Boxmoor After School Club

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

This provision meets requirements Children enjoy attending this welcoming setting.

They come in happily, eagerly exchanging news and catching up on recent events. Staff work very well with parents and the school, helping to ensure that they have an excellent understanding of children's needs and interests. This aids children in feeling secure and settling quickly.

Children respond to the positive environment. They work harmoniously and persist when faced with challenges. For example, children persevere when working out how to join different sections of a train track.

These positive daily experiences aid children in building the skills that support... their learning.Children respond to staff's high expectations regarding behaviour. They are kind and caring towards one another, competently sharing resources and ensuring all are included.

For instance, when playing football, older children consider the safety of younger ones and make sure they have fair turns at passing the ball and scoring goals. Secure daily procedures ensure that the setting is safe for children and also support them in understanding safety. For example, children explain that the large play equipment is not safe to use as it is slippery from recent rain.

Staff understand the possible longer-term effects of the COVID-19 lockdowns. They offer children additional support in settling and in their interactions with others.

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

Managers and staff are enthusiastic about their work and show a very genuine enjoyment of this.

They carefully consider children's needs and work together to review all areas, continuing to make improvements. For example, they continuously consider children's interests and listen carefully to their feedback, making sure that the activities and resources reflect these.Staff fully understand children's need to relax after a busy day at school and during the school holidays.

They successfully balance this with offering children numerous opportunities to participate in exciting activities. Staff take great care to understand every child and help them to feel comfortable and welcome. This care and attention is also reflected in the manager's practical supervision of staff.

She offers them individual support, enabling them to enjoy their work and continue to develop their practice.Staff offer children activities linked to topics they are covering at school, offering children opportunities to re-visit what they have been learning and to build on this. Skilled staff ensure that activity planning is flexible, enabling them to respond to children's interests and to their requests.

For example, children discuss their favourite foods and ask to make hot dogs as a treat. Staff note this and incorporate it into the planning.Interesting, well-planned activities successfully capture children's attention and contribute to their enjoyment and to their skills and knowledge.

For example, children participating in a craft activity work out how much salt to add to their pictures. They experiment when they add paint and exclaim excitedly 'look, the salt is making the paint spread!'.Staff engage children in discussions they know will interest them, helping to develop their language and communication skills.

Children are animated as they participate, for example, using their good language skills to update one another on a television series they have been watching and to describe their ideas and activities.Children have opportunities to learn about the relevance of healthy lifestyle choices. For instance, they discuss healthy eating when making snacks and during cooking activities.

Activities, such as dancing and outdoor ball games, aid children in developing their physical skills.Staff support children in understanding and respecting differences, for example, in beliefs, preferences and needs. They listen carefully to children and show them they value their views.

Children respond to this and confidently state their opinions and ideas, secure in the knowledge that they are respected.Parents speak very highly of the setting, describing this as 'creative, fun and professionally run'. They praise staff, particularly noting their caring approach and genuine interest in the children.

Parents report that staff communicate well with them and they appreciate the many activities their children participate in.

Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.There is an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts children's interests first.

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