Ysgol Gynradd Llangybi

Happy Days Nursery

Inspection report for early years provision

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Happy Days Nursery

400119 Unique Reference Number 07 December 2006 Inspection date Carol-Anne Shaw Inspector

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Happy Days Nursery

104 Gordon Street, Scarborough, North Yorkshire, YO12 7RX Setting Address

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Happy Days Nursery

01723 500749 Telephone number HappyDays@amserve.com E-mail Moira Willgrass Registered person Integrated Type of inspection Full day care Type of care

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Happy Days Nursery

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

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The key inspection judgements and what they mean

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 good.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

Happy Days Nursery opened in 1988 for full day care, it is a privately owned provision. It operates from four rooms on the ground floor of a Victorian house mid way between Seamer Road and Scalby Road, situated within walking distance from the town centre. They have access to a small outside play area. Happy Days Nursery serves the local and surrounding areas.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

There are currently 37 children from three months to under five years on roll. This includes 11 funded three and four-year-olds. Children attend for a variety of sessions. The setting currently supports no children with learning difficulties or English as an additional language. However, in the past children have been integrated successfully. The group opens Monday to Friday from 08.00 until 17.45 all year round, it is closed bank holidays and Christmas week.

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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 six staff working with the children. Most of the staff have early years qualifications to Level 3 or Level 2. One qualified member of staff is working towards an early years degree and one unqualified staff member is working towards a recognised early years qualification. The setting receives support from the local authority.

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is good. Children are cared for in a warm clean environment. This is due to the staff mainly following the policies and procedures in place and therefore meeting children’s physical, nutritional and health needs. The children have good guidance and support from the staff to ensure hygiene is promoted in most situations. Children gain a good understanding of personal hygiene through the daily routines and the activities included in the curriculum. Younger children’s health is supported effectively by staff being fully aware of procedures and ensuring that these are followed. The older children learn the importance of hand washing and how it protects them from infection. Children’s independence in their personal care is fostered by the routines in place. They have many opportunities to freely access hand washing, and are able to pour themselves a drink of water when they are thirsty.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children enjoy a wide range of activities to support their physical development. They explore, test and develop physical control in well organised, daily indoor and outdoor experiences. The staff monitor individual children’s development through observations and assessments. They have a good understanding of how children develop physically, encouraging and supporting children to try out new skills. Children are confident and are able to set their own limits within the safe environment. For example, choosing numbers outside and running over the bridge. The children are developing a positive attitude to physical exercise. They enjoy using the outdoor area with its changing challenges. The use of the outside area supports children’s physical development, they access a range of play activities that develop their skills in many areas. However, the older children have limited access to balancing equipment to practice these

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Helping children to be healthy

skills. The younger children have limited access to the outside and fresh air as this is not included in their daily routine. Children have opportunities to rest and sleep meeting their own required routine.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children benefit from a mainly healthy diet. They are given drinks throughout the day. They learn about good nutrition at meal time as they enjoy the meals cooked on the premises. They choose from a range of different fruits at snack time. The systems in place, give opportunities for children to help with preparation for meal times. The staff work with parents to support healthy eating. Older children have a good understanding of why they eat healthy foods and how it relates to their bodies through the themes and activities they participate in. Babies are fed according to their own routines, which are agreed with parents at placement. These are regularly updated through constant communication with parents. Effective liaison with parents ensures children’s individual dietary needs are fully met and good attention is paid to managing children’s medical needs.

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Helping children to be healthy

