Devon Locality 5 East Devon Children's Centre Group Tip Hill, Ottery St Mary, EX11 1BE

Children’s centre report

Inspection dates 2−3 June 2015

This inspection: Good 2 Overall effectiveness Previous inspection: Not previously inspected Access to services by young children and families Good 2 The quality of practice and services Good 2 The effectiveness of leadership, governance and Good 2 management

Summary of key findings for children and families

This is a good centre.  Increasing numbers of families, especially those in greatest need, are making use of the centre’s services. Staff make good use of information about the area to plan the right kind of services that families need and appreciate.  Staff are creative in their use of resources to ensure families can access activities. A range of community venues are used to provide sessions, some of which are taken into families’ homes.  Good quality services are provided through strong partnership working with health, schools, social care, early help and providers of community services. Families in need are identified, supported and well matched to services so their needs are met quickly.  Loyal, passionate and resilient staff provide a very welcoming environment that families and children value.  Staff receive good quality supervision and case files are kept in good order.  Good strategic leadership, a strong advisory board, good day-to day management and close monitoring by the local authority mean this group is in a good position to improve further.

It is not outstanding because:  The provision of adult learning is underdeveloped. Parenting programmes, antenatal classes and opportunities to volunteer are offered but wider learning opportunities are limited. Systems to check on progress and capture achievements, in order to see the difference learning makes to the lives of families, are underdeveloped.  The training plan lacks detail and there is no link between staff development plans and priorities for the centres’ work.

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What does the group need to do to improve further?  Improve the provision for adult learning so that: there are wider learning opportunities and adults are encouraged to attend and progress in their lives systems are developed to check on progress, capture achievements and evaluate the impact of the learning on families’ lives in the longer term.  Develop the annual training plan so that there is a clear link between targets set for staff, personal development plans and the groups’ priorities in order to drive further improvement.

Information about this inspection

The inspection of this children’s centre group was carried out under Part 3A of the Childcare Act 2006 as amended by the Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Act 2009. The centres that form part of this children’s centre group are Clyst Vale Children’s Centre, Ottery St Mary Children’s Centre and Sidmouth Children’s Centre.

This inspection was carried out by four additional inspectors.

The inspectors held meetings with parents, senior leaders, managers from the local authority, centre staff, and health, education and social care partners. They also met early years practitioners, Job Centre Plus, a counsellor, a community minister, community services providers, volunteers, childminders and representatives from the advisory board.

The inspectors visited the centres to observe activities as well as the Old Boys School, Ottery St Mary and Victory Hall, Broadclyst. A joint observation of the childcare provision for adult education was undertaken with the manager at Sidmouth Children’s Centre.

The inspectors looked at the centres’ self-evaluation, action planning, a sample of case files and safeguarding procedures. They observed the centres’ work and looked at a range of relevant documentation.

Inspection team

Penny Mathers, Lead Inspector Additional inspector

Joyce Cox Additional inspector

Patricia Collis Additional inspector

Maggie Fobister Additional inspector

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Full report

Information about the group Locality 5 Children’s Centre Group has three centres as follows: Clyst Vale Children’s Centre Ottery St Mary Children’s Centre Sidmouth Children’s Centre. This group has been managed by Action for Children since 2012. An advisory board oversees the governance. An operational lead and lead practitioner are responsible for the day-to-day management. This group of centres share senior leadership and support services with Beacon Heath, Whipton, and Heavitree and Polsloe centres. A group manager oversees these two separate groups of centres.

Priority groups are: children subject to a child protection or child in need plan families that receive a service through Devon's early help for families scheme families where there is domestic abuse, drug and/or alcohol abuse families where there are mental health issues families living in isolation vulnerable two-year-olds.

There are 1,794 children under the age of five years living in the reach area. Most of the population is White British, with small percentages of families from minority ethnic groups. Most children start school with skill levels above those typical for their age. A few children live in workless households and a few are eligible for the childcare element of the Working Tax Credit.

The locality covers a large geographical area of 127 square miles that stretches from the coast at Sidmouth up to Ottery St Mary and across to Clyst St Mary to the east of Exeter. Much of the area is rural, with limited public transport. Generally, the area is quite affluent but there are pockets of deprivation.

