Skip to content

Help us get it right

Sign in (free) to send feedback, so we can tell you when it's fixed.

Early years · Early years inspection (CIF)

Childcare on Domestic Premises, Full day care in Croydon

Inspected 16 Oct 2014 · published 8 Nov 2014 · URN EY294356

Help us get it right

Sign in (free) to send feedback, so we can tell you when it's fixed.

Original PDF ↗

Summary

Requires improvement

Jane Winnan

What we read, and from where

Click a reading to see it highlighted in the report.

  • Inspection datesingle source

    16 Oct 2014

  • Inspectors verified

    Jane Winnan

  • Overall effectivenesssingle source

    Requires improvement

  • URN verified

    EY294356

Page 3 of 12
Page 3 of the report with the evidence highlighted

Deep dive

What this report says

In plain English

Join free to get a short, plain-English summary of any report.

Grade profile

Hollow rings show the previous inspection, 2013.

  • OverallRequires improvement

Tone of the report

How positive or critical the inspectors' language is, from the words they chose. No AI involved.

+9Mostly positivemore positive than 52% of reports of this type graded Requires improvement
OutstandingGoodMetRIInadequateNot met

In line with other reports of this type graded Requires improvement.

Markers show where typical reports of each grade sit.

Praiseenjoystrongwarmhappypositivevery welleffectiveindependent
Criticisminadequatenot metrequires improvementgapsineffectiveweaknessesnot alwaysconcerns

How the report reads, start to finish

Every paragraph in order, sized by length. Tap one to see it on the page.

FindingsWhat needs to improveAbout the inspection positive critical
  • Findings53w+13
  • What needs to improve2514w+9

Strengths

Quoted from the report. Tap to see it on the page.

No standout praise found.

Concerns

Quoted from the report. Tap to see it on the page.

No strong criticism found.

Next steps

Quoted from the report. Tap to see it on the page.

What the report dwells on

Topics by how often they come up, coloured by how they are described. Open one for an example.

Anatomy of the report

How the report is built, against others of the same type and grade.

Pages
12
Words of findings
2,514
longer than usual (typical 939)
Reading level
Hard
Flesch 49, typical 47
Average sentence
16 words
Next steps
8
typical 8
Hedged sentences
5%
“some”, “not always”, “most”…

Where the words go

Findings 2%What needs to improve 71%About the inspection 27%

Full report text

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 16/10/2014 09/09/2013

p.1

early years provision

This inspection: 3 Previous inspection: 4 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 3

p.1

This provision requires improvement

 Staff establish warm and affectionate relationships with children.  Staff sit with children at meal times, and develop effective routines to encourage children's independence and understanding of good personal hygiene.  Staff work closely with parents to promote a shared approach to support children's care and early education.

p.1

It is not yet good because

 Staff do not monitor progress made by individual groups of children in relation to their starting points, including those children learning English as an additional language.Leadership does not provide resources that represent children's individual backgrounds.Leadership does not keep a record of staff disclosure and barring service checks.

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

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.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector carried out a joint observation with the manager and observations of children indoors and outdoors.  The inspector observed hand washing, a snack time and a lunch period.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector viewed children's development records, and spoke to children and staff.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector met with the manager and sampled the safeguarding policy, risk assessment policy, daily risk assessments, accident and medication book, and complaints policy.  The inspector spoke to a parent.

p.2

Information about the setting

The provider registered in 2005. She lives with her husband and provides childcare on domestic premises with five members of staff. The provider's daughter works at the setting after school and has a teaching assistant qualification. Six members of staff have relevant qualifications in childcare. The property is a house situated in a residential area in Croydon. Children have use of the downstairs, which includes two playrooms, and upstairs playrooms, one of which is allocated for younger babies to use. Toilet provision is on both floors. The provision has a covered outside area that is fenced off to a larger garden. The provision is registered on the Early Years Register and both the voluntary and compulsory parts of the Childcare Register. The provision supports children who speak English as an additional language and children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Currently, there are 16 children on roll, 10 in the early years age group and six children

p.3

Information about the setting

who are eight and over. Children are able to attend before and after school, and in the school holiday.

p.3

must:

 improve the effectiveness of assessment by introducing systems to monitor how well groups of children, including those learning English as an additional language, are achieving in relation to their starting points and their expected levels of development

p.4

must:

 record information about staff qualifications, and the identity checks and vetting processes that have been completed; including the Disclosure and Barring Service reference number, the date a disclosure was obtained and details of who obtained it

p.4

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

 develop plans further to include all the children's interests and next steps in their learning

p.4

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

 increase the resources to teach the children about diversity and equal opportunities

p.4

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

 strengthen further the opportunities for children who are learning English as a second language to use their home language during play

p.4

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

 further develop the garden area so that children have even more space to play.

p.4

who attend

Systems for children's learning and development are satisfactory. However, staff do not collect information about children's starting points from parents and they rely on their own observations of children to plan for their needs. Staff compile individual learning journals, which build a picture of what children are achieving over a period of time and these are shared with parents. They complete a range of observations of what children can do and use photographs to capture the experiences children enjoy at the setting. Therefore, key persons know what activities their children enjoy and what interests them. Staff also identify how children learn, recording their attitudes and dispositions, for example, 'joining in' and 'willing to have a go'. Their assessments of young children's learning and next steps for their future development inform the room's planning. However, the planning for the two- and three-year-olds room does not always reflect the individual next steps of

p.4

who attend

children. This means the outcomes for some children are better than others. Staff, therefore, do not make the best use of the resources in the room to offer a varied and stimulating environment, which covers the seven areas of learning. Staff have developed a tracking system to record children's progress but; this is not in place for all children. Therefore, staff are not able to quickly identify any gaps in children's learning and monitor the progress made by individual groups of children. For example, those children who are learning English as an additional language and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities. This has an impact on the support children receive in order to build confidence and develop their social skills. Staff complete progress checks for two-year-old children, which are shared with parents and the health visitor. This helps assess if children are progressing towards their expected levels of development.

p.4

who attend

Children enjoy taking part in a suitable range of musical activities and rhyme-time activities. They show they value additional languages that children speak as, for example, they sing a French song. However, they have not collected key words from parents and do not promote children's home languages in other aspects of their play. There are also no resources to give children opportunities to explore their own culture, beliefs and abilities, and those of others to support children to gain a deeper understanding and respect for the differences among people in society.

p.5

who attend

Children are happy and engaged in a range of experiences during their independent play. Staff plan the environment so children can take on different roles in their play, for example, by pretending to be doctors and nurses. Staff join in to support children's imaginative play. They help children use the stethoscope listening to their heart beat and hold out their arm for injections. Staff model ways of noticing how others are feeling and comforting them, developing empathy in children. This means children are learning to understand the feelings of others, by labelling the emotions, such as 'sad' or 'unhappy'. Children demonstrate good listening skills and a developing interest in books as they listen to enjoyable stories.

p.5

who attend

Staff in the baby room provide a wide range of activities that encourage babies to explore and experiment using their senses. For example, babies happily play with some sensory bottles, long cardboard tubes and a piece of plastic turf on the floor. Babies are fascinated by the physical effects of the coloured, glittery water in the toy rolling on the floor and hear the sound of the rice being shaken in the bottle. Staff share the fun of discovery saying 'shake, shake, shake'. They build vocabulary using single words for babies to repeat. Babies are beginning to listen and learn to distinguish between the different sounds objects make. Babies enjoy creative activities, sticking coloured tissue paper to a paper plate. This develops their levels of concentration and physical skills, practising their hand-eye coordination. Staff provide resources that stimulate babies to handle and manipulate things, for example, posting shapes into a ride-on train. They clap their hands

p.5

who attend

and give praise, motivating children to post further shapes. Staff support babies communication and language skills so they can experiment with a range of sounds. For example, they say 'choo, choo' as children pull along the alphabet train. Staff promote children's mathematical and early literacy skills. For example, they count from one to five and refer to letter names. Therefore, children are beginning to gain the key skills they need to develop and learn so they are ready for school.

p.5

who attend

All children have sufficient opportunities to play outside in the garden. They enjoy regular walks into the community collecting leaves, visiting the trams and shops. This means staff encourage children to develop positive relationships with community members. Staff share photographs of these outings with parents at their open days.

p.5

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

The key-person approach is strong and staff interact warmly with children and develop positive relationships with them and their parents. This means children are happy and settle quickly, showing they feel safe and secure in the home-based setting. Overall, staff provide a well-resourced and welcoming environment both indoors and outdoors, which supports children's all round development and emotional well-being. The spaces are planned to encourage free movement. Babies benefit from having regular opportunities to explore sensory play materials, for example, cardboard tubes, bottles made up of coloured water and rice to shake. Equipment and resources are accessible to children, and boxes are labelled to help children make choices and decide what they want to play with. Staff provide a cosy corner with blankets, cushions and soft toys so children can rest, look at books or engage in role-play. Children's artwork related to 'Autumn' and a topic 'People

p.6

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

who can help us' are displayed on the walls. This shows children that their efforts are valued, developing their self-confidence and self-esteem.The outdoor play areas provide children with access to all areas of learning. Staff plan activities that help to lay the foundations for children to adopt healthy and active lifestyle habits. For example, there are climbing props for role-play, ride-on toys and balls for kicking, promoting children's social and physical skills. Staff take children out on outings. They teach children road safety and how to keep themselves safe. Ratios are maintained. Children enjoy a nutritious snack that includes fresh fruit and water. Staff build children's vocabulary by giving them choices, for example, 'banana or apple'? Staff provide children with a healthy and nutritious hot meal, which is cooked on the premises. They sit with the children and interact with them, discussing topics of interest. Staff display the weekly menu on the

p.6

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

notice board so parents know what meals their children are having. Staff maintain and promote good hygiene standards. They follow hygienic nappy changing procedures and encourage children to manage their own personal needs, for example, by washing their hands after going to the toilet. They help children to learn to be independent by putting on and taking off their own coats and shoes, for example. Children's behaviour is good. Staff set clear boundaries, having appropriate expectations for children's behaviour. They sing a welcome song which means children feel supported in making those early relationships. The next steps for children's learning and development include being able to recognise and understand the rules for being together, such as waiting their turn or sharing toys. Staff remind children to share and sit nicely at the table. Staff role model saying 'please' or 'thank you' so that children develop good social skills. Staff provide a

p.6

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

good level of support to prepare children for their transition to school. They talk to children, use books and introduce children to the local school. This means children become emotionally prepared for the next steps in their learning. Staff write a summary report for children leaving the setting so parents can share this information about their care, learning and development with the next setting to aid the settling-in process.

p.6

provision

The manager has not met all the safeguarding and welfare requirements. She does not keep records of staff training certificates and of disclosure and barring service checks. However, this has minimal impact on the children as the original checks have been seen on a previous inspection to confirm the staff's suitability to work with young children. Secondly, the manager does not have sufficient knowledge of whether all children are learning as much as they should. She does not track all children's progress from their starting points so systems to monitor how well children are doing are ineffective. The arrangements for assessment do not indicate where there are gaps in achievement for some groups of children, including those children learning English as an additional language. As a result, there are no interventions in place to help these children catch up with the rest. Staff demonstrate a sound knowledge of how to promote children's

p.7

provision

development using their observations and assessments of children and, on some occasions, children benefit from some good teaching. However, the evaluation and monitoring of the educational programmes is not rigorous, and has not identified the inconsistencies in quality between what is offered to babies and older children.The manager and staff have suitable knowledge of the safeguarding policy and procedure. Staff understand what they should do if they have any concerns about children in their care. The safeguarding policy also contains information about reporting allegations about adults and the use of mobile phones in the setting. They have attended safeguarding training and most staff have a current paediatric first aid certificate. Staff work together and are therefore able to respond to accidents, and incidents quickly. They maintain all required documentation, including children's attendance, fire drills, and accident and

p.7

provision

medication books. The manager obtains permission from parents for a range of procedures, including permission to seek emergency medical assistance and to administer paracetamol. She shares policies and procedures with parents. Staff carry out daily assessments of the environment, both indoors and outside, to promote children's safety. However, a recommendation from the last inspection to remove some rubbish from the bottom of the garden has not been met. This area however, is closed off to prevent children from going there. Children still have regular opportunities to go outside as they access a second outdoor area. Arrangements for performance management are appropriate. The manager observes practice informally as she visits the rooms across the day. She offers support when staff need her advice and aims to gives staff verbal feedback about the effectiveness of their teaching. The manager meets with staff at the

p.7

provision

beginning and end of the week. She carries out supervision meetings with staff and keeps written records on how she is supporting them to undertake recognised childcare qualifications. Staff are deployed sufficiently well and ratios are maintained to keep children safe. The manager and staff have established suitable partnerships with parents, and other professionals at the local school. Parents are warm and friendly, and speak highly of the staff. They comment that the setting is family orientated and feels like a second home. Children talk with their parents about friends and activities they have enjoyed. Parents report that children are encouraged to be healthy. Staff share the learning journals regularly with parents to inform them about their children's progress. They also share children's next steps for future support, and a written summary of their progress. Parents are also proactive in sharing news about the events at the weekend and

p.7

provision

their children's developing interests. They say they like the newsletter and information about the current topic as it means they can continue children's learning at home.The manager undertakes self-evaluation to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the home-based setting. She has sought the views of staff, children and parents by using questionnaires. This means planned improvements are targeted effectively. The manager demonstrates a strong commitment to improve. However, she has not been able to obtain the support of the local authority, which would help drive improvement. The manager and six members of staff are qualified, and attend core training to meet the statutory requirements.

p.8

The Childcare Register

The requirements for the compulsory part of the Childcare Register are

p.8

actions)

The requirements for the voluntary part of the Childcare Register are

p.8

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

 keep a record of staff Disclosure and Barring Service chcks (compulsory part of the childcare register).  keep a record of staff Disclosure and Barring Service checks. (voluntary part of the childcare register).

p.8

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

p.9

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.

p.9

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.10

Setting details

Unique reference number EY294356 Local authority Croydon Inspection number 963209 Type of provision Childminder Registration category Childcare - Domestic Age range of children 0 - 8 Total number of places 33 Number of children on roll 10

p.10

Telephone number

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.10

Type of provision

For the purposes of this inspection the following definitions apply:

p.10

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.10

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.10

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.11

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.11

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.12

Type of provision

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

p.12

Discuss this inspection

Members compare notes on inspectors and inspections here. Join free to read and post.

Join the discussion