Greenacres Laugh 'N' Learn

Greenacres Laugh 'N' Learn Greenacres Community Centre, Galland Street, OLDHAM, OL4 3EU

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 03/12/2014 12/12/2013

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early years provision

This inspection: 4 Previous inspection: 3 How well the early years provision meets the needs of the range of children who attend The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children 4 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 4

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This provision is inadequate

 The staff's knowledge and understanding of safeguarding procedures is weak. As a result, children's welfare is not adequately protected.  The procedures for recruitment of staff are not robust, therefore, the provider cannot ensure staff suitability is checked before they begin to work with the children.  Leadership and management is not effective as it fails to identify key weaknesses in safeguarding and the impact this may have on the children.  The ways in which quality practice can be shared across the nursery through peer observations has not been fully explored.  Staff do not always use a range of different teaching strategies, such as, open-ended questions to encourage children to think creatively and critically and extend their learning.

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It has the following strengths

 Staff provide the children with a range of stimulating activities and effectively motivate their learning. As a result, children are making steady progress in their learning and development.  Children are settled at the nursery and enjoy positive relationships with the staff and their peers.

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Information about this inspection

Inspections of registered early years provision are:  scheduled at least once in every inspection cycle – the current cycle ends on 31 July

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Information about this inspection

 scheduled more frequently where Ofsted identifies a need to do so, for example where provision was previously judged inadequate  brought forward in the inspection cycle where Ofsted has received information that suggests the provision may not be meeting the legal requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage or where assessment of the provision identifies a need for early inspection  prioritised where we have received information that the provision is not meeting the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage and which suggests children may not be safe  scheduled at the completion of an investigation into failure to comply with the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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Information about this inspection

The provision is also registered on the voluntary and compulsory parts of the Childcare Register. This report includes a judgment about compliance with the requirements of that register.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector had a tour of the premises.  The inspector observed activities and spoke to children and staff.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector held a meeting with the manager of the provision and looked at and discussed a range of policies, procedures and documentation.  The inspector looked at children's assessment records and planning documentation.  The inspector took account of the views of parents and carers spoken to on the day.  The inspector carried out a joint observation with the manager.

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Inspection activities

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

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Information about the setting

Greenacres Laugh 'N' Learn opened in 2008 and is managed by private providers who also own and manage another setting. It operates from a community centre in the Greenacres area of Oldham. The nursery serves the immediate locality and also the surrounding areas. The nursery opens five days a week from 7.30am until 5.45pm, all year round, except for bank holidays and Christmas. Children attend for a variety of sessions including school-age children, for whom it operates a before and after school club. Children are cared for across two large halls and a classroom and have access to an enclosed outdoor play area. There are currently 13 children in the early years age range on roll. The nursery receives funding for the provision of free early education for three- and four-year-old children. The nursery supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. There are currently four staff working directly with the children, all of who have an

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Information about the setting

appropriate early years qualification. Three of the staff have appropriate qualifications at level 5 and one at level 3. The nursery receives support from the local authority. The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register.

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must:

 ensure that all staff have up-to-date knowledge of safeguarding issues to enable them to identify signs of possible abuse and neglect at the earliest opportunity, and to respond in a timely and appropriate way

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must:

 ensure that robust recruitment procedures are in place to check that staff are suitable to work with children, including checking references, before commencing employment.

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

 extend the ways in which high quality practice is shared across the nursery, for example, by embedding the use of peer observations and reflection on practice for staff, in order to enhance children's learning further

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

 enhance the use of a wider range of teaching strategies, for example, by encouraging staff to use even more open-ended questions to encourage children to think creatively and critically and extend their learning further.

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who attend

Staff have appropriate knowledge of how children learn and develop. They provide a range of activities to support children to make steady progress in their learning and development. Initial information is gathered from parents about the children during settling-in sessions. This information helps the children's key person to assess their starting points and to shape activities to meet the children's individual learning needs. Parents are encouraged to be involved in their children's learning. They enjoy looking at and contributing to, their children's progress records. They also regularly discuss their children's progress with their key person. This boosts children's confidence and is also an effective way of linking home and the nursery together. These methods are effective in helping parents to be involved in supporting their children's learning and development.

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who attend

Staff assess and track children's progress and plan for the next steps in their learning. Children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, are making some progress towards the early learning goals. Staff use effective teaching methods to promote suitable challenges to extend the children's learning. Children are supported in acquiring their communication and language skills as they engage in conversations with the staff and their peers. Staff help children to build their vocabulary and introduce new words by modelling language well. However, opportunities to extend children's learning further by asking more open-ended questions that encourage children to think more creatively and critically about their answers are sometimes missed. Children make marks by using paints and toy trucks to make tyre tracks in shaving foam. They recognise their names when they arrive at and put their coats on their own coat pegs. These activities

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who attend

support children's early literacy skills.

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who attend

Children are encouraged to count in many situations, such as counting up to 10 children at group times. They are encouraged to recognise numerals as staff hold up different numbers in the leapfrog game. The environment is rich in numerals and shapes displayed on the walls and in various number games. These activities support children to make steady progress in their early numeracy skills. Children are enthusiastic, eager to learn and maintain focus for periods of time. Consequently, children gain the basic skills needed to prepare them for their move to school. Children have opportunities to engage in physical play; the outdoor area is fully developed to encourage and promote all areas of learning for children of all ages.