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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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is good. Risks of accidental injury to children are minimised. The staff are vigilant and use good risk assessment systems to reduce potential hazards. Through the staff’s effective organisation of the children, how they use equipment and safe ways of doing things, the children learn about protecting themselves. They have drawn pictures to depict the different areas, for example, we do not run, we do not throw and we tidy up. The children are confident in ways to reduce areas of danger.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Children access a wide range of good quality, safe and suitable toys, resources and equipment, all very appropriate to their age and stage of development. The equipment is set out effectively, enabling children to make choices promoting children’s independence. Children are able to select different resources to practise new skills, for example, changing the floor jigsaws.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Children are very well protected by staff who, overall, have a clear understanding of the child protection policies and procedures. All staff have attended training and are fully aware of their responsibilities relating to safeguarding children. They give priority to children’s welfare.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is good. Children are settled and happy in their surroundings. They enjoy their time at the nursery and make progress in their development and learning. The staff are confident and skilled, using their childcare knowledge and understanding to promote children’s development. The staff are motivated, work as a team and are interested in the children as individuals. The staff ratios in place enable children to have good adult support throughout the day.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The children arrive happy and eager to participate. They separate from their parents and quickly settle down to play. Key staff have good information about the children and are sensitive to their individual needs. The close and caring relationships help them to develop confidence and build self-esteem. Early communication skills are well supported through good adult-child interactions. Children in all sections of the nursery express their ideas through a mix of planned activities and free play that supports their development and learning.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

There is good physical contact between the younger children and their staff, for example, lots of cuddles and individual games increasing children's well-being and sense of self. There are many opportunities for the children to express their ideas and be involved with a wide variety of activities and experiences. The children enjoy the many play activities and explore paints, different textures, music and songs. Overall, this provides the children with an environment which promotes development and good care. The nursery progresses the development of the under three's in a systematic way. Assessments of progress and the planning for individual children are completed. These link to the ‘Birth to three matters’ framework and effectively support the daily activities in both the baby and toddler sections.

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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 The quality of teaching and learning is good. Staff demonstrate a sound knowledge of the principles of early years education and use the Foundation Stage to ensure all areas of learning are developed through children’s play. They plan and provide effective and realistic challenges for the children. The activities are well organised and supported with relevant resources and equipment. A good range of teaching methods are used and this ensures children learn across all areas of the curriculum. Children are motivated, confident, self-assured and keen to participate. This is promoted by the staff's enthusiasm and interest in them. Children work well together and follow simple rules to support sharing and safety. The more able children assist others in accessing resources, helping younger children with coats and drinks.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

They use their imagination in role play situations, for example, a child playing with the plates and cups setting them out, talking about number biscuits. They use their creative play to demonstrate their sense of the world around them. There are very good displays of the children's work, showing a variety of resources and methods used by them, such as collage, drawing and free painting. The work done to support the ‘nativity’ topic, has covered many learning areas of the curriculum. For example, the different gifts from the kings came under discussion from one child who was not very impressed with the traditional three gifts, came up with ones she preferred. When outside, the children were looking for spiders. This was linked to climbing up the spout. When none were found, children showed their spider walks coming in from outside play, pretending they had found lots of spiders.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children communicate and express themselves very well, both with each other, staff and visiting adults. Interaction is relaxed, the staff encourage children to share their own experiences at circle time, when holding the bear. Children develop their language and thinking skills as well as confidence and independence. They use resources for mark making in their play, and learn to recognise letters through displays, labelling and books. Children count, use numbers and solve simple problems in their every day activities, for example, when counting out the number of bibs needed for the younger children’s lunch. They learn sequencing through patterns and the life cycle of the frog.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Physical skills are extended and supported with satisfactory access to outside play opportunities, the use of music and movement, access to instruments and ability to use a wide variety of tools and resources. Children explore and investigate their surroundings through a variety of mediums, for example, looking after the plants, growing seeds, observing the hamster and feeding the fish. Children access resources to support their understanding of technology and are confident users of the computer.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The range of activities provides effective support and challenges for the children to extend their skills overall. The assessment of children's learning is comprehensive covering all aspects of the curriculum. This is done by the key workers who know the children very well and their individual needs. No children with learning difficulties attend the nursery at the moment. However, there are good arrangements and skills in place to support and build on what children know and can do.

