Alexandra Park Children's Learning Community

Alexandra Park Children's Learning Community Montgomery House, Demesne Road, Manchester, M16 8PH

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 29 March 2016 Not applicable

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This inspection: Good 2

Effectiveness of the leadership and management Good 2

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This inspection: Good 2

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good 2

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This inspection: Good 2

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Outstanding 1

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This provision is good

 The experienced and highly qualified management team is extremely reflective. They use feedback from staff, children, parents and other professionals to inform their accurate and targeted self-evaluation. This helps them to continue to drive forward improvements with positive results.  Staff undertake observations and assessments of children's abilities and interests and use these to provide activities that children enjoy. Children make good progress across all areas of learning. They are strongly supported to develop their communication and language skills. Staff speak to children in both English and Spanish.  Parents are actively encouraged to become fully involved in all aspects of their children's learning and care. A wide range of methods is used very well to communicate with parents about children's progress.  The key-person system is robust and supports children's emotional security. Children

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This provision is good

arrive excited and are motivated to learn. Children initiate their own play and make many independent choices. This helps them to develop extremely high levels of self- esteem and confidence.

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It is not yet outstanding because:

 Staff do not always organise group activities in the most effective way to keep all children fully interested and maintain all children's concentration.

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What the setting needs to do to improve further

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

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What the setting needs to do to improve further

 review the organisation of group activities to keep all children engaged and support them to get the most out of the learning opportunities.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector observed the quality of teaching during activities indoors and outdoors and assessed the impact this has on children's learning.  The inspector held a meeting with the providers and senior staff team. She spoke to the providers, senior staff team, staff and children at appropriate times during the inspection.  The inspector completed a joint observation with the early years leader and the deputy manager.  The inspector looked at relevant documentation, such as children's learning records and planning. She looked at policies and procedures, self-evaluation and action plans and checked evidence of staff's qualifications and suitability.  The inspector took account of the views of a selection of parents during the inspection.

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Effectiveness of the leadership and management is good

Leaders provide staff with excellent support to develop their existing qualifications and skills and encourage staff to attend a range of training. All staff benefit from regular observations and appraisals as part of their continual professional development. This results in positive outcomes for children. The arrangements for safeguarding are effective. Staff are aware of their individual responsibilities in keeping children safe. All staff are trained in child protection procedures and have a thorough understanding of what to do should they have a safeguarding concern. There are excellent links with external agencies which helps to provide consistency for all children's care and learning needs.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

Staff are well qualified and have a good understanding of how children learn and develop. Babies independently explore the environment and develop their physical skills well. Supportive staff assist them to climb up small steps to have their nappy changed. Kindergarten children squeeze oranges and lemons as they prepare their own fresh fruit juice. Staff use this opportunity well to support children's mathematical understanding. They ask children to count the fruit and as they cut the fruit into pieces children declare, 'Two halves make one'. Children develop good literacy skills, for example, they project letters onto the wall using the light projector and have many opportunities to make marks. There is a strong focus on encouraging children's imagination and creativity. Children enjoy pretend play in the well equipped role-play areas. All children experiment as staff provide an extensive range of accessible natural and craft materials. Pre-school children

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

weave and thread using wool and outdoors construct bamboo tents and dens.

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare are outstanding

Staff make excellent use of daily routines to help to promote children's independence, physical well-being and understanding of healthy lifestyles. Even toddlers are extremely secure in the daily arrangements. They confidently set the table before lunch, expressing their delight in being given the responsibility of handing out the plates and cups. Mealtimes are a social occasion and all staff sit and eat with the children. They engage in animated conversations in both English and Spanish about the healthy and nutritious foods provided. All children are truly valued and their behaviour is excellent. Staff superbly promote children's understanding of the world. Children grow their own vegetables and learn about the life cycles of animals as they care for frog spawn and collect freshly hatched eggs from the chickens.

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Outcomes for children are good

All children make good progress based on their starting points. This includes children in receipt of additional funding, disabled children and those children with special educational needs and children who speak English as an additional language. Leaders closely monitor the progress of individual and groups of children to identify and address any gaps as soon as they emerge. This helps children to continue to develop the key skills needed in preparation for school or the next stages in learning.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY470455 Local authority Manchester Inspection number 984513 Type of provision Full-time provision Day care type Childcare - Non-Domestic Registers Early Years Register, Compulsory Childcare Register, Voluntary Childcare Register Age range of children 0 - 4 Total number of places 115 Number of children on roll 125 Name of provider Manchester Progressive Education Childrens Community CIC Date of previous inspection Not applicable Telephone number 01612268080

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Setting details

Alexandra Park Children's Learning Community was registered in 2014. The setting is open Monday to Friday from 7.30am until 6pm. The setting is closed on bank holidays and over the Christmas period. Alexandra Park Children's Learning Community is an English/Spanish bilingual community. There are 23 members of childcare staff. Of these, 22 staff hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 2 or 3, including 10 members of staff who hold Qualified Teacher Status and one member of staff who holds Early Years Professional status. The setting follows the Reggio Emilia approach. The setting supports disabled children and those children with special educational needs, children who speak English as an additional language and provides funded early years 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

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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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