Boomerangs - The Newhall Day Nursery

Boomerangs, The Newhall Day Nursey Inspection report for early years provision

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EY330596 Unique Reference Number 21 March 2007 Inspection date Sally Ann Smith Inspector

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Birch Avenue, Newhall, Swadlincote, Derbyshire, DE11 0NQ Setting Address

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E-mail

Boomerangs, The Newhall Day Nursery Registered person Integrated Type of inspection Full day care, Out of School care Type of 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

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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 satisfactory. 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 inadequate - notice of action to improve.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

Boomerangs, The Newhall Day Nursery is privately owned. It opened in 2006 and operates from a converted chapel in Swadlincote. A maximum of 55 children may attend the nursery at any one time. The nursery is open each week day from 07.00 to 18.30 all year round. All children share access to a secure enclosed outdoor play area.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

There are currently 56 children from birth to under eight years on roll. Of these, two children receive funding for early education.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

The nursery employs 10 members of staff. Of these, eight hold appropriate early years qualifications.

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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

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is good. Children's health and well-being is well promoted in the setting. Children wash their hands as necessary for example after using the toilet or before eating. They each have their own flannel and children meticulously use these to clean their hands and faces after eating. Children use paper towels which are disposed of in the bin provided therefore minimising the risk of spreading germs. Staff talk to the children about healthy practices. They are reminded not to pick food up from the floor if it is dropped as it is now dirty and has germs on. Staff adhere to good health and hygiene practices such as wearing disposable aprons and gloves when changing nappies and wear aprons when serving the children's food. Different coloured cloths are used for different tasks such as wiping tables or cleaning up spillages. Procedures are in place should a child become unwell and written consent has been obtained from parents for staff to seek

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Helping children to be healthy

emergency medical advice or treatment. Nearly all staff are first aid trained. Effective procedures are in place for administering medication with written consent obtained for both continuous medication and 'one off' courses. Parents are informed of the settings policy regarding sick children and the exclusion times so that the risk of the infection spreading to both children and staff is minimised. These practices help to ensure children's good health and well-being. However, staff are not familiar with notifiable and communicable diseases and the relevant procedures, potentially compromising children's health.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children are well nourished because they are provided with good quality snacks and meals, all of which are healthy, nutritious and freshly prepared. Children eat a range of fruit and vegetables and heartily tuck in to their food. A choice of water, milk or juice is provided to accompany meals and snacks and children are able to independently access drinking water throughout the session. Menus are varied to suit all tastes and a vegetarian option is always available. All dietary requirements are discussed with children's parents and alternatives provided where necessary. Older children are encouraged to serve themselves to food and encouraged by staff to try unfamiliar foods. This helps to develop their awareness of a range of different foods. Meal-times are generally social occasions where children sit together although staff do not consistently follow the routine and at times older children wander away from the table.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children take part in physical activity and play outside on a daily basis. They run, jump, skip and play with hoops, bats and balls. Older children love the parachute and squeal with delight as they run underneath. They enjoy digging in the soil and plant bulbs. Younger children regularly go for walks in the prams to observe their environment and visit the local park ensuring they have regular fresh air. Inside they have lots of space to crawl, toddle and practise walking. They have a range of equipment to climb over and crawl through. This helps to develop children's physical development.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is good. Children are cared for in an environment that is safe and secure. The entrance is visually pleasing with an attractive wall display outlining the 'Australian' theme of the nursery and a detailed notice board of information for parents perusal. Children's rooms are bright, cheerful and decorated with their art work. There are a good range of resources to support children's play and learning and these are regularly checked to ensure that they are safe for children to use.

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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 Comfortable seating is available for staff to sit and hold babies in a relaxed manner whilst giving bottle feeds.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Access to the nursery is closely monitored and all visitors are required to show identification before being permitted entry. Risk assessments involving all staff are thorough and regularly undertaken to ensure children are safe at all times. For example, staff assess safety aspects prior to any outside visits being undertaken by the children. Any safety issues in the nursery are responded to quickly and promptly so that risks to children are minimised. There are well written policies in place covering most aspects of health and safety across the setting and staff put these into practice to effectively support the safety of the children.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Children learn to keep themselves safe and staff talk to the children about 'safe hands and feet' as part of the nursery rules. In addition, children are gently reminded by staff that they should not run around whilst inside. When asked children know that this is because they might fall over and hurt themselves. Older children complete topics on road safety to help them develop awareness as they walk to and from school. This helps children to take responsibility for their own safety.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Children are safeguarded and protected from harm because staff have a good understanding of the signs and symptoms of abuse and their duty to protect children in their care. They are fully aware of their responsibilities to record and report any concerns to the relevant child protection agencies. The child protection procedure is prominently displayed for parents and discussed with their child's key worker. As yet, there is no written procedure should an allegation of abuse be made against a member of staff and therefore they are not conversant with this aspect in order to fully safeguard children.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is satisfactory. Children under three years have their care and learning needs adequately met, although there are key weaknesses in the nursery education delivered to a small number of children. Children approach staff confidently for help or support as necessary. Children regularly receive cuddles, praise and reassurance to develop their confidence. Staff create a calm, informal and relaxed environment where children avail themselves of a good range of resources. There are a mixture of adult led and child initiated activities and most resources are accessible to the children so that they have choices regarding their play. Staff help children to play together cooperatively and make good use of the 'Birth to three matters' framework to support young children's learning. They use spontaneous observations to assess where children are at with regards to the aspects and components. These observations are used well to inform planning so that staff

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

can build on children's interests and plan the next steps for their learning.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The quality of teaching and learning for children receiving nursery education is inadequate. Children's progress is hindered as there are very few activities incorporated into the routine to take account of the six areas of learning. Staff are familiar with the Curriculum guidance for the Foundation Stage but as yet have not devised effective long, medium and short term plans to meet children's intellectual and educational needs. Activities do not have a clear focus with regards to the stepping stones that children take in order to meet the early learning goals. Learning intentions are not clearly defined for children and therefore staff are unable to organise resources or execute activities effectively. This means opportunities are not planned and

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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 presented to take account of what children know and need to learn next. As a result, children are unable to consolidate all areas of their learning as lack of planning does not ensure that each area of learning is given equal emphasis. However, one adult focused activity is planned each week and this does take account of children's stage of development and adapted accordingly. Staff do respond to children's interests. For example, children observe an AA van outside the nursery and become excited. Staff and children watch together and discuss what they can see. Some children relate this to their own experiences. For example, children say 'when my daddy's car breaks down the AA come'.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children are generally absorbed in their play and move around the room participating in the activities available. They enjoy playing with the small world such as trains, cars and the dolls house. Children like to play with the drills and spanners as they tighten screws and nuts on the workbench. Children have some opportunities to write and are shown how to handle pencils correctly. However, children's understanding of time, past and present events and information and communication technology is limited. Their understanding of the wider world is also restricted as staff do not make full use of the environment or promote planned discussion on a regular basis. Children participate in physical activities although there is no planning for children to develop large muscle movement. There is a limited range of stimuli for children to generate movement, move to music or explore positional language and space. In general, a lack

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

of planning across all six areas of learning means children are insufficiently challenged to make progress to their full potential. Children use their imagination in play, for example, when painting or dressing up but lack of planning curtails further opportunities.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is satisfactory. Children generally have most of their needs met as staff liaise with their parents on a day to day basis. Children are assigned a key member of staff to work closely with parents to ensure that children are happy and settled whilst at the nursery. Staff complete development profiles for the children and parents are welcome to access these although there is no formal system in place to share this information. Staff make themselves available to talk to parents and alleviate any concerns they may have. A complaints procedure is drawn to parents attention so that they know what to do should they be unhappy with any aspect of the nursery provision. Daily record sheets act as a communication tool between the nursery and home to share information about children's care, learning and play.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Children make choices and select from the resources available. Children choose when they want active or rest periods. For example, older children lie down on cushions and sleep whenever they choose. Younger children point to their bed and grab their favourite cuddly toy making their feelings known to staff that they want a sleep.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Children are starting to develop some understanding of other cultures and diversity although this is currently limited. Some planned activities are incorporated into the daily routine such as Chinese New Year. However, resources depicting different cultures such as dolls, books, puzzles and dressing-up clothes are few and far between. There are few posters or pictures on display to reflect non-stereotypical roles, racial, cultural and religious diversity and disability. Therefore, children do not regularly learn to appreciate and values each other's customs, similarities and differences. Children's spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is not fostered.

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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 Staff create a calm environment where raised voices are discouraged. Most children behave well in the setting and with support share toys with others. Staff explain why children feel sad when toys are snatched from them and this develops their awareness of feelings. Staff distract children by finding alternative resources or activities to diffuse situations. As a result children are beginning to play harmoniously with others. Children are never humiliated in any way and when mistakes happen children are given soothing words and a reassuring hug. The management of children's behaviour is supported by a written policy which the staff are familiar with. However, this does not include reference to bullying and therefore children are not fully aware of what is expected of them.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The partnership with parents whose children receive nursery education are inadequate. Although there is long term planning, there are no written medium or short term plans to identify the stepping stones that children are required to learn in order to achieve the early learning goals. Therefore, parents are not well informed about the Foundation Stage. Staff are revising planning and the implementation of detailed development profiles but systems are not as yet in place to share these with parents. Whilst informal discussions take place with parents to discuss their child's attitude to learning these are not effectively used to support children's learning and ensure that children are sufficiently challenged. Parents are not provided with ideas for activities to do at home to involve them meaningfully in their child's learning.

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Organisation

The organisation is satisfactory. Children are settled in their environment and are cared for by staff who are approachable and friendly. Staff are attentive to children's needs and generally support children well in their daily routines and play. All staff are appropriately vetted and correct adult to child ratios are adhered to at all times. A member of staff is employed as a 'floater' covering where needed. An induction procedure is in place to familiarise staff with the operational plan. However, not all the necessary policies and procedures are in place to promote the welfare, care and learning of the children. Resources and activities are suitably organised and planned for younger children and the 'Birth to three matters' framework is utilised well. However, routines and activities for children receiving nursery education are ineffective and as a result do not help children make progress towards the early learning goals described in the Curriculum Guidance for the foundation stage.

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Organisation

Leadership and management is inadequate. Whilst the manager has experience of the Foundation Stage she has not overseen the curriculum and its implementation. However, this is currently being revised but as yet there are no medium and short term plans to develop children's knowledge and understanding across all six areas of curriculum. Learning intentions have not been identified for children and systems to observe and assess their progress have yet to be effectively implemented. The person-in-charge is aware that the setting requires support with curriculum planning in order to create a positive learning environment for all children and welcomes advice from the local authority. She has devised strategies to monitor staff, but has not yet identified systems to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of the nursery education or evaluate practice. There are few opportunities for staff to collectively discuss the setting's

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Organisation

aims and objectives and clarify their roles and responsibilities in planning, delivering and evaluating children's care, learning and play.

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Organisation

There is a commitment to professional development for all staff and the person-in-charge is keen to improve all areas of practice. The provision does not meet the needs of the range of children for whom it provides.

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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

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Complaints since the last inspection

Since registration 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 copy 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 satisfactory. 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 inadequate - notice of action to improve.

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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): • improve further the procedure for the exclusion of children who are ill or infectious by extending knowledge of notifiable and communicable diseases • ensure awareness of the relevant Local Safeguarding Children Board guidance and procedures on child protection where allegations are made against a member of staff • improve further the written statement on behaviour management , including bullying • increase further the range of planned activities, resources, pictures and posters to develop children's understanding of cultural diversity and disability. (Also applies to nursery education)

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The quality and standards of the nursery education

To improve the quality and standards of nursery education, the registered person must take the following actions: • ensure that plans are in place to support children's learning which set out the stepping stones to show the knowledge, skills, understanding and attitudes of the children • make effective use of assessments to plan for the next steps in children's learning and share these with parents • ensure that staff are clear of learning intentions so that activities are executed effectively and adapted accordingly to provide sufficient challenge. These actions are set out in a notice of action to improve and must be completed by the date specified in the notice. The Department for Education and Skills and the local authority have been informed.

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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 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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