Eaton Mill Nursery

Eaton Mill Nursery

Inspection report for early years provision

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Eaton Mill Nursery

Unique Reference Number EY319429 Inspection date 27 June 2006 Inspector Patricia Joan Latham

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Eaton Mill Nursery

Setting Address Eaton Mill Primary School, Saffron Street, Bletchley, Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, MK2 3AH Telephone number 01908 373621

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E-mail

Registered person Eaton Mill Primary School Type of inspection Integrated Type of care Full day care, Out of School care

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E-mail

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000

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ABOUT THIS INSPECTION

The purpose of this inspection is to assure government, parents and the public of the quality of childcare and, if applicable, of nursery education. The inspection was carried out under Part XA Children Act 1989 as introduced by the Care Standards Act 2000 and, where nursery education is provided, under Schedule 26 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998. This report details the main strengths and any areas for improvement identified during the inspection. The judgements included in the report are made in relation to the outcomes for children set out in the Children Act 2004; the National Standards for under 8s day care and childminding; and, where nursery education is provided, the Curriculum guidance for the foundation stage. The report includes information on any complaints about the childcare provision which Ofsted has received since the last inspection or registration or 1 April 2004 whichever is the later.

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The key inspection judgements and what they mean

Outstanding: this aspect of the provision is of exceptionally high quality Good: this aspect of the provision is strong Satisfactory: this aspect of the provision is sound Inadequate: this aspect of the provision is not good enough For more information about early years inspections, please see the booklet Are you ready for your inspection? which is available from Ofsted's website: www.ofsted.gov.uk.

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

On the basis of the evidence collected on this inspection:

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

The quality and standards of the care are good. The registered person meets the National Standards for under 8s day care and childminding.

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

The quality and standards of the nursery education are outstanding.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

Eaton Mill Nursery and After School Club registered in 2005. They operate from within Eaton Mill Primary School, Bletchley, Milton Keynes. The Nursery unit has use of their own rooms with direct access to an outside play area. The After School Club use designated areas within the school. Children attend from the school and the local community. The Nursery is open from 08.00 to 16.00 and the After School Club opens 07.45 to 08.55 and 15.15 to 18.00 five days a week during term time.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 There are currently 64 children attending the Nursery unit between the ages of two years and five years. Of these 51 receive nursery funding. The After School Club have 29 children on roll between the ages of four years and 11 years. Staff are recruited from teaching staff and teaching assistants within the school and are all suitably qualified.

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is good. Staff follow effective health and hygiene procedures to maintain children's health. They exclude contagious illnesses and keep all areas that children use clean. All children are encouraged to adopt good hygiene practice and even young ones understand the importance of removing germs from hands before eating. There are clear procedures for dealing with medical emergencies and staff record any accidents that occur. However children’s full details are not always entered. Children attending the nursery, and those attending the breakfast and after school club, receive healthy, nutritious food to maintain their health. There is always fresh water available and the menu offered reflects a balanced diet; a choice of cereals in the morning and a variety of hot or cold light meals for those staying till the end of the day. Nursery children have meals that contain lots of fruit and fresh vegetables. Staff

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Helping children to be healthy

cater for children’s individual dietary needs. Children are able to take part in regular outdoor play, which helps maintain their physical well-being. Nursery children have direct, free access to an outside play area throughout the day, as well as being able to take regular visits to the school’s adventure playground and sport’s field. They are developing a wide range of physical skills, and through planned activities, are gaining an understanding of how their bodies grow and work.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is good. Children are cared for in a safe and welcoming environment. The nursery and classroom, that the after school club use, are bright and welcoming with activities available for children as they arrive. There are displays of children’s work on the nursery walls and there are quiet areas where children may sleep, or rest when feeling unwell. All external exits are secure, and nursery staff organise outside areas to ensure they can supervise children closely at all times. All ages are encouraged to follow safe practice and nursery children learn to hold hands, and walk sensibly, when leaving the premises. There is a procedure for parents to book children in and out each day, although sometimes, in the nursery, this fails to happen. Children have free access to a wide range of good quality resources to support their learning and play. Breakfast club children have a selection of games, drawing

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

material and small play toys to choose from and after school club have their own

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 resources stored in the classroom. Both they and the nursery children are able to use the school’s extensive IT equipment and have use of the school hall for large group activities. Children’s welfare is safeguarded because all staff follow clear child protection procedures. There is a log for all visitors and adults working with children are cleared to do so. Staff attend training to update their knowledge, record any concerns and refer them onto relevant authorities as appropriate

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is outstanding. All children attending receive a high level of care. Staff form a very good relationship with all ages and children are secure and confident in their care. Nursery children enter eagerly each morning, bubbling with enthusiasm to take part in activities. Staff meet individual care needs well, comforting children if they become upset and ensuring they are comfortable at all times. For example they ensure children’s feet are wiped carefully after playing in the sand so that their skin is not irritated. Individual care needs, such as nappy changing, are carried out sensitively. Staff’s interaction with children is excellent. They actively involve themselves in children’s play, after school staff helping children to apply face paints and nursery staff helping younger children to dress up. The quality of teaching for nursery education is outstanding. Children benefit from an extensive range of well-planned, practical activities to support their learning and help