Clyst Vale Children’s Centre is a small centre based in the grounds of Clyst St Mary Primary School. The report for the school can be found at http://reports.ofsted.gov.uk. It is mainly used as an administrative hub, with nearly all services in the community being delivered to outlying areas that include Broadclyst, Silverton and the developing town of Cranbrook. Ottery St Mary Children’s Centre is a larger centre and covers a small urban, but predominantly rural, area including Ottery St Mary, Feniton and West Hill. Sidmouth Children Centre is built within the Stowford Community Centre. It is co-located with the Public Health Nursing Team and covers the main town, two inland rural parishes, Newton Poppleford and Sidbury and the coastal parish of Branscombe. As a seaside town, the main income in Sidmouth is from tourism. There are a number of Traveller sites, including some temporary ones, in the locality.

The group of centres offer a range of universal and targeted services including Stay and Play, Music and Movement, Baby massage, ‘Messy Play’, support groups for children with additional needs, safety sessions, antenatal courses, weaning support, family support work, baby clinics and parenting courses. Health services are co-located at the Sidmouth Children’s centre.

Inspection judgements

Access to services by young children and families Good

 Staff work relentlessly and creatively to reach those in need. These include children subject to support plans, those families troubled by drug, alcohol or domestic abuse and those who are isolated or where there are vulnerable two-year-olds. Services across the large geographic area are carefully planned to ensure families from rural areas can attend high quality activities. Parents are increasing their use of the centres’ website and like accessing information on social media.  Registration rates and participation rates have been increasing steadily over the last three years. Inspection report: Devon Locality 5 East Devon Children’s Centre Group Page 4 of 8

Excellent partnerships with health professionals mean that most of the families are known and those needing extra support gain swift access to highly effective help.  The centres are successful in taking services to where they are needed. Good plans, including the use of community halls, have encouraged families to access and participate in a wide range of early years services. However, the centres have been less successful in encouraging adults to attend training courses.  Staff are quick to respond to needs in Cranbrook, where a number of families have moved into social housing before some support services have been developed. Access to learning has improved for the most isolated families through parenting programmes delivered in their homes.  A warm and welcoming atmosphere puts families at ease and encourages them to participate in activities and attend until their needs are met. One parent commented ‘Staff are like a second family, they listen and help you when you need it, you can talk to them about everything.’  Staff provide good support for children who are eligible to access free entitlement to early education. The very large majority of eligible funded two-year-olds are placed in good quality settings.

The quality of practice and services Good

 A good balance is made between services available to all and those supporting families with specific needs. The ‘Stay and Play’ and ‘Baby Massage’ are very popular and priority is given where necessary to those in greatest need. Families welcome the opportunity to share experiences and make friends at ‘Music and Movement’ and those experiencing domestic violence have access to a ‘Pattern Changing’ course and counselling.  Staff are keen to work together with health visitors and midwives to provide integrated services, for example antenatal sessions and breastfeeding support. The health visiting service is successfully co- located at Sidmouth. Families expecting children can access antenatal classes and health appointments nearer to home and benefit from a good level of breastfeeding support.  Adults have too few opportunities to develop their literacy, numeracy and other essential skills. The range of adult learning is limited and parents have little opportunity to learn skills that will help them successfully find employment or learn with their families. Partnerships with adult learning are not fully developed, although recent work with Learn Devon has resulted in a mathematics course being delivered at Sidmouth that is well attended and appreciated by parents.  Parenting courses are planned well. Parents, including those most in need of support, enjoy these courses, improve their confidence, understand their child’s behaviour better and learn alternative strategies to implement at home. One parent said, ‘I’m more positive and handle stress much better.’  Staff help families get through times of crisis and become better equipped to make future choices. Good work with health, education and social care professionals protects those most in need and reduces inequalities effectively. Adults with drug or alcohol problems are worked with in partnership with adult mental health services and the counselling service demonstrates a positive impact on the lives of those suffering with depression and anxiety.  Communication with a wide range of agencies is highly effective and they are welcome at the centre. Agencies are keen to provide services; for example, ‘Face2Face’ provides emotional help for those families who have children with special needs. A valuable early years resource box service is available to childminders and early years settings.  A strong volunteer recruitment, training and support programme has resulted in a good variety of volunteering opportunities. Volunteers run parent-led groups and support breastfeeding. Several parents have used their volunteering experiences to move successfully into employment or further study.  Good support is provided for those moving into the new Cranbrook housing development. Families are now able to attend ‘Stay and Play’ locally and benefit from individual support. Schools report children are increasingly ready to settle, making good progress, and parents demonstrate positive attitudes to the importance of their child’s learning. Inspection report: Devon Locality 5 East Devon Children’s Centre Group Page 5 of 8

