needs or to secure their professional development. Training and supervision are not sufficiently focused on safeguarding and child protection.

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provision

Parents' views taken at inspection are complimentary about the range of activities on offer, such as active sports and crafts. Toys are suitable for the age of the children attending. However, planning is not effective enough to challenge children or help them make the most of the resources, as a result, children often occupy themselves. Monitoring of information sharing does not take place to ensure all parents are able to share details about their child's interests and abilities when they first start at the club. Furthermore, links with the schools children attend are weak; there is no purposeful sharing of information about individual children. Consequently, there is insufficient information to determine that the club offers activities to complement learning in school where children spend most of their time. The club's website is generally informative and some newsletters are sent. Parents are able to read a suitable set of policies and procedures, which are

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provision

available on request. However, these are not always effectively followed.

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The Childcare Register

The requirements for the compulsory part of the Childcare Register are

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actions)

The requirements for the voluntary part of the Childcare Register are

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To meet the requirements of the Childcare Register the provider must:

 ensure that at least one person who is caring for children has an appropriate first aid qualification (compulsory part of the Childcare Register)  ensure that all necessary measures are taken to minimise any identified risks (compulsory part of the Childcare Register)  ensure that at least one person who is caring for children has an appropriate first aid qualification (voluntary part of the Childcare Register)  ensure that all necessary measures are taken to minimise any identified risks (voluntary part of the Childcare Register).

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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 EY430145 Local authority Warrington Inspection number 967767

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 80 Number of children on roll 65 Name of provider Ferry Link Club Ltd Date of previous inspection 14/11/2011 Telephone number 07946168145

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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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