Bathampton Playgroup

Bathampton Play Group Bathampton Village Hall, Holcombe Lane, Bathampton, Bath, Avon, BA2 6UL

p.1

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 15/07/2014 13/07/2009

p.1

early years provision

This inspection: 2 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 2

p.1

This provision is good

 The playgroup provides a relaxed and welcoming environment. As a result, children are calm and fully engaged in their play.  Children are making good progress in their learning and development because staff are effective in delivering the educational programme.  Children benefit from a balance of adult-led and child-initiated experiences, which are both challenging and stimulating.  Strong parent partnership is a real strength of the playgroup. Parents are actively involved and regularly volunteer as parent helpers.

p.1

It is not yet outstanding because

 The manager assesses any potential risks involved in regular outings for children, but does not do these for specific events.  The current level of assistance offered by staff is not always sufficient to fully oversee younger children's personal care needs.

p.1

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

p.2

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.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector observed children in the main hall and during the playgroup's sport day event, which took place in the nearby open field.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector held discussions with the manager, staff and the children throughout the inspection.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at children's assessment records, the planning documentation and the systems for monitoring of children's progress.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector checked evidence of staff suitability and sampled a range of documentations including the safeguarding policy and risk assessments.  The inspector spoke to parents and carers and took their views into consideration.

p.2

Information about the setting

Bathampton Play Group has been registered since 1977. The playgroup is situated in the local village hall in Bathampton, on the outskirts of Bath. The playgroup has access to a main hall and side room. All rooms are on the ground floor with toilet and kitchen facilities available. All children share access to a secure enclosed outdoor play area. The playgroup is open on Monday and Wednesday from 8:30am to 1pm, and on Tuesday from 8.30am to 3pm, during term times. Children attending the playgroup are mainly from the local area and surrounding villages. The playgroup is registered on the Early Years Register. There are currently 35 children on roll, all of whom are in the early years age group. The playgroup receives funding for the provision of free early years education for children aged three years. The playgroup has the provision to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, and children who speak English as an additional language. The

p.3

Information about the setting

playgroup is run by a committee which employs three members of staff, of whom two staff hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 3. Currently, one staff is working towards a childcare qualification at level 3.

p.3

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

 review how staff are deployed so they can effectively support younger children in managing their personal care needs, such as toilet training

p.3

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

 enhance the current procedures for assessing the risks to include specific outings and events planned for children.

p.3

who attend

Children are making good progress in their learning and development because staff are effective in delivering the educational programme. Staff complete accurate and detailed assessments, initially taken from children's starting points, which they record in individual learning journals. Every term, the key person completes a summary of each child's learning and effectively uses this information to highlight next steps in learning. Staff also carry out progress checks for two-year-old children, which involves a written summary of children's development in the prime areas of learning and development. Staff share all assessments with parents and actively encourage their feedback in their child's learning records and through daily discussions.

p.3

who attend

Children benefit from a balance of adult-led and child-initiated experiences, which are both challenging and stimulating. For example, children take part in a regular nature detection sessions led by a skilled parent volunteer. During these sessions, children get to search the garden area for insects and explore natural materials. Consequently, children benefit from the hands-on experience as it helps to develop their understanding of nature and living things. Children showed great joy when they helped staff dig out the baby potatoes they have being growing in the garden. They showed great delight as they ran in to show staff and visitors the potatoes they have been growing. In response to children's excitement, staff further extended their interest by suggesting they cook the potatoes the following day to eat for their snack time.

p.3

who attend

Children are very imaginative and thoroughly enjoy taking part in role-play scenarios. For example, they move freely between the indoor and outdoor areas wearing role-play costumes or taking their dolls for a stroll in the buggies. Staff join in with children's imaginative play as they hunt for treasure. Staff provide small-group sessions including a weekly show and tell time where they encourage children to bring in an object from home that begin with the letter sound of the week. This encourages children to learn about new phonic sounds, which helps to develop their early reading skills. Furthermore, children enjoy listening to stories in small groups and show good focus and attention. Staff use this opportunity well to extend children's communication and language skills by using open- ended questions to encourage children to think and predict what might happen next.

p.4

who attend

Children benefit from a range of activities to promote their mark-making skills. For example, staff provide a well-resourced writing area where children can freely access a range of craft materials and writing tools such as chalks, pens, glue and scissors. Children show good skills in learning to write the letters of their name. Staff effectively guide older children to practise using correct letter formation, for example, by using dot-to-dot to support them if necessary. They foster opportunities to develop children's mathematical learning by providing a wide range of number activities, puzzles and games which are accessible on a low-level mathematical trolley. Consequently, children learn to recognise numbers, count objects and develop their mathematical language as they play a number lotto game with staff. Overall, children are gaining the necessary skills to help prepare them for the next stage of learning including starting school due the good quality teaching

p.4

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

The playgroup provides a relaxed and welcoming environment. As a result, the children are generally calm and fully engaged in their play. They demonstrate strong independence skills and explore all areas of the hall and outdoors with confidence. Children benefit from low-level storage units where they are encouraged to self-select their preferred play item from clearly labelled boxes. This helps to promote children's independent learning and free choice in play. Staff support new children to settle well into the playgroup by offering staggered settling-in sessions. Each child is assigned a key person who works closely with them and their family to find out about their interests, likes and preferences. The key- person system is well established. As a result, children form secure attachments with staff and settle with ease. The key person further supports children when they leave the playgroup and start school by liaising closely with their school teacher to share transition

p.4

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

records and arrange visits. Children demonstrate good social skills and show kindness towards each other. Behaviour concerns are very few because staff are good role models and remind children of expectations such as sharing and turn taking. Staff are highly skilled in communicating sensitively with children; they provide clear explanations for any unwanted behaviour, taking into account children's level of understanding. Staff encourage children's healthy lifestyle by providing nutritionally snacks and drinks. Children have daily fresh fruit, which parents contribute towards. Staff offer a rolling snack routine throughout the session so they do not interrupt children's flow of play. Staff further complement children's snack by providing a daily carbohydrate option such as crackers or breadsticks. Staff encourage parents to provide a healthy pre-prepared lunch for children who stay for lunch. Staff provide children with free-flow access between the indoor and

p.5

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

outdoor play areas. Consequently, children benefit from daily fresh air and exercise as staff encourage them to explore a range of outdoor play equipment. The children show good self-care skills and are confident to pour their own drinks and collect their lunch boxes from the trolley. These skills are useful in helping to prepare them for when they start school. Children's toilets are located just off the main hall in a safe and secure area, which most children access independently. Older children are confident to wash and dry their hands and all children show a good understanding of hygiene practice. However, staff do not always deploy themselves effectively in order to assist younger children's personal care needs. Children learn to keep themselves safe and show a good awareness of safety. For example, in preparation for their sports day event in the local park, staff remind children about road safety rules. In addition, staff provide children with high-

p.5

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

visibility jackets for when they walk across the road.

p.5

provision

The staff team show a good understanding of the legal requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. The manager effectively oversees the educational programme and tracks children's learning and development. For example, she regularly reviews children's learning records to monitor their progress, offering ongoing support to staff through daily discussions and weekly planning meetings. Staff demonstrate a good understanding of their role in safeguarding children. They are knowledgeable about the indictors for abuse and the procedures to follow for reporting any concerns. The manager has completed child protection training and works closely with the staff update their knowledge on safeguarding practices. The manager has a good understanding of safer recruitment and works with the committee members to ensure staff are adequately qualified and have undergone suitability checks prior to working with children. The manager takes suitable

p.5

provision

steps to ensure children are safe at all times through her daily checks and risk assessments of all areas used by children. Staff are knowledgeable about the procedures for planning outings, including the need for parental consent and having a first-aid qualified person present at all times. However, although the manager completes a risk assessment for outings that children regularly attend, these are not completed for specific events, such as sports day. There is a well-established programme to monitor staff's performance and continuous professional development. For instance, the manager provides regular staff supervision including yearly appraisals. Staff have attended a range of training course to develop their knowledge and skills. The manager values the importance of having fully qualified and experienced staff and is currently supporting one member of staff to achieve her childcare qualification at level 3. The staff team work

p.5

provision

collaboratively together in making improvements to the playgroup through their self- evaluation process. Staff encourage parents to provide feedback via questionnaires. Following a recent parent survey, the staff team is currently developing the upper part of the garden area to reflect children's interest in dens and having a digging area. The manager has made a number of changes following the previous inspection. For example, she has reviewed the snack routine to encourage children to be independent and develop their self-care skills. Strong parent partnership is a real strength of the playgroup. Parents are actively involved and often volunteer as parent helpers. Staff regularly keep parents informed via the notice boards and provide daily feedback. Parent spoken to during the inspection were highly complimentary of the service they receive in particular the progress their children have made in learning and development. They comment that the playgroup

p.6

provision

is 'a credit to the community' and 'staff are friendly and they provide a relaxing atmosphere for children, which is not hectic.'

p.6

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

p.7

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.

p.7

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.

p.8

Setting details

Unique reference number 133004 Local authority Bath & NE Somerset Inspection number 842915 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 2 - 5 Total number of places 20 Number of children on roll 35 Name of provider Bathampton Playgroup Committee Date of previous inspection 13/07/2009 Telephone number 07716 600269

p.8

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.

p.8

Type of provision

For the purposes of this inspection the following definitions apply:

p.8

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.

p.8

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.

p.8

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.

p.9

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,

p.9

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’.

p.10

Type of provision

T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk

p.10