The effectiveness of leadership, governance and Good management

 Parents, local authority and the advisory board all provide a good level of challenge that has led to improvements over time. The local authority sets challenging targets and also provides comprehensive reports. The advisory board is well run, with clear terms of reference and minutes that focus well on actions required.  Staff work together well as a team. They have a wide variety of backgrounds and are very well qualified, knowledgeable and well trained. Partners respect the staff and have every confidence in making referrals to them.  Strong strategic and operational leadership and management have led to a stable and experienced staff group that provides a strong platform from which to support families. Clear targets are set for staff and team meetings are effective at sharing information. However, the process for setting targets for staff and personal development plans are not yet developed into a comprehensive training plan that links these plans to the centres’ priorities.  Centres have good systems in place to evaluate and monitor the quality of provision. Supervision is particularly good, case files are well recorded and staff feel safe in their practice. Activities are observed and centres are constantly looking to improve.  Safeguarding policies are comprehensive and appropriate recruitment checks are carried out rigorously. Any safeguarding concerns are acted on swiftly. Staff receive regular safeguarding training and know whom to contact if they have a concern.  Staff are fully involved in professional meetings and assessments for children who are looked after and those in need, including those subject to a child protection plan. Parents learn how to keep their children safe at home and when using technology, through e-safety workshops.  Staff work hard and make sure all families receive services and are treated with respect. Play opportunities are taken to Travellers’ families to ensure children have opportunities to enjoy activities and Travellers have used the washing machine at Ottery St Mary. A clear equalities action plan has been developed, but progress has not yet been recorded.  Resources are well managed. Staff demonstrate great ingenuity in making best use of limited resources, developing the use of new technology and in finding partners to work with. A good website, social media and relationships with other children’s centres are used effectively to promote services.  Parents’ participation is good. They attend the advisory board meetings; some are volunteers and others are involved in recruitment. They feel listened to and contribute to ‘task and finish’ groups that drive improvements.

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What inspection judgements mean

Grade Judgement Description Grade 1 Outstanding Practice consistently reflects the highest aspirations for children and their families and, as a result, inequalities are reducing rapidly and gaps are closing.

Grade 2 Good Practice enables most children and their families to access good quality services that improve children’s wellbeing and achieve the stated outcomes for families.

Grade 3 Requires Performance is not as good as it might reasonably be expected to be in improvement one or more key areas. Grade 4 Inadequate The needs of children and families in its area are not being met and/or the leaders and managers are not providing sufficient challenge to bring about improvement to the quality of services. Inspection report: Devon Locality 5 East Devon Children’s Centre Group Page 7 of 8

Children’s centre group details

Unique reference number URN 80256 Local authority Devon County Council Inspection number 453907 Managed by Action for Children on behalf of the local authority

Approximate number of children under 1794 five in the reach area Group manager Christine Cottle

Telephone number 01404 813642 Email address [email protected]

This group consists of the following children’s centres:  URN 20770 Clyst Vale Children’s Centre  URN 22278 Ottery St Mary Children’s Centre  URN 22720 Sidmouth Children’s Centre Inspection report: Devon Locality 5 East Devon Children’s Centre Group Page 8 of 8

Any complaints about the inspection or the report should be made following the procedures set out in the guidance ‘Raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted’, which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email [email protected].

(Ofsted) regulates and inspects to 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. Further copies of this report are obtainable from the school. Under the Education Act 2005, the school must provide a copy of this report free of charge to certain categories of people. A charge not exceeding the full cost of reproduction may be made for any other copies supplied. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email [email protected]. You may copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as you give details of the source and date of publication and do not alter the information in any way. To receive regular email alerts about new publications, including survey reports and school inspection reports, please visit our website and go to ‘Subscribe’. Piccadilly Gate Store St Manchester M1 2WD