Meopham After School Club

Highlights from Latest Inspection

What is it like to attend this early years setting?

This provision meets requirements All children thoroughly enjoy their time at this inclusive and welcoming out-of-school club. Children have developed positive relationships with their friends and staff. All children have an allocated key person.

This enables children to build trusting and secure relationships with the consistent staff team. Children flourish at the club, and staff help children to grow in confidence. Children fully immerse themselves in what the club has to offer.

They show high levels of engagement and enjoyment. For instance, children spend long periods at the craft table. They show independence at selecting the resources they need and ...talk to their friends about what they are making.

Others set up the pool table and show great skill and determination. They know the rules and take turns to pot all the balls. Children laugh with each other as they try to complete 'trick shots', with the pool cue behind their backs.

The club has a wonderful atmosphere. Staff are deployed well to meet the needs of the children. Children of all ages are incredibly well behaved.

They work together to decide on the club rules and display these in the setting. They show great maturity as they ensure that the rules are adhered to. Children support their friends in making the right choices.

When children need extra support, staff are on hand. The older children and staff act as valuable role models to the younger children.

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

The club manager is highly proactive.

He regularly reflects on practice and drives for improvement. He wants the club to be a place children want to come to. Children are at the heart of all he does.

The highly effective 'club council' ensures that children have a voice. They meet termly to discuss the after-school club. For example, children have said that they would like to revise the menu and are working closely with staff to put this into place.

Children are confident and passionate when talking about their role on the council.Staff hold meaningful back-and-forth conversations with the children. They know the children incredibly well and have a genuine interest in what they have to say.

Children want to engage with the staff. For example, when they first arrive at the club, they are keen to seek out the staff to tell them about their day and what they have been doing. Children feel safe and secure, and their well-being is high.

All staff comment that they enjoy working at the club. They have regular one-on-one time with the manager to discuss their well-being, safeguarding responsibilities and the children at the setting. They are provided with ample opportunities to undertake further training to support them in their role.

Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities are incredibly well supported. The manager ensures that he takes time to liaise with teachers, parents and the special educational needs coordinator at the host school. Together, they share ideas and strategies that are working well, to ensure that there is a consistent approach for all children.

This is working exceptionally well and all children fully access what is on offer.The staff place an emphasis on teaching children about how to keep themselves safe. For instance, children learn about online safety and the risks of speaking to people on the internet and sharing personal information.

The setting follows this up by providing information for parents and carers to ensure that they also know the risks and can support their children in making the right choices.Staff have built secure relationships with parents. They are welcomed into the club at collection times and have daily opportunities to speak to the staff.

The club have effective measures in place to ensure that key messages are passed on to parents from the school. Parents are included in decisions about how the club operates and freely share their views. For example, parents suggested a space for children to be able to complete their homework.

This has now been successfully introduced.

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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