Little Owls Nursery Burley Park

Burley Park Children's Centre

Inspection report for early years provision

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Burley Park Children's Centre

512420 Unique Reference Number 13 December 2006 Inspection date Ann Webb Inspector

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Burley Park Children's Centre

St Matthias Street, Burley, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS4 2DZ Setting Address

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Burley Park Children's Centre

0113 275 5044 Telephone number burley@leedseyc.demon.co.uk E-mail Leeds City Council - Early Years Service Registered person Integrated Type of inspection Full day care Type of care

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Burley Park Children's Centre

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 satisfactory.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

Burley Park Children's Centre re-registered as a children's centre in 2006 and was previously registered for 30 years. The centre is situated in the Burley area of Leeds and operates from one site using three playrooms, a fully enclosed outdoor play area, a community room and associated facilities. Full day care, sessional care, a crèche and drop-in support groups are provided for parents and carers. The centre works closely with health, social services, Sure Start and advisory teacher support.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

The centre is registered to provide 68 places for children aged between the ages of three months and five years and currently has 82 children on roll.

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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 The centre supports children with learning difficulties and disabilities and children whose first language is not English. There are currently 18 three and four-year-old children receiving nursery education funding.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

The centre operates between the hours of 08.00 and 18.00 Monday to Friday during the full year, with the exception of staff training days and bank holidays.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

There are 21 staff working with the children, all of whom hold a suitable childcare qualification.

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is good. The children's understanding of healthy eating is good. They eat lots of fresh fruit and vegetables at mealtimes and for their morning and afternoon snack. For example, at lunch they have quiche, potatoes, green beans and carrots. The older children help with the preparation of fruit and choose bananas and fruit teacake to cut up themselves. They are able to name fruits, such as avocado, pear and oranges. All the children's meals are freshly cooked each day and a four week menu is displayed for parents.

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Helping children to be healthy

During outdoor play the children have good opportunities to be active, exercise and tackle new challenges. They jump between tyres, ride tricycles and climb and jump from climbing apparatus. Younger children and babies are able to play outdoors in a separate play space. They use appropriate equipment to help them crawl and practise their walking skills in a safe environment.

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Helping children to be healthy

Hygiene routines are well implemented by the staff and the children have a good understanding of personal hygiene. For example, they wash their hands after toileting and before they eat food and help in the cleaning of table surfaces. The staff further promote the children's understanding by being positive role models; for example, they follow good nappy changing routines, wear protective clothing and wash their hands. They explain to children that cleaning hands washes off the germs. During the hot weather the children learn effectively about protecting themselves from the effects of the sun; they apply sun lotions and wear hats whilst playing outdoors.

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Helping children to be healthy

The children are able to rest and sleep in accordance with their parents' wishes and own sleep patterns. Their health and well-being is further promoted through a clear sickness policy and the effective management of children's illnesses; for example, children with an infectious illness are required to remain at home.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is good. The children are cared for in a clean, well-maintained environment which is effectively organised to enable them to move around freely and safely. The environment is warm and welcoming for parents and children, who are greeted on arrival. Children's work and photographs are attractively displayed on the walls and show them involved in a suitable range of activities.

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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 Children benefit from a good range of safety measures; for example, socket covers, risk assessments and a secure outdoor play area are used. The children are supervised at all times, are unable to leave the premises unaccompanied and are never left alone with persons who have not been vetted. The system for managing access to the premises is good and unauthorised persons are unable to gain entry; additionally, a record of visitors is consistently maintained.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The children are learning effectively about their own safety; for example, they participate in emergency evacuations. Additionally, the staff remind the children about picking up toys and how to store items safely.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The children's safety and welfare is further promoted through the robust child protection procedure. The written child protection policy is in line with the Local Safeguarding Children Board guidelines and is fully understood and implemented by all staff. For example, existing injuries to children are fully documented.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

All toys and resources are in good condition and stored safely. Toys and equipment are age appropriate and suitable for the children's stages of development; for example, child-sized tables and chairs and utensils for eating.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is good. The staff are kind and attentive towards the children; they respect their backgrounds and value what they have to offer. The staff recognise the children as individuals and meet their differing needs well. Activities are well organised and the children are involved in a good range of activities both inside and outside, which supports and promotes their all-round development. For example, sand, water, construction, role play, reading, singing and outdoor play. There is a good balance of adult-led and self-initiated play where children are able to spend uninterrupted time at activities.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Babies and younger children play happily with a good range of activities and resources. For example, in the sensory area they listen to the sounds and look at the twinkling lights on the flooring. They learn successfully to explore the natural environment through accessing heuristic, manufactured and recycled resources.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The children's creativity is promoted and successfully developed through interesting and stimulating experiences. For example, the children have simulated play-snow which they mould into snowballs; they eagerly handle the material and comment on its texture and temperature, saying it feels cold. Additionally, they assume roles and dress up in costume to perform a Christmas story. The children are confident and happy to share information with adults. They cooperate with their peers and enjoy each other's company.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The quality of teaching and learning is satisfactory. Detailed planning for focused activities ensures that learning intentions for all children are identified, including those children with learning difficulties and disabilities and children who have English as an additional language.

