Childcare Inspection Report onCylch Meithrin Penygroes

Safle Bro Lleu, Ysgol Bro LleuFfordd Brenin

PenygroesCaernarfonLL54 6RE

Mae’r adroddiad hwn hefyd ar gael yn Gymraeg

This report is also available in Welsh

Date of Publication 28 June 2017

Welsh Government © Crown copyright 2017.You may use and re-use the information featured in this publication (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government License. You can view the Open Government License, on the National Archives website or you can write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk You must reproduce our material accurately and not use it in a misleading context.

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Description of the serviceCylch Meithrin Penygroes operates from a cabin on the site of Ysgol Bro Lleu in the village of Penygroes. The service is registered to provide care for up to 18 children and offers provision for 2-5 year olds. The cylch is a member of the Mudiad Meithrin Organisation and operates through the medium of Welsh. The opening hours are 8:30am until 1:00pm, with children who attend the nursery class in Ysgol Bro Lleu able to attend the lunch club session from 11:00am onwards. Catrin Gwyn is the Registered Person and the Person in Charge is Tracey Jones.

Summary of our findings

1. Overall assessmentChildren feel valued as all attempts at communication are listened to. They are learning to understand emotions and be respectful of one another. Children have formed positive relationships with their peers and with staff. Children are confident to try new things and are able to take part in activities that interest them. Staff support children to behave in a positive manner and provide opportunities to develop their skills. Staff plan for and respond to children’s individual needs and implement the service’s policies effectively.

Leaders ensure children are safe, hazards are identified and risks are minimised where possible. Resources are developmentally appropriate and are of good quality. All areas used by the cylch are welcoming, friendly and interesting to children.

Leaders ensure staff are aware of their responsibilities and implement policies and procedures effectively. Good partnerships have been formed with parents to enable leaders and staff to meet children’s individual needs. Feedback is gathered regularly to evaluate the quality of the service.

2. ImprovementsUpgrading works have taken place to the outside of the building. An access ramp has been installed and a new outdoor play area with rubber flooring has been created specifically for children who attend the cylch.

Since our inspection visit we have received documentation evidence that a fire drill has taken place.

3. Requirements and recommendations We did not find any areas of non-compliance. However, recommendations have been made relating to the well-being of children to provide more opportunities . These are detailed in section 5 of this report.

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1. Well-being Summary

Children feel confident to express their views and that staff will respond to them. They are able to make choices and follow their interests as they wish. Children are forming friendships and are beginning to understand their emotions and be mindful of other people’s feelings. Opportunities are available for children to learn new skills and achieve things for themselves.

Our findings

1.1 To what extent do children have a voice?

Children are able to make choices and decisions for themselves.

Children were able to choose freely with what they wanted to play with. Activities had been set out for children to choose from on their arrival, including playdoh, jig saws and a sand tray. Children freely explored the activities of their choice and moving around different areas as they wished. Children were comfortable expressing themselves and answering questions and were confident they would be listened to by staff. For example, one child showed staff they had brought a yogurt with them for snack and began to chat to staff about their siblings, confident that she would be listened to and engaged with. The pace of each activity was decided by the children, with practitioners responding to their wishes and level of enthusiasm.

Children are listened to and are confident to express their views and opinions.

1.2 To what extent do children feel safe, happy and valued?

Children are happy, settled and have formed bonds of affection with staff.

We saw children were happy and comfortable in their surroundings. They were familiar with the daily routine and this provided children with a sense of security. Children felt comfortable approaching staff for reassurance or comfort when they needed and had begun to form friendships with one another. Lots of chatting and laughter could be heard during free play. Children smiled and gained a sense of pride when they were praised for doing something well and were eager to share their achievements with their friends. For example, children took part in a ‘Traed Bach Sionc’ /‘Busy Feet’ dancing activity during the morning and were praised for copying sequences well and were eager to show and help their friends.

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Samples of the children’s work was displayed on the walls, giving the children a sense of belonging, however there were currently no photographs of the children taking part in activities on display. This was discussed with the person in charge, who told us that she would address this by printing pictures to enhance the children’s sense of belonging and well-being.

Children have formed positive relationships and confidently seek reassurance or help when they need it.

1.3 How well do children interact?

Children have begun to form friendships and enjoy playing and chatting with their friends.