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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

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is good. Parents and children are made very welcome into the nursery. The staff value children's individuality and respect parents views and contribution to the care provided. Younger children’s home routines are fully discussed and staff support them appropriately. The children’s behaviour is good, with staff showing a consistent and caring approach to managing behaviour. The older children follow simple rules and know the routines and boundaries in place. The pictures they have done effectively supports their understanding. Children share and show respect for others, they take turns and show good manners, saying please and thank you. They learn to negotiate and take responsibility for their own behaviour and the older children support the younger ones with coats and when playing outside. Children's spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is fostered.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Children have satisfactory opportunities to learn about the world about them, through topics and resources that promote diversity. Their own and other cultures are supported with a suitable range of activities and resources. This is an area that has been marked for continuing development by the staff.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The partnership with parents and carers is good. The key worker system is working effectively and provides parents with information on a daily basis. The effective partnership with parents contributes significantly to children’s well being in the group. Parent’s views are sought through discussion, on a regular basis throughout the time they attend. Effective systems are in place to ensure all parents are kept informed of how their child is progressing in their development and learning. Children benefit from the involvement of parents in projects and topics which contributes to their good health, development and learning. However, the group have tried to involve parents in their child’s learning with open days but these have not been well supported. The library system however, has involved parents with children’s favourite nursery stories

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Organisation

The organisation is good. Children’s care is enhanced by the good management of the setting. The effective organisation of the nursery provides a welcoming, environment for children to play and learn. There is a wide range of suitable policies and procedures available to support the management of the nursery. All the required documentation for the safe management of the service is available. However, records are not always fully completed. For example, the lack of a parental signature on an accident record. The premises in all areas are planned to support and promote children’s development and learning. Families are supported and individual children’s care needs are followed. The good staff ratios ensure children have good support, allowing children to experience interesting and different activities throughout the day. The use of time, space and resources enhances children's learning in all areas.

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Organisation

Children’s care and learning is supported with good leadership and management. Children benefit from the staff having a sound knowledge of how children learn and the use of effective assessment systems to promote learning.

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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 Procedures are in place for induction and the ongoing training of staff. The staff have a commitment to improvement and personal development; this underpins the care, learning and welfare of the children in the setting.

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Organisation

The leadership and management are good. The monitoring of the nursery education is done by the manager who is continuing to develop the systems in place. It is linked to the curriculum guidance for the Foundation Stage. This is done systematically and is used to develop the future plans for the provision. The staff are trying different ways of involving parents in their children's learning. The staff are enthusiastic and working as a team to ensure the provision meets the needs of all the children who attend.

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Organisation

Overall, the provision meets the needs of the range of the children for whom it provides

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Improvements since the last inspection

Since the last care and nursery inspection, the provider has made improvements.

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Improvements since the last inspection

At the last care inspection there were a number of recommendations. The provider was asked to develop planning for the two to three year olds. The nursery has been proactive with their planning and have fully embraced ‘Birth to three matters’ ensuring the planning meets the need of individual children

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Improvements since the last inspection

The provider was also asked to develop the outside area, this has been achieved with all areas of the curriculum covered. The older children now enjoy daily access to the area.

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Improvements since the last inspection

The nursery were asked to ensure parents have access to policies and procedures. These are now easily available with some included in the welcome pack given to parents.

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Improvements since the last inspection

At the previous nursery education inspection the provider was asked to promote children’s own creative ideas and provide simple calculation in everyday activities.

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Improvements since the last inspection

The staff have reorganised these areas enabling children to be independent when being creative and to include simple calculation in everyday activities.

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Improvements since the last inspection

They were also asked to develop the planning for children’s large motor skills. The development of the outdoor area has supported this aim. The planning includes many opportunities for children to practice and develop large motor skills.

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Improvements since the last inspection

The recommendations have been followed resulting in the nursery meeting the needs of the children they care for.

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Complaints since the last inspection

Since the last inspection there have been no complaints made to Ofsted that required the provider or Ofsted to take any action in order to meet the National Standards.

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Complaints since the last inspection

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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Complaints since the last inspection

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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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 good.

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The quality and standards of the care

To improve the quality and standards of care further the registered person should take account of the following recommendation(s): • ensure that the documentation to support accident recording is fully completed • provide more opportunities for the younger children to access fresh air, for example, going for walks and outside play.

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The quality and standards of the nursery education

To improve the quality and standards of nursery education further the registered person should take account of the following recommendation(s): • provide more opportunities for children to develop and practice their balancing skills • develop the involvement of parents in supporting their children's learning.

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The quality and standards of the nursery education

set out in the leaflet Complaints about Ofsted Early Years: concerns or complaints about Ofsted's role in regulating and inspecting childcare and early education (HMI ref no 2599) 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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