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

Staff's limited knowledge of safeguarding and ineffective recruitment procedures means children's well-being is not assured. Children have opportunities to learn how to stay and keep safe. They learn to move from one level of the building to another safely, when going up and down steps to the hall and outdoors. Staff support them effectively as they do so. There are also opportunities for children to practise fire drills and this is promoted as a positive experience for the children as they are awarded certificates when they take part in the drill.

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

Children arrive happily and are greeted by the friendly staff. Children generally behave well. They are encouraged to care for their environment; they tidy up and put their toys away carefully. They are encouraged to concentrate because many of the planned activities challenge or excite them. Staff act as positive role models and they speak to children appropriately. There are opportunities for children to make choices about what they play with during 'free play'. Children develop their hand to eye co-ordination skills by using brushes and scissors. For example, they wrap presents and write cards for their peers in the grotto. Children are encouraged to have a healthy lifestyle; they take part in some physical activities, for example, they climb up the equipment outdoors and kick the leaves. Children develop self-care skills as they learn about the need to wash their hands before eating and they know it is to get rid of germs. Staff provide well-balanced,

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

nutritious snacks and meals, including fresh fruit and vegetables. This means that children are learning to make healthy choices in what they eat. For example, children are encouraged to look at their lunch and discuss what is healthy, they are also able to choose their own snack and prepare it themselves.

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

The nursery has resources to support children's imaginative play experiences. The outdoor area is inviting, as a result, all areas of learning are fully promoted and provided for throughout the year. The available equipment is stored at low level outdoors, enabling children to choose what they would like to play with; this is stored on a wheeled trolley which enhances children's play opportunities. Children are well supported in their move from the nursery to school, due to the close working relationships that exist with teachers at the local school. Children become familiar with the teachers who visit them before they move, which helps children to make a smooth move to school.

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provision

The managers and staff do not have a secure understanding of how to meet all of the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. As a result, arrangements for safeguarding children's welfare are inadequate. Recruitment procedures are not robust, therefore, some staff are employed to work with the children before references are in place. Staff's knowledge and understanding of safeguarding procedures is weak; they are unclear of the signs and symptoms of possible abuse and the procedures to be followed in the event of an allegation being made against a member of staff. The leadership and management use self-evaluation to identify some areas for further development and seek the views of parents throughout the year. However, the process is not effective as it fails to identify key weaknesses relating to recruitment of staff and safeguarding knowledge and understanding of staff. This means that the poor provision

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provision

The managers and staff have an appropriate understanding of the learning and development requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. The managers monitor the planning to ensure that a wide range of activities are provided to help children make progress in all areas of their learning. Appraisals are undertaken to monitor the continued professional development and training needs of staff. The managers undertake staff supervision sessions to further support their practice and professional development. Regular team meetings and training also effectively support staff in their daily work with the children. A system of peer observations between staff to enable them to reflect on their practice has been introduced. However, this is not yet embedded across all areas of the nursery, in order to enhance staff's professional skills and to drive improvement.

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provision

Parents have opportunities to attend reviews of their children's progress. Staff inform parents about their children's activities through various means, communication books and verbal updates. All children have their own profiles, including observations, assessments and photographs of them involved in activities. These along with the termly report provide parents with an overview of how their children are progressing. Overall, parents comment they are happy with the provision, they say 'The nursery is perfect, I am so happy leaving my child here and my child always wants to come'. Parents are kept well-informed about the nursery through regular newsletters throughout the year. Partnership working with external agencies and professionals are effective in ensuring that children receive additional support when required.

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The Childcare Register

The requirements for the compulsory part of the Childcare Register are

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actions)

The requirements for the voluntary part of the Childcare Register are

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

 ensure that every person caring for children is alert to any indications that a child may be suffering from harm (compulsory part of the Childcare Register)  keep and implement a written record of policies and procedures to be followed for the protection of children, intended to safeguard the children being cared for from abuse or neglect (compulsory part of the Childcare Register)  train all staff on the written statement of procedures to be followed to safeguard children from abuse or neglect (compulsory part of the Childcare Register)  ensure that every person caring for children is alert to any indications that a child may be suffering from harm (voluntary part of the Childcare Register)  keep and implement a written record of policies and procedures to be followed for the protection of children, intended to safeguard the children being cared for from abuse or neglect (voluntary part of the Childcare Register).

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Grade Judgement Description

Grade 1 Outstanding Outstanding provision is highly effective in meeting the needs of all children exceptionally well. This ensures that children are very well prepared for the next stage of their learning. Grade 2 Good Good provision is effective in delivering provision that meets the needs of all children well. This ensures children are ready for the next stage of their learning. Grade 3 Requires improvement The provision is not giving children a good standard of early years education and/or there are minor breaches of the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. 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 EY367296 Local authority Oldham Inspection number 962842

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 40 Number of children on roll 13 Name of provider Greenacres Laugh 'N' Learn Partnership Date of previous inspection 12/12/2013 Telephone number 07729 976535

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Type of provision

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

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Type of provision

For the purposes of this inspection the following definitions apply:

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Type of provision

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

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Type of provision

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

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Type of provision

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

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Type of provision

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

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Type of provision

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk. You may copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as you give details of the source and date of publication and do not alter the information in any way. To receive regular email alerts about new publications, including survey reports and school inspection reports, please visit our website and go to ‘Subscribe’.

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Type of provision

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

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