Children cooperated well together and were happy to take turns and share resources. A small group of children happily played together in the ‘little house’ / ‘Tŷ Bach Twt’ and were chatting together, making each other cups of tea and sharing the toys. Children had formed friendships with each other and were happy to see their friends who joined them from the nursery school to join them in ‘Lunch club’/ ‘Clwb Cinio’. One child greeted her friend by cheering and giving her a big hug. One child accidentally knocked one of his friends with a block and immediately asked if he was ok, placing his hand on his shoulder and showing genuine concern.

Children are beginning to understand their feelings and are becoming sensitive to the emotions of others.

1.4 To what extent do children enjoy their play and learning?

Children are highly motivated in their play and show interest in the resources and activities available to them.

Children were eager to take part in the activities available to them. They explored their environment freely and focussed for an appropriate amount of time on tasks. One child showed interest in the posters of different insects displayed in the discovery corner. He asked a staff member about it and they both counted how many legs an insect had, comparing each insect and chatting about the different attributes of each insect. The child focussed on this activity for an lengthy period of time and was interested to learn about the subject. Another child went to look at books in the reading corner. She begun by showing different pages to her friend and then listened intently as a staff member read the story to them, and the children asked for another

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story after they had finished the first book. The child sat with the staff member for around 20 minutes looking at different books and listening intently to each story. A small group of children concentrated for around 20 minutes playing in the sand tray, thoroughly enjoying exploring the sand and placing it in different containers.

Children concentrate on activities for an appropriate amount of time and are interested in the experiences provided to them.

1.5 How well do children develop, learn and become independent?

Children have opportunities to follow their own interests and learn to be independent.

We saw children leading and directing their own play and following their own interests. A group of children gathered the toy shopping baskets and food to play shop and marched in a line over to where they had lined up the food to fill their baskets. They were attentive and fully engaged in their play and were seen co-operating well together and deciding between them what they would do next. Children were encouraged to tidy up after themselves during transition periods and were also encouraged to wash their own hands and faces when needed. We spoke with the person in charge about the possibility of introducing more opportunities for children to develop important life skills by helping out during snack and lunch times. For example, children could help to set and clear the tables, wash their own plates and cups and clean up after themselves, learning independence skills in the process.

Children are able to participate in activities where they develop their skills and are able to accomplish things for themselves.

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2. Care and Development Summary

Staff encourage positive behaviour and ensure children have clear boundaries. They prepare for and respond to each child’s individual needs and ensure that each child has opportunities to develop their skills. Staff are aware of their responsibilities and implement the services policies and procedures accordingly.

Our findings

2.1 How well do practitioners keep children safe and healthy?

Staff encourage children to eat healthily and promote good hygiene practices.

Staff provided children with healthy snacks of fruit, yogurt, cheese and toast during snack time, with milk or water offered as a drink. They supported children to wash their hands before eating and encouraged them to wash their faces with baby wipes afterwards. The Infection Control Audit Tool had been completed and had been reviewed and updated in April 2016. The person in charge told us this was due to be updated again imminently.

Staff promoted the importance of physical activity. For example, we saw pictures of children playing outside in the fresh air and using the push along toys and bikes. One the day of the inspection the weather was unsuitable for children to play outside, and staff supported children to take part in a ‘Busy Feet’/ ‘Traed Bach Sionc’ dancing activity where children copied actions along to music. This offered an opportunity for children to be physically active despite the adverse weather conditions.

Staff had all received training on safeguarding children, and were aware of their responsibilities. The safeguarding policy for the service was in place and had been reviewed recently. A copy of this policy was made available to parents by displaying it on the noticeboard in the lobby, along with the relevant contact details to report any safeguarding matters.

Fire drills were recorded and took place every term, although a drill had not taken place since October 2016. A note was kept on file explaining how this had not been possible due to the construction work being made to the outside of the building. The person in charge assured us a fire drill would take place the same week and at the time of writing this report, we were provided with documentation evidence that a fire drill had taken place.

Staff are aware of their responsibilities in keeping children safe and promote healthy lifestyles.

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2.2 How well do practitioners manage interactions?

Staff encourage children to be kind and respectful of one another.

Staff gave gentle reminders when the children argued or used unkind words towards each other. Any instances of inappropriate or boisterous behaviour were dealt with by explaining to the child why this behaviour wasn’t appropriate and modelling of ways to interact more positively. Staff interacted with the children and reinforced positive social skills and language, that enabled children to develop social skills. Praise was given throughout the day for being kind and following instructions well. We heard staff say ‘Da iawn chdi’/ ‘well done’ when children helped one another to tidy up and for taking turns well. A ‘Stars of the Week’ / ‘Sêr yr Wythnos’ wall was also available so staff could support children to celebrate their achievements, although this was not used during the inspection. We discussed this with the person in charge, who stated this was used on an ad hoc basis when children had done something particularly well, been kind or helped their friends.

Staff know the children well and promote positive behaviour by implementing the service’s policy effectively.

2.3 How well do practitioners promote children’s play, learning and development and meet their individual needs?

Staff know the children well and are able to respond to their individual needs appropriately.

Staff were on hand to answer questions that enabled children to develop their skills and understanding during play activities. This was carried out in a relaxed manner that the children were comfortable with. The questions were aimed at the children’s level of understanding and children whose first language was not Welsh were offered additional support with their Welsh. The transition from one activity to another was seamless and the disruption to children was kept at a minimum. Resources were arranged into ‘learning areas’ in line with Foundation Phase principles and were freely accessible to children. This provided children with a rich environment for play and enhanced their learning.

Information was gathered from parents on each child’s likes and dislikes and any additional needs. We saw evidence that staff had researched and attended training on medical conditions that some of the children had. This enabled staff to plan and prepare for the children’s needs should they need to.

Staff had implemented a system where specific language and communication skills were targeted in small groups. Activities were tailored to the children’s level of

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understanding and focused on the specific skills within the small group that needed to be developed. Each child’s progress was tracked for each of these sessions and this information was used to plan for the next session.

Staff ensure they respond well to each child’s individual needs in order to enhance their well-being and aid their development.

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3. EnvironmentSummary

Leaders ensure that children’s safety is of the highest priority and risks are minimised where possible. Resources are of good quality and all areas are welcoming and interesting to children. Leaders ensure resources and equipment are suitable to aid children’s development.

Our findings

3.1 How well do leaders ensure the safety of the environment?

Leaders prioritise the safety of children and ensure staff are aware of their responsibilities and follow procedures accordingly.

We were asked to sign the visitor’s book on arrival and asked for our identification (ID). A daily register was kept of staff and children who attended, with a separate register for the morning and afternoon session. The building and outdoor areas were secure and doors were kept locked during the session which ensured no unauthorised persons could access the premises. Risk assessments were in place for all areas used by the children and had been reviewed and updated.. Risk assessment had also been updated following a recent incident and we saw evidence during the inspection that procedures had been changed to minimise the likelihood of this happening again.

We saw the daily cleaning routine taking place, with appropriate methods and procedures being followed.

Leaders ensure hazards are identified and measures are put into place to minimise the risks to children’s safety.

3.2 How well do leaders ensure the suitability of the environment?

Leaders ensure children have access to suitable spaces where they can explore and play.

Leaders had made good use of the indoor space by laying out resources and furniture into learning areas. This was in line with Foundation Phase principles and provided a rich environment for play and learning. The play room was bright, colourful and welcoming. There was plenty of space and items were stored and labelled well with pictures so children could understand what was stored in each box. The entrance lobby housed a designated area for children to store their coats and bags. This was also welcoming, with a notice board with information for parents displayed. All areas

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used by children were well maintained with recent upgrading works to the outside of the building having recently taken place. The outdoor play area had new rubber flooring installed and a new access ramp to the premises had been fitted that enabled children to have easy access to the building.

Leaders ensure they have set out resources to enhance children’s learning and that all areas are well-maintained and welcoming.

3.3 How well do leaders ensure the quality of resources and equipment?

Leaders ensure children have access to a wide range of good quality resources.

Toys were in good condition and were suitable to the needs and age group of the children. A wide range of areas were available for children to explore, including a ‘Discovery area’ where they could explore natural materials such as lavender and rosemary sprigs, pine cones, wooden blocks and materials of different textures. Similar areas had been created in the outdoor environment, with areas for children to weave ribbons through the fences and a water play area where children could experiment by pouring water down pipes and into different containers. The reading corner had a wide range of Welsh books for children to use. We saw posters in the ‘Little house’ / ‘Tŷ Bach Twt’ with pictures of foods from different countries and greetings in different languages, promoting cultural awareness.

Leaders ensure resources and equipment are suitable for the children’s needs and enhance their learning and development.

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4. Leadership and ManagementSummary

Leaders ensure staff understand what is expected of them and that training is provided to enable them to meet children’s individual needs. Policies and procedures are regularly reviewed and updated, ensuring children benefit from a service which is well run and staff who implement procedures effectively. Leaders are committed to continually improving the service they provide.

Our findings

4.1 How effective is leadership?

Leaders ensure staff are aware of their responsibilities and share their vision for the service with them effectively.

Staff were fully aware of their roles and responsibilities. Policies and procedures were in place for all relevant aspects of care and play and staff were asked to read the policies regularly and sign to confirm their understanding. Staff implemented the service’s policies effectively throughout the inspection for example, the behaviour management policy. A staff member gently explained to children when their behaviour was inappropriate and supported them through modelling positive behaviour.

We inspected the service’s Statement of Purpose, which contained all the details required, although the contact details for CSSIW needed updating. This was addressed during the inspection.

Leaders ensure staff regularly review and update their understanding of the service’s policies and that these are implemented effectively.

4.2 How effective is self evaluation and planning for improvement?

Leaders seek feedback about their service from staff, children and parents in order to try to improve their service.

Staff told us they were able to ask for training if they felt they needed it and this was generally provided promptly. Evidence of training was seen in each staff file. One staff member had recently completed ‘Elklan’ training to support children who had difficulties with communication skills. This had been completed after they had asked to attend training to increase their skills in helping children to develop their language skills.

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A quality of care report had been completed for 2015. The service was in the process of gathering feedback to evaluate the service for 2017. Feedback questionnaires were in the process of being handed out to parents and children in order to plan for improvement. We saw the questionnaires which had been completed the previous year and how these had been modified this year.

Leaders ensure they have methods in place to continually improve the service they provide.

4.3 How effective is the management of practitioners, staff and other resources?

Leaders ensure staff fulfil their roles effectively and achieve positive outcomes for children.

Staff were deployed effectively during the sessions. One staff member told us they had a system where they completed the cleaning and preparation tasks on alternate days. This enabled two members of staff to engage with children, which ensured they were occupied, well supervised and involved in play activities throughout the day.

Staff told us they had a good working relationship with the Person in Charge and the Registered Person. They also shared that they had regular opportunities for supervision with the Registered Person. Written evidence was also inspected of these meetings having taken place. Evidence of annual appraisals were also seen in staff files.

Staff files were comprehensive and contained all the information required by the Child Minding and Day Care Regulations (Wales) 2010.

Leaders ensure they manage, support and deploy staff effectively in order to enhance the experiences of children.

4.4 How effective are partnerships?

Leaders ensure there are good partnerships with the school and with parents.

The Person in Charge told us they had a good relationship with the school and that information was shared between them regularly and that staff from the school came in to assist. For example, setting up IT equipment. We saw evidence on file of information gathered from parents which detailed specific needs of children and how the service was working with one parent to prepare for their child to attend next term. Staff had good relationships with the parents and shared information verbally at the

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end of each session. The parents’ handbook we viewed contained plenty of information to ensure parents understood the services and facilities provided.

Leaders ensure they work closely with parents and that information is shared effectively.

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5. Improvements required and recommended following this inspection

5.1 Areas of non compliance from previous inspectionsNone

5.2 Areas of non compliance identified at this inspectionNone

5.3 Recommendations for improvementLeaders should ensure:

They provide children with a greater sense of belonging by displaying photographs and more samples of their work around the play room;

Opportunities are provided for children to learn self-help skills and learn to do things for themselves;

Opportunities are provided regularly for children to celebrate their achievements with others.

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How we undertook this inspection

This was an unannounced, full inspection which was undertaken as part of our usual inspection programme.

One inspector visited the service between 9:15 am – 2:00 pm on Monday 15th May 2017:

we observed the children and the care they received at Cylch Meithrin Penygroes. We used our Short Observational Framework for inspection (SOFI2) tool to capture evidence of what life is like for the children using the service and the care being provided by staff;

we spoke to a number of children, the staff and person in charge;

we looked at a wide range of records. We focussed on the policies and procedures, three staff files, three children’s records, risk assessments and child development records;

we inspected the premises and the quality of toys and equipment.

Further information about what we do can be found on our website www.cssiw.org.uk

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6. About the service

Type of care provided Childrens Day CareFull Day Care

Registered Person Catrin Gwyn

Person in charge Tracey Jones

Registered maximum number of places

18

Age range of children 2-5 years

Opening hours 8:30am-1:00pm

Operating Language of the service Welsh

Date of previous CSSIW inspection 17/06/2014

Dates of this inspection visit(s) 15/05/2017

Is this a Flying Start service? Yes

Does this service provide the Welsh Language active offer?

Yes

Additional Information: