Singlewell Kindergarten

Singlewell Kindergarten Gerald Miskin Memorial Hall, Hever Court Road, Gravesend, Kent, DA12 5EG

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 14 March 2017 19 April 2016

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This inspection: Inadequate 4

Previous inspection: Requires Improvement

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This inspection: Inadequate 4

Effectiveness of the leadership and management Inadequate 4

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This inspection: Inadequate 4

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Inadequate 4

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This inspection: Inadequate 4

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Inadequate 4

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This provision is inadequate

 Risk assessments are not robust enough to ensure the children remain safe. Some areas of the environment and resources are unclean.  The arrangements in place for recording details of accidents, injuries and complaints are weak and ineffective.  The owner has a poor overview of the arrangements in place to assess and plan for children’s learning and development. She does not take steps to ensure that all children make good progress.  Instability in staffing has affected the key person arrangements. This has resulted in a lack of information about individual children’s needs and some children being very unsettled.  There are weak arrangements in place for recruitment, vetting, induction and supervision of staff. This results in poor procedures to ensure staff are suitable to work with children and has a negative impact on the quality of teaching.  Staff have an inconsistent approach to teaching children about how they are expected

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This provision is inadequate

to behave at the setting. This has an impact on children’s personal, social and emotional development.  There are times when some staff inhibit children's communication and language skills and do not teach them about keeping safe.

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It has the following strengths

 Staff are caring and kind and parents are positive about how they support children’s care and learning.  Children enjoy learning about nature in the outdoor area.

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What the setting needs to do to improve further

The provision is inadequate and Ofsted intends to take enforcement action

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What the setting needs to do to improve further

We will issue a Welfare Requirements Notice requiring the provider to:

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Due Date

 take all reasonable steps to ensure staff and children are not exposed to risks and take action to remove or reduce any risks identified without unnecessary delay 07/04/2017

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Due Date

 provide children with a hygienic environment and ensure that all items of equipment are suitably clean 07/04/2017

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Due Date

 ensure that managers and staff are fully aware of the arrangements in place for managing children’s behaviour and that these are implemented consistently 07/04/2017

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Due Date

 implement key person arrangements that are effective so that every child’s care is tailored to meet their individual needs 07/04/2017

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Due Date

 ensure that the procedure for investigating complaints is effective and consistently implemented 07/04/2017

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Due Date

 ensure that the arrangements in place for the supervision of staff address weaknesses in the quality of teaching and promote the interests of children 07/04/2017

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Due Date

 provide induction training to help new staff understand their roles and responsibilities 07/04/2017

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Due Date

 put effective systems in place to ensure that staff, and any other person who is likely to have regular contact with children, are suitable 07/04/2017

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Due Date

 ensure that that all people involved with the recruitment and retention of staff know what would make a person disqualified 07/04/2017

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Due Date

 ensure that the information recorded about accidents or injuries is factual, so that the correct first aid treatment is given and parents are informed of the full details. 07/04/2017 To meet the requirements of the early years foundation stage the provider must:

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Due Date

 ensure that assessments of children’s learning and development are accurate and precise 12/05/2017

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Due Date

 ensure that planning takes account of children’s stage of development and their interests in order to ensure all children, including those from disadvantaged backgrounds, make good progress 12/05/2017

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Due Date

 ensure that all children’s communication and language skills are supported effectively 12/05/2017

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Due Date

 support children's understanding of the importance keeping safe. 12/05/2017

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Inspection activities

 The inspection was conducted following Ofsted's risk assessment process.  The inspector observed the quality of teaching and the impact on children's learning.  The inspector spoke to parents during the inspection and took account of other parents’ views.  The inspector conducted a joint observation and held a meeting with the owner, who is also the manager of the setting.  The inspector sampled a range of documentation, including records of children's learning, safeguarding policies and staff files.  The inspector spoke with staff and children at suitable times throughout the inspection.

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Effectiveness of the leadership and management is inadequate

Safeguarding arrangements are not effective as procedures to keep children safe are weak. The owner lacks an understanding of what might make a person disqualified from working with children. Suitability checks are not in place for all adults who are in regular contact with children. Newly recruited staff do not receive adequate coaching for their roles and there are no arrangements in place to provide support for the deputy manager. The owner has failed to identify the weaknesses in the quality of teaching along with the other breaches of the requirements of the early years foundation stage and the childcare register. Although the owner took steps to investigate a recent complaint, the investigation lacked facts and details. As a result, lessons were not learnt from the complaint and weaknesses have not been addressed. These weaknesses, and the instability in staffing, have had a significant impact on the quality of the provision.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is inadequate

At times the hall becomes very noisy and chaotic, limiting opportunities for conversations. Staff have an inconsistent approach to supporting children's learning and extending their thinking. For example, some adults regularly ask children questions but then talk immediately over them when they attempt to reply. This lack of support for children's communication and language skills has a negative impact on their progress. There is a range of resources for children to make choices from inside and outside. However, the rooms become extremely cluttered. Staff do not teach children to care for their immediate environment in order to keep themselves safe. The owner fails to access available funding to ensure disadvantaged children make good progress. The lack of oversight of the educational programmes results in poor quality teaching, limited information being gathered about children’s progress and weak planning.

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Personal development, behaviour and welfare are inadequate

There are unsatisfactory arrangements in place for risk assessments. On the day of the inspection, the inspector identified a range of hazards. These included a cracked window in the outdoor playhouse, cigarette ends, and used drink cans at the entrance. Staff make changes to where they place resources without regard to any potential risks. For example, they placed hard wooden blocks immediately next to a soft play area where children were jumping and rolling. Some resources, such as dolls and soft toys were dirty. Records show that staff do not always communicate accurate details relating to accidents or incidents that have led to injuries to children. Consequently, staff are not able to provide appropriate first aid treatment and parents are not aware of the factual details. These significant oversights compromise the health and wellbeing of children.

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Outcomes for children are inadequate

The progress that children make is limited by the inconsistent standards across the setting. Some staff fail to gather key information from parents before children start attending. This lack of information about children’s individual needs results in some children being very upset throughout the morning session. The lack of accurate and up-to- date assessments means that staff do not plan meaningful activities to challenge and motivate children. Consequently, children lose interest at times and become bored. Adults do not provide children with clear boundaries and expectations, so some children are not aware of what is expected of them. This results in some children being very unsettled and others not learning beneficial social skills in readiness for starting school.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY341738 Local authority Kent Inspection number 1073773 Type of provision Sessional provision Day care type Childcare - Non-Domestic Registers Early Years Register, Compulsory Childcare Register, Voluntary Childcare Register Age range of children 2 - 5 Total number of places 45 Number of children on roll 40 Name of registered person Ann Hicks

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reference number

Date of previous inspection 19 April 2016 Telephone number 07983 514454

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reference number

Singlewell Kindergarten registered in 2006. It is located in Gravesend, Kent. The kindergarten opens five days a week, during term time, from 9am until 11.45am on Thursday and Friday, with an extended day until 3pm on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. The provider employs 10 members of staff, six of whom hold an early years qualification at level 3. The kindergarten receives funding for free early years education for children aged two, three and four years.

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reference number

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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reference number

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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reference number

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reference number

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reference number

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