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

them acquire new skills. Staff have a very good knowledge of the Foundation Stage and are skilful in re-enforcing learning as children play, so that children are progressing well towards achieving early learning goals. Children communicate well and are developing good reading and writing skills. They confidently recognise their own name and all children enjoy looking at books and listening to stories. They all practise writing their own name and the more able concentrate carefully to produce recognisable letters. Staff question children effectively, encouraging their language development at every opportunity so that those with English as an additional language are progressing well. Children are acquiring good mathematical skills. They confidently count and recognise numbers, and are able to solve simple problems such as sorting objects into groups of three. Children measure the plants they have grown and search for

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

shapes in a ‘lucky dip’, recognising and naming them accurately. Staff encourage children to investigate and examine the environment around them. Children visit the school pond area to look at the differing flowers growing there and are encouraged to use the interactive white board, learning how to produce drawings by manipulating the controls. Children are gaining a good knowledge of their own world and an understanding of differing cultures and the wider world. Topics used include tasting differing foods from around the world and looking on a map to identify countries where some of them come from. Children take part in planned activities to help promote their physical skills and to aid

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 their creative development. Musical movement activities enable them to develop coordination skills and regular use of musical instruments and music tapes allow them to listen to differing sounds and rhythms. Children enthusiastically take part in role play, whilst painting on large pieces of paper outside, enables them to use their imagination and develop skills in handling small and large paint brushes accurately. Staff use time and resources wisely to promote learning. They enable children to direct their own learning, for example allowing them to experiment mixing differing coloured paints to make brown for the bricks in their Three Pigs collage. Staff know the ability level of each child and activities are planned so that individual learning needs are catered for. Children with special educational needs receive good support

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

and staff work closely with parents, and other experts, to ensure they meet learning aims. Staff regularly record all children’s achievements and are developing a consistent system to identify their ongoing progress, which will inform future planning.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is outstanding. Children are developing high self- esteem. Staff act as good role models and have high expectations of children’s behaviour. Children learn to respect others and their views. All are taught to listen attentively while others speak and older children help younger ones as they do computer work. All children are included in activities, younger ones are able to choose, if they wish, to stay with the pre-school children or play with another activity. Staff meet children’s individual needs well. Young children are able to have an afternoon nap if needed and children’s personal educational plans are followed as required. Children understand the need to follow group rules so that all can play well together, and they happily undertake tasks such as clearing away before snack. Staff give children clear consistent guidelines and reward positive behaviour with lots of praise. Consequently all children behave extremely well and their social, cultural, spiritual

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Helping children make a positive contribution

and moral development is fostered. Partnership with parents is outstanding. They are actively involved in children’s learning and progress at all times. Parents of nursery children provide full information regarding their child before they attend and are able to stay and settle children as needed. Nursery children all have a diary, which parents and staff can use to pass on information as required and staff are always available to discuss issues with them. Activity plans are displayed and regular newsletters keep parents informed about future activities. Parents are able to view their child’s records at any time.

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Organisation

The organisation is good. Staff organise the premises effectively to ensure children are achieving and are well cared for. They divide the nursery room in two at the beginning of each session, to enable separate age groups to have individual activities and use outside space

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Organisation

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 wisely to maximise children’s learning. Staff plan a consistent daily routine, which is organised to allow children to choose their own activities, and staff have clear roles and responsibilities. Evaluation of the provision includes a questionnaire, which the after school club ask parents to complete, and which is used to make improvements. Both the nursery, and after school club, have written policies, available to parents. Staff follow established procedures, however sometimes the procedure for the collection of nursery children is disorganised, which results in parents not always completing some of the documentation to maintain children's safety. All necessary recordings are maintained and paperwork is held securely to ensure children’s confidentiality. Leadership and Management of the nursery provision is outstanding. Staff are well

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Organisation

trained and highly experienced, undertaking additional training to keep their knowledge updated. They work together well as a team, deploying themselves effectively to support children’s learning. Staff plan activities in advance and include clear learning intentions for differing abilities. They evaluate the educational programme and make improvements as necessary, for example seeking advice on how to improve the recording of children’s ongoing progress. The provision meets the needs of the range of children for whom it provides.

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Complaints since the last inspection

There have been no complaints made to Ofsted since registration. The provider is required to keep a record of complaints made by parents, which they can see on request. The complaints record may contain complaints other than those made to Ofsted

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

On the basis of the evidence collected on this inspection:

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

The quality and standards of the care are good. The registered person meets the National Standards for under 8s day care and childminding.

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

The quality and standards of the nursery education are outstanding.

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The quality and standards of the care

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 To improve the quality and standards of care further the registered person should take account of the following recommendation(s): • ensure accident recordings contain children's full details • ensure that the time parents collect children is organised to maintain children's safety and established procedures are followed.

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The quality and standards of the nursery education

No recommendations for improvement are made because the quality and standards of nursery education are outstanding.

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The quality and standards of the nursery education

procedures set out in the leaflet Building better childcare: Compliments and concerns about inspectors' judgements which is available from Ofsted's website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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The quality and standards of the nursery education

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000

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