Caring Kindergartens

Caring Kindergartens Ltd (Daventry)

Inspection report for early years provision

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Caring Kindergartens Ltd (Daventry)

Unique Reference Number 219934 Inspection date 08 February 2006 Inspector Andrea Ewer

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Caring Kindergartens Ltd (Daventry)

Setting Address Arnex House, London Road, Daventry, Northamptonshire, NN11 4DS Telephone number 01327 311191

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E-mail

Registered person Caring Kindergartens Ltd. Type of inspection Integrated Type of care Full day 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 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 satisfactory.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

Caring Kindergarten Day Nursery is one of five nurseries. It opened in 1999 and operates from rooms in Arnex House, in Daventry. A maximum of 90 children may attend the nursery at any one time. The nursery opens each weekday from 08:00 to 18:00 all year round. All children share access to a secure outdoor play area. There are currently 59 children aged from 3 months to under 5 years on roll. Of these, 17 children receive funding for nursery education. Children come from a wide

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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 catchment area. The nursery supports 2 children who have special educational needs and 2 who are learning to speak English. The nursery employs 16 staff, including the manager, and all hold appropriate early years' qualifications. The nursery receives support from a local authority advisory teacher.

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is good. Children participate in a range of activities that contributes to their good health. Their individual needs for rest and active play are met well, and children regularly enjoy fresh air and exercise as part of daily routines. Children develop their physical skills as they confidently climb on the climbing frame, and negotiate space well as they ride tricycles and scooters with increasing control whilst outdoors. Children have fun moving around the obstacle course in various ways. They hop like bunnies, slither like snakes and jump like frogs during action songs and rhymes. Children under 18 months develop control of their bodies as they kick their legs, sit with appropriate support, crawl and learn to walk in a safe environment. All children start to understand the importance of personal care through simple hygiene practices. Older children wash their hands at appropriate times and younger children have their hands

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Helping children to be healthy

and faces cleaned by staff before and after meals. Staff implement clear health and hygiene procedures that keep children healthy. Clearly labelled cloths are used for their own purpose and nappy changing routines effectively prevent the spread of infection. Good quality records, policies and procedures that support children's good health are well maintained. Accident and medicine records are completed appropriately and there is a procedure for children who are unwell. All staff hold an up-to-date first aid qualification and relevant staff are trained to meet the specific needs of children who have a medical condition. Children enjoy nutritious meals and snacks that promote their healthy growth and development. Good attention is given to ensuring children who have special dietary needs receive suitable, alternative meals when necessary. Effective procedures are in place to ensure they do not have foods that may compromise their health or well-being.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is good. Children play safely in the well organised and secure premises. Attractive displays of children's artwork, posters and useful information for parents help the nursery feel welcoming. Careful monitoring of access to the premises ensure children are protected from unknown visitors to the nursery, and they are unable to leave unsupervised. Children are cared for by sufficient staff, who are deployed effectively and vigilant about their safety. Regular risk assessments ensure potential hazards are minimised, and effective measures are in place to prevent accidents. Younger

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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 are strapped securely into high chairs during meals and sleep in cots. The use of baby monitors and regular checks by staff ensure children sleep safely. