Fairlight Playgroup

Fairlight Playgroup Broadway, Fairlight, Hastings, East Sussex, TN35 4DA

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 05/11/2014 23/01/2012

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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

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This provision is good

 Staff have a good knowledge of all children, which enables them to extend the children's learning through their own interests.  Staff are skilled at teaching children mathematical concepts. As a result, children have a good understanding of numbers, shapes and space.  The key person approach is effectively implemented at the playgroup, which promotes good relationships with children, parents and carers.  Staff and committee members demonstrate a secure commitment to safeguarding children. They are knowledgeable about the safeguarding policies and procedures that promote the welfare and safety of children.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 The book area currently is not sufficiently welcoming to encourage children to independently access and enjoy books by themselves.

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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 spoke to children and staff and observed practice throughout the playgroup.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke to children's key persons about their starting points, progress and their next steps in learning.  The inspector looked at children's learning journals and a sample of documents.  The inspector spoke to parents to gain their views about the playgroup.

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Information about the setting

Fairlight Playgroup first registered in 1994. It is a committee-run group registered with Ofsted on the Early Years Register. It operates from two rooms in the village hall at Fairlight, near Hastings, East Sussex. All children share access to an outdoor play area. The playgroup is open Monday to Thursday from 9.15am to 1pm, during school term times. There are currently 13 children on roll aged from two years to under five. The playgroup is able to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. It receives funding for free early education for three- and four-year-old children. Three members of staff work with the children, who all hold appropriate early years at level 3.

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

 enhance the book area further to promote children's independent interest in books to support their early reading skills.

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who attend

The quality of teaching is good. Staff tune into children's interests effectively and listen carefully to what children are saying. Consequently, children are eager to talk about what they are doing and enjoy spending time with staff. Staff allow children time to develop their own ideas, which supports their learning securely. They are skilled at getting children to solve problems and to think for themselves. Staff respect and praise children's ideas, therefore children are confident to 'have a go' as they know their ideas will be acted on. There is a good balance of adult-led and child-initiated activities to promote children's learning. Assessments of children's learning are regularly shared with parents, including the progress check for children aged two. The sharing of this information with parents encourages a united approach to supporting children's learning at home and at the playgroup. Staff support all children to make good progress and give additional support

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who attend

where required. Consequently, all children are engaged in their play and are actively learning through their play. This prepares children well for their future learning.

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who attend

Staff competently model language to extend their vocabulary securely. Children chat away happily to each other and staff. Staff are very knowledgeable about the children's lives, such as special events and family members. As a result, they are able to ask them relevant questions to develop their listening and speaking skills. Staff play rhyming games, such as choosing objects to put in a bowl, which all sound the same. At the inspection, children quickly recognised if the object made a different sound. As a result, children demonstrate they are developing a strong understanding of letter sounds. Children enjoy listening to stories, although tend to use the book area only when staff are present to snuggle up to. Currently, the book area does not provide a welcoming space to encourage children to enjoy books independently to further promote their developing early reading skills. Staff use books well with the children to reinforce what children already know. For

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who attend

example, during the inspection a younger child looked at a picture book of farm vehicles, which staff helped them name and relate to their own experiences. Children find their own name card to self-register in the morning, which supports their recognition of their name and promotes a positive sense of belonging.

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who attend

Staff promote children's physical development with weekly dance and movement sessions. In the garden, children enjoy playing on a large tractor tyre, which they can climb, scramble over and run around. This develops their coordination skills and encourages them to take appropriate risks. In addition, children use the tyre imaginatively, for example, they turned it into a space rocket, practising their counting skills with a countdown from ten. Staff effectively and continuously use mathematical language and explore mathematical concepts with the children, and consequently so do the children. For example, a member of staff explained that babies get bigger and bigger in mummies tummies before they are born, and that they remembered when one of the children was inside her mummy's tummy. The child wanted to know how big they are now. Staff challenged the children to measure the child, which they did by using pieces of train track

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who attend

to see how tall the child had become. While taking part in the activity, staff supported children's good awareness of mathematical words, such as 'smaller', 'longer', 'shorter' and 'taller'. As a result, children use mathematical language naturally in their play. For example, during role play they used words, such as 'empty' 'full' and 'lots'.

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who attend

Children enjoy art activities and make choices from a well-stocked art trolley with a wide range of resources. For instance, different sized brushes, hole punches, stencils, tweezers, tape, glue and collage materials. This enables children to handle and manipulate different tools to create different effects, supporting their creative and physical skills. Staff display children's own work, which values their efforts and achievements. Children are excited to show their parents their creations at the end of the day, involving them in their learning experiences.

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

All children are greeted warmly on arrival by staff and settle quickly into the session. Staff take time to get to know the children and their families well and they build strong relationships with them. This supports the effective key person approach implemented at the playgroup as staff develop a thorough understanding of children's interests, needs and backgrounds. As a result, they support children effectively. Staff model good behaviour and set clear boundaries for children to help them understand how to be independent but keep safe. Children understand the rules and routines of the nursery. For instance, staff show and remind the children how to use the slide in the garden safely, so that they are aware of risks but know how to keep safe.

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

Staff promote children's good understanding of healthy lifestyles. For example, they have arranged for a dental hygienist to visit to talk to the children about how to look after their teeth. Staff help children to identify if they are hungry, such as asking if their tummies are rumbling. They encourage children to drink water during the day by providing cups and a water dispenser, which the children use independently. This helps children to recognise their needs to drink water when they are thirsty.

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

Staff have purchased mobile storage units, which supports children's self-initiated play and learning as they independently select their own play resources. Staff ensure that children have access to a good range of resources that cover all areas of learning, indoors and outside. Staff ensure that there are ample resources for all children so that they are able to take part in the same activities together. This encourages children to join in with activities with other children, which promotes their developing friendships well.

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

Staff support children securely when they move onto school. The manager invites all the reception teachers to the playgroup to visit the children. During these visits, staff share information about the children and answer any questions that the teachers may have. Staff use circle times well to talk about going to school and read stories about starting school. This gives the children time to ask questions and talk about things they may be worried about. As a result, staff prepare children sensitively for their move to school.

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provision

The manager has a good understanding of the Early Years Foundation Stage. There is a strong commitment to safeguarding from the staff and committee. The chairperson fully understands her role in safe recruitment and these procedures are reviewed regularly to ensure they are fully robust. The safeguarding policy is thorough and includes the use of mobile phones and allegations against staff. Staff have a good knowledge of safeguarding and the procedures to follow in the event of concerns arising about children's welfare and safety. All staff are first-aid trained, which means any accidents can be dealt with quickly. Staff complete risk assessments to minimise potential hazards and dangers to children effectively.

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provision

Children's progress is effectively tracked by staff through the good planning and assessment system. Staff record information about children's initial sessions, and speak to parents to complete a 'this is me' form. As a result, children's starting points are clearly identified. Regular observations and assessments are made on all children and meaningful next steps in their learning are planned. Consequently, children make good progress from their starting points.

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provision

The manager implements a training plan to ensure that all staff's knowledge is relevant and current. They actively seek training to update and improve their knowledge, which benefits the children. Annual appraisals and regular meetings support the staff in their roles and work. This helps the manager and staff identify the progress of children and evaluate their own performance and the service they provide. There is a strong commitment to self-evaluation. The whole staff and committee team work hard to identify areas for improvement and make necessary changes. The chair of the committee attends staff meetings so that she can work closely with them to help drive changes and improvements. The staff team who have worked together for many years, share the same vision for the playgroup. They seek the views of parents by issuing questionnaires to gain their feedback about the quality of the provision. These measures support effective

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provision

The manager and staff have good links with other professionals, including health visitors, speech and language therapists, and teachers. This helps to promote a consistent approach to supporting children's care and learning needs. Staff talk to parents at each session about the activities their children have taken part in. They provide regular newsletters and provide information about the Early Years Foundation Stage and the playgroup policies. These measures provide effective information to parents about their children and the organisation of the playgroup. Parents' state they are happy with the service the playgroup provides, and comment on how helpful, friendly and welcoming the staff are. In addition, parents' comment on how involved they feel and that there is a real sense of community at the playgroup.

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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 109418 Local authority East Sussex Inspection number 816955 Type of provision Sessional provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 2 - 5 Total number of places 24 Number of children on roll 12 Name of provider Fairlight Village Playgroup Committee Date of previous inspection 23/01/2012 Telephone number 01424 814726

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Setting details

set out in the guidance ‘Complaints procedure: raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted’, which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk.

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Type of provision

For the purposes of this inspection the following definitions apply:

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Type of provision

Full-time provision is that which operates for more than three hours. These are usually known as nurseries, nursery schools and pre-schools and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage. They are registered on the Early Years Register and pay the higher fee for registration.

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Type of provision

Sessional provision operates for more than two hours but does not exceed three hours in any one day. These are usually known as pre-schools, kindergartens or nursery schools and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage. They are registered on the Early Years Register and pay the lower fee for registration.

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Type of provision

Childminders care for one or more children where individual children attend for a period of more than two hours in any one day. They operate from domestic premises, which are usually the childminder’s own home. They are registered on the Early Years Register and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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Type of provision

Out of school provision may be sessional or full-time provision and is delivered before or after school and/or in the summer holidays. They are registered on the Early Years Register and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage. Where children receive their Early Years Foundation Stage in school these providers do not have to deliver the learning and development requirements in full but should complement the experiences children receive in school. achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children's social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, work-based learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for looked after children,

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Type of provision

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Type of provision

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

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