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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 Children's progress and achievements are clearly recorded in development profiles, which also show the next steps in their learning.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children's physical abilities are well developed. The children participate well in large physical activities, such as jumping across tyres, riding tricycles and running in large spaces, and construct using large equipment. They are able to use smaller items to build and construct, joining equipment together to make models. The children have good coordination skills and know to take care when moving and running around other children and items of furniture. They show an appropriate awareness of the effects of exercise on their bodies and know that they need a drink when they are hot.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The children engage in a suitable range of creative activities; for example, cutting, sticking and writing letters to Santa Claus. The children can talk about what they are doing and explain that their letters go up the chimney. They enjoy listening to music and can move their bodies rhythmically and enjoy singing together as a group, knowing a range of songs and rhymes from memory. For example, they rehearse seasonal songs for a festive performance.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The children make good attempts to solve mathematical problems during everyday activities. For example, when setting the table for lunch they count the number of children and consider how many more plates they need after placing six on the table. Most of the children are confident to count to five and older more able children can count beyond 10. During a matching game the children sort and match shapes; they are able to name the shapes and match them correctly. Some children are beginning to use positional language and describe the size of items as big, bigger and biggest.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Most areas are sufficiently resourced and support children's learning. However, the construction area has no visual references for construction or information books and the home role-play area lacks some basic resources, such as cups, plates and cutlery.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is satisfactory. Partnership with parents and carers is satisfactory. All of the nursery's policies and procedures are shared with parents and their written permission is sought for outings and the administration of medication. However, the complaints procedure does not have the correct details for the regulator. Information regarding the children's care is shared daily both verbally and in writing and regular newsletters and notices provide up-to-date information. Parents of children receiving nursery education are informed about the Foundation Stage, and there are suitable opportunities for parents to be involved in their children's learning. For example, a self-registration system and a question of the week. However, children's individual development profiles are not easily accessible to parents.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The children's spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is fostered. For example, the children learn about their own traditions and those of others, such as Christmas, Eid, Diwali and Chinese New Year. They access a suitable range of resources which reflect positive images of race, gender and disability; for example, small world figures, books, empathy dolls, posters and displays.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

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 children behave well and understand their boundaries and the expectations of the setting. The staff give clear and consistent guidance and encouragement; for example, they remind the children not to push their friends or run indoors.

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Organisation

The organisation is good. There are robust systems in place to ensure that the staff are suitable to care for the children; for example, background checks, references, induction process and further training. There is a clear management structure which provides good levels of support for staff at all levels through supervision, appraisals and staff meetings. The staff are committed to improving the quality of childcare and education and attend frequent training opportunities to ensure that they keep up-to-date with current childcare practice.

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Organisation

The environment is well organised and the staff work well as a team and they know their roles and responsibilities. They implement routines to give children a broad range of experiences. The children benefit from well-deployed staff who consistently interact with them and offer effective support and encouragement, which helps children feel secure and confident. All the required documentation, such as emergency contact and registration details, are in place, easily accessible and stored securely.

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Organisation

Additional services are well established with a good selection of groups involving parents, carers and other family members. For example, a sewing class, counselling, Asian women's support group, sing and sign, and a lending library.

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Organisation

The leadership and management of nursery education is satisfactory. The educational program is effectively monitored and evaluated with appropriate systems for identifying any strengths and weaknesses. All the staff are involved in the planning of activities and educational experiences for the children. They have a sound understanding of the Foundation Stage, which enables them to support children's understanding and development. 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

At the last inspection the nursery were asked to improve confidentiality of some records and to maintain a record of visitors. There is now a comprehensive system for all visitors to sign in and out and this is consistently monitored by the staff. All records containing individual details of children are completed confidentially. Additionally, the nursery were asked to encourage children's independence with regard to mealtimes and to ensure that there is an effective strategy to cover staff shortages. At children's mealtimes the children are able to make their own decisions about portion size and serve themselves at the table. All staff shortages are covered by supply staff. These improvements successfully contribute toward the children's safety, education and well-being.

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Improvements 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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Complaints since the last inspection

Since 1 April 2004 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 complaint 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 satisfactory.

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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 complaints procedure contains accurate contact details for Ofsted.

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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 sufficient resources in the role-play area and provide visual references and information books to support children's skills with regard to construction • ensure that children's development profiles are accessible to parents.

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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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