IT'S smiles all round at an after-school club which has just received a glowing Ofsted report.
The Smart Zone club may be short of space but it still received top marks from inspectors.
It is housed in a mobile classroom on the site of St Sampson's Junior School in Cricklade and provides breakfast, holiday and after-school care for 22 children up to the age of 13.
Mother of three Lisa Hamer, 39, runs, the club with her business partner Joanne Ferris. She said: "It has given everyone here a real boost to have received such a positive report.
"A lot of work went into getting all the paperwork ready for the inspection and we've had to wait such a long time for the results."
In the report, the Ofsted inspector wrote: "The staff provide the children with an excellent range of play materials and resources which varies at regular intervals and links in with planned activities.
"The environment is bright and colourful, information is displayed attractively which ensures that parents and children are made welcome.
"The staff work well together as a team."
Lisa said: "We get calls from all over the country from parents who are moving to the area and want to find out about childcare facilities. There is such a shortage of it in the Cricklade area but at the moment we are having to turn people away because of a lack of space.
"Ideally we would like to find other accommodation in a double mobile classroom but still on the same site. Then we could have a separate space for the older children."
Children take part in mainly craft and sporting activities but the emphasis is on fun, according to Lisa.
She said: "We have come under some pressure in the past because people have said the activities we provide are not structured enough. But we like to create a cosy and comfortable environment for the school. We try to teach the children good social skills and how to play nicely and to communicate well with each other."
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