Busy Bees Playgroup

Busy Bees Playgroup St Andrews Church Hall, Preston Grove, Yeovil, Somerset, BA20 2BQ

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 18/09/2014 13/05/2009

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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

 Management effectively implement ongoing supervision and appraisal systems, which actively helps to promote the continuous professional development of staff.  Staff form very positive relationships with parents, which gives children reassurance and helps them settle easily.  Staff value all children and promote positive attitudes to others, which actively promotes their good behaviour.  Staff provide a great variety of motivating play activities that effectively encourage children's participation and interest in learning.  Staff are committed to providing high quality care and learning opportunities, which helps them achieve positive outcomes for children.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Management have not fully established arrangements for reviewing information exchanged with other providers children attend. Therefore, this sometimes leads to inconsistency with promoting some aspects of children's learning.  Staff do not always maximise opportunities for children to develop practical problem solving skills within outside play activities.

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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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Inspection activities

 The inspector observed children's play indoors and outdoors.  The inspector sampled documentation, such as operational policies and procedures.  The inspector took into account the views of parents spoken with at the visit.  The inspector viewed the playgroup's self-evaluation form.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector offered the opportunity to complete a joint observation, although this did not take place.

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Information about the setting

Busy Bees Playgroup registered in 2000. It is privately owned and operates from a church hall situated in Yeovil, Somerset. The group has sole use of the whole premises during their opening hours, which includes a large hall with access to toilets and kitchen facilities. There is an enclosed area for outside play.

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Information about the setting

Busy Bees Playgroup is registered on the Early Years Register. It opens during school term times from 9am to 11.45am on Monday to Thursday and from 9am to 2.45pm on a Friday. Occasional sessions are offered during the school holiday periods dependent upon demand. The setting receives funding for provision of free early years education for children aged two, three and four years. There are currently 24 children on roll. The owner/manager holds a level 4 qualification in leadership and management and she also has a level 3 qualification in childcare. She is supported by a team of six staff; of these, one holds QTS (qualified teacher status), three hold qualifications at level 3, one holds a qualification at level 2 and one is currently unqualified.

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

 strengthen arrangements for liaising with other providers children attend in order to work more closely together to monitor children's progression and provide a continuous approach to promoting all areas of their learning

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

 provide more opportunities for children to problem solve and use numbers for a purpose outdoors.

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who attend

Staff are clearly knowledgeable of children's development. They make positive use of open-ended questions that help children become active learners. For instance, staff posed questions that asked children to consider, how many, what happens if and why did that happen? This effectively helps children develop their critical thinking skills. Staff use their observations of children's play and interests effectively to assess their individual stages of development. They use this information very well to plan children's next steps for learning and build on their existing skills. As a result, they provide an exciting range of meaningful play activities that effectively support children's ongoing development. For example, staff recognise children's fascination with a favourite story about a princess, a wizard and a birthday party. Staff plan an activity clearly based on this interest. They create an inviting role play area laid out as a birthday party. This

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who attend

actively supports children's interests and encourages them to act out their ideas from the story. Consequently, staff promote children's creativity and imagination very effectively within their play, which helps them make positive progress overall.

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who attend

Staff plan a play dough activity which includes using picture cards of body shapes. Staff used effective questioning very well to encourage children to roll, squeeze and mould the dough then use it to cover their body card. Staff named the body parts and supported children well in recognising the similarities and differences that they saw. Children enjoyed using the plastic knives and the pastry wheel to cut and make marks in their dough. This effectively helps children develop their hand-to-eye coordination and teaches them about their bodies. Staff talked to children about the picture of the car that they saw on the playgroup's tablet computer. They encouraged children to press the screen to find out what happens, which helps them learn to navigate through a simple computer program. Staff asked children to help them find metal objects in the outside play area using a large, easy to hold magnet. Children had great fun experimenting with the

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who attend

magnet to see where it would stick firmly and which objects it fell off. In addition, children realised which way round the small world trains went so that their magnetic parts stuck together. This actively encourages children's early understanding of simple technology and how things work. Staff plan a good range of activities that effectively encourage children's curiosity and interest. For example, staff provide exciting, water play activities by freezing food colouring, sequins and glitter in ice. This actively promotes children's sensory understanding as they explore colour and texture and see what happens as the ice melts.

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who attend

Overall, staff promote children's mathematical skills and understanding well during a variety of activities. Staff talked to children about needing someone tall to help them. This led to a discussion about height and who is the tallest or the shortest child. During construction activities, staff encouraged children to match brightly coloured bricks with simple colour matching charts. Consequently, staff promote children's understanding of early sequencing, space, shape and size effectively as they play. Staff make positive use of numbers within many activities and encourage children's enjoyment of counting. They asked children to help them lay the tables for their snack. This encouraged children to work out how many plates and cups they needed for all their friends. As a result, staff actively support children in developing their early problem solving skills. However, they do not always reinforce these opportunities so children use numbers for a purpose

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who attend

regularly during outdoor play activities. For example, to help children work out how many children can safely go on the slide at any one time. Staff plan purposeful play experiences to extend children's knowledge and understanding. Staff carefully reinforce children's speech by talking clearly. They praise their attempts to repeat words correctly and as they join in with the endings of repeated refrains of a familiar story. This actively boosts children's confidence and helps them develop their communication and language skills. Staff make very good use of props to engage children's interest and participation at story time. For instance, they gave children toys and puppets, such as a cow, a horse and an old woman, which all related to a favourite story. Children sat quietly and listened for the part of the story involving their prop and then joined in eagerly. Consequently, staff teach children well. They successfully encourage children's

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who attend

enjoyment of stories, which promotes their early literacy awareness. This helps motivate children's interest in gaining the skills necessary for future learning.

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who attend

There are clear procedures for the completion of the required progress check the two- year-old children. Staff provide a summary of children's early development and share this with their parents. This helps them to identify children's strengths in learning and any areas where they may need further support. Staff form positive relationships with parents and actively encourage their involvement. Parents praised staff highly for their dedication in supporting their child's enjoyment of the playgroup and helping them to settle in easily. Parents stated staff worked well to improve communication and keep them clearly informed of playgroup events and their child's progression. Parents said that they felt very involved and aware of their child's learning.

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

Children settle very easily into this friendly playgroup. When they arrived, they eagerly found their name cards to register their attendance. Staff help children learn the names of their friends. They play a game where children roll a ball to each other. This actively helps children develop an early sense of belonging within the group. Staff also support children's self-esteem very well through use of the playgroup's talking box. Children brought special things from home to put in a beautiful gold covered box. They told their friends about these items when they joined together for group discussions. This effectively encourages children's confidence and helps them feel valued and important within their group. Staff interact positively with children and give a very reassuring approach, which children respond to readily. As a result, children feel relaxed and secure in the playgroup.

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

Staff provide a variety of enjoyable activities to raise children's awareness of foods that are good for them. For example, children enjoyed spreading cream cheese on their rice cakes. They used baby tomatoes and pieces of cucumber to make a happy face. Parents are given leaflets on appropriate foods to include in children's lunchboxes. Staff support children in planting potatoes and when these have grown, children dig them up then cook and eat them. Consequently, children are very well supported in developing a positive attitude to eating healthily and keeping themselves fit and well. Children eagerly spread some butter onto their crackers at snack time. They readily helped to prepare the snack by chopping up fruit. They knew they needed to wash their hands before sitting down to eat their snack. This effectively encourages their independence and self-care skills. Staff provide clear boundaries to help children understand appropriate

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

expectations of their behaviour. For instance, they waited patiently for a turn with the computer tablet by using the playgroup egg timer. This supports children very well in learning to share well with their friends. Staff provide small, soft heart shapes that children can hug when they are feeling unsettled. This reassurance helps children to develop control of their feelings in a very positive way. It demonstrates how thoughtful staff are and their good understanding of children's personal, social and emotional needs. Staff naturally use sign language with all children as an additional means of communication. For example, when singing their favourite songs and rhymes. This actively promotes inclusion and helps children develop positive attitude to others. As a result, children start to develop skills that will effectively promote their smooth transition to school.

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

Staff organise exciting visits from the police and fire brigade who talk to children about keeping themselves safe. Children had fun exploring the rescue vehicles and hearing the sirens sound. Staff practise fire drills with all children regularly. They talk to children about the drill beforehand and share related photographs with them. This enables children to feel reassured with the process and understand what will happen in an emergency situation. This helps children develop a sound awareness of safety overall. Staff create a very inviting, attractive play environment for children. For example, they provide a comfortable reading area with cushions and a good variety of interesting books. This actively encourages children to sit and look through their favourite stories. Staff have successfully developed the outside play area. They make very good use of resources to promote different areas of children's learning outside and inside. For

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

instance, children used the thin and thick paintbrushes to paint using water on the blackboards. This actively encourages children's enjoyment in their early mark making, which promotes their later writing skills. Staff provide free-flow play activities for the majority of the session. This enables them to make independent choices and decide whether they want to play inside or outside. Staff take children on exciting outings. For example, they feed the ducks on a nearby pond and visit a local park. This provides opportunities for children to develop control of their movements on the larger, more challenging play equipment. Children develop their physical strength and stamina and benefit from being in the fresh air.

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provision

Management and staff work very well together as a team and are clearly aware of their roles and responsibilities in supporting children's care and learning. This helps staff meet the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage well. For example, all staff complete safeguarding training and show a good understanding of possible child protection issues. They implement effective procedures to follow any concerns arising and maintain good liaison with relevant agencies. Consequently, they have an active approach to protecting children's welfare. Management are clearly aware of their responsibility in assessing staff suitability and have established clear recruitment procedures. These include the completion of appropriate checks and references. Management support new staff well through a detailed induction process and all staff receive regular supervision and appraisals from management. Management and staff

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provision

frequently attend further training courses to update their knowledge of childcare and educational issues. This actively encourages the continuous professional development of staff, which helps promote effective outcomes for children.

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provision

Management and staff implement clear systems for risk assessment that are effective overall. For example, staff clearly monitor and record the arrival and departure of children, parents and visitors. Staff follow clear systems for the collection of children and ensure they are only collected by their parents or those authorised to do so by their parents. In addition, outings are clearly assessed for possible risks. This includes how they get there and where they are going. Children wear high visibility jackets on their walks so they can be seen clearly. Consequently, these measures effectively promote children's safety and minimises the risk of accidents.

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provision

Parents receive a wealth of information about the provision offered to their child. Management send out regular newsletters, which keep parents updated regarding current themed activities, the playgroup's policies and procedures and how to access them. Staff organise stay and play sessions for parents, so they can see how their child learns through their play. This actively encourages parents to share in their child's learning. Staff liaise with other providers children attend and actively share information from their respective learning journals. This effectively helps them provide some continuity for children's development. Children's progress is regularly reviewed through a tracking process. However, management and staff do not always consider the reasons for differences in the assessment of children's progression with each provider they attend. This means children do not always benefit from all providers working consistently

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provision

together to fully support their learning. Management and staff clearly understand the importance of evaluating their practice in order to help them promote children's care and learning needs effectively. For instance, staff regularly evaluate the effectiveness of planned activities and consider how these could be improved. They often ask children for their views on their activities and what they enjoy about their playgroup. In addition, management seek the opinions of parents and other professionals visiting the playgroup. Consequently, staff gain an all round picture of the views of those using their playgroup. From the information gathered, management form a clear plan to address areas for further development. Consequently, this helps promote continual improvement and positive outcomes for children.

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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. We re-inspect nurseries and pre-schools judged as requires improvement within 12 months of the date of 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

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Grade Judgement Description

is not meeting the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. It will be monitored and inspected again within six months of the date of this inspection. Met There were no children present at the time of the inspection. The inspection judgement is that the provider continues to meet the requirements for registration. Not met There were no children present at the time of the inspection. 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 143151 Local authority Somerset Inspection number 841588 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 2 - 4 Total number of places 20 Number of children on roll 24 Name of provider Anna-Marie Fischer Date of previous inspection 13/05/2009 Telephone number 0778 4152158

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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

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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