Levendale Childcare Providers

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

This provision meets requirements Children thrive in this friendly and well-run club. They arrive at the club happily.

When staff collect them from their classroom, children greet them with enthusiasm. Older children arrive from their classrooms and greet both staff and children confidently. Younger children clearly have a strong relationship with staff.

An example of this is when they seek out staff for reassurance or talk to them about the toys they are playing with.Children are safe. As a result of the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic, children now remain in year-group or family bubbles.

They have their own tables in the out-of-school club room.... Due to the additional space the tables take up, the club now uses the school hall when necessary. This provides additional play space and reassurance to staff and parents that children are safe.

Children behave well. They move around the club calmly. They sit quietly when they have their tea.

Children are polite and well mannered as they help themselves to snack. Parents know that their children are happy and comment that they often do not want to leave.

What does the early years setting do well and what does it need to do better?

Staff talk to children and ask them what they would like to do in the club.

They use this information to plan activities or topics. For example, staff plan a topic on Disney to support children's interests. This helps to maintain children's interest and enthusiasm in the club's activities.

Children develop very good relationships with each other. They play and work together as they build dens in the bushes. Older children talk to their friends about their favourite television programmes or games.

However, staff do not always encourage them to involve younger children in their conversations. As a result, there are times during the session, such as snack time, when younger children have fewer opportunities to talk about their day.The manager supports her staff well.

Staff comment about the support they receive when they first start. They feel that the manager is very approachable and offers good advice. Staff value the regular meetings to talk about how things are going.

They use these meetings to discuss how they can improve things further.Staff work well with the on-site school overall. They pass on information to each other when children are collected from school.

However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, club staff no longer hold more in-depth meetings with teachers from the school. This means that they do not always establish a consistent approach to supporting children's care and well-being. For example, they do not share strategies on how to manage children's behaviour in a consistent way.

Staff spend time talking to and playing with children as they play outside. Young children thoroughly enjoy doing a wildflower hunt with a member of staff. They talk about the flowers they see and how some things, such as nettles, can hurt.

Staff take time to talk about the names of the flowers. This helps children to recognise different types of flowers.The manager evaluates her provision effectively and identifies areas where she could improve practice further.

Staff attend a range of training, including first aid and regular safeguarding training. This means that they have an excellent knowledge of wider safeguarding issues, such as the 'Prevent' duty guidance.The manager has clear expectations of children's behaviour.

She consistently reminds children of what she expects of them. During the inspection, she reminded children to talk quietly as soon as they became a little loud. She acted quickly when children started a new game that had the potential to turn a little physical.

Children behave well as a result of this.Children learn how they can keep themselves healthy. They wash their hands as soon as they arrive at the club.

Children choose from a healthy range of fruit and vegetables for their snack. They know how to keep themselves safe from the sun. Before going outside, children apply suntan lotion and put on their caps.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.The manager and her staff have an excellent knowledge of the signs and symptoms that may indicate possible abuse to children. They know the procedures to follow should they have a concern about a child.

The manager has clear policies in place that staff understand and implement consistently. Recruitment procedures are robust. The manager places a high priority on children's safety.

For example, class teachers sign children into the club. Staff act quickly when they identify potential hazards during the session. For instance, when staff notice a perimeter gate has been left open, they quickly close it.

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