Little Characters

Little Characters Brimington Methodist Church, Hall Road, Brimington, CHESTERFIELD, Derbyshire, S43 1GH

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 20 May 2015 10 April 2012

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Previous inspection: Good 2 How well the early years provision meets the needs of the range of children who attend Requires improvement The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children Requires improvement The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision Requires improvement The setting does not meet legal requirements for early years settings

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This provision requires improvement. It is not yet good because:

 Activities do not always provide sufficient challenge for more-able children or realistic targets for younger children.  Staff do not always organise themselves appropriately within activities and the routines to promote children's enjoyment and learning and development.  Although staff have appropriate qualifications, the supervision of staff is not yet fully effective. It does not support staff to improve their knowledge and skills and the quality of teaching.

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It has the following strengths

 Staff consistently promote children's safety. They ensure that toys and resources are age appropriate and, therefore, safe. They constantly supervise children, both indoors and outdoors.  Staff provide useful information for parents and carers regarding their child's learning and development. The newly implemented newsletter contains detailed information about children's next steps in learning and how parents and carers can support these at home.  There are effective systems in place to identify and support any early concerns about children's learning and development. This includes useful monitoring checklists and consistent links with other agencies and professionals.  Staff support children to settle well. They provide home visits and tailored settling-in sessions to establish children's needs and routines and help them to feel comfortable and secure.

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What the setting needs to do to improve further

To meet the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage the provider must:

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What the setting needs to do to improve further

 develop further the planning of activities to provide appropriate challenge and realistic expectations for children according to their age and stage of development, to help them to make good progress towards the early learning goals  improve the deployment of staff, to effectively support children's learning and development, enjoyment within activities and the transition between activities  develop further the arrangements for supervision to improve the personal effectiveness of staff so that the quality of teaching improves to the highest level.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector observed activities in the playrooms and the outside learning environment.  The inspector conducted a joint observation with the manager.  The inspector held meetings with the manager of the provision.  The inspector looked at children's assessment records and planning documentation.  The inspector checked evidence of the suitability and qualifications of staff working with the children and the provider's self-evaluation form.  The inspector took account of the views of the parents and carers spoken to on the day of inspection.

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who attend. This requires improvement

Staff provide a suitable range of activities for children. For example, they talk to the children about the life cycle of a butterfly and go outside to look for caterpillars. Staff undertake regular observations of the children so that they know where they are in their learning. Staff identify within the planning how to support children's next steps in learning. However, the delivery of some activities does not always meet children's needs. Staff do not take into account the stage of development of each child participating in group activities, particularly the younger children. This means that they place unrealistically high expectations on what they expect children to do. Children become distracted and disengaged when they are encouraged to participate in a song and story session for too long. They struggle to prepare their own fruit at snack time, as it is too challenging, and become frustrated with the task. Although support for older children is more realistic, it

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who attend. This requires improvement

sometimes fails to fully challenge them to move forward in their learning. However, staff do support some of the skills children need for school, such as putting on their own coat.

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requires improvement

Children enjoy themselves at the nursery, which is confirmed by parents and carers comments. Despite the weaknesses in teaching, children behave well and listen to staff and follow instructions. Children benefit from daily outdoor play, to ensure they enjoy fresh air and exercise. They join in with action songs, copying the movement of staff, to promote their physical skills. Staff explain the healthiness of the foods provided and why it is good to make healthy choices. Although staff communicate well with each other to promote children's safety, they do not organise themselves well. Some activities or routines take a very long time to organise. This is because staff are not clear of their roles and, therefore, spend too long discussing what needs to happen. This means that children sometimes become bored waiting for the activity to move on, or the next activity to be set up. This in turn disrupts others. Staff effectively promote children's well-being as they

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requires improvement

move on to other settings. They take particular children with them when they do the school pickup, so that they become familiar with the school environment.

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provision requires improvement

Staff develop effective relationships with parents and carers. The nursery provides a useful welcome pack of information. Staff regularly gather and share information to meet children's needs. There are some systems in place to monitor children's progress. Staff undertake a suitable induction so that they are familiar with the policies and procedures, such as child protection issues. The supervision of staff is not yet thorough enough to support their professional development and raise teaching to the highest level. However, the manager demonstrates a positive attitude to making improvements. She has started to identify what needs to be improved within the nursery and to consider how she might do this.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY435957 Local authority Derbyshire Inspection number 853697 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 11 Total number of places 30 Number of children on roll 82 Name of provider Joanne Louise Burnand Date of previous inspection 10 April 2012 Telephone number 07845040533

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Setting details

Little Characters was registered in 2012. There are 10 childcare staff, eight of whom hold a relevant early years qualification. The nursery opens from Monday to Friday all year round. Sessions are from 7am until 6pm. The nursery provides funded early education for two-, three- and four-year-old children.

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Setting details

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

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

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Setting details

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Setting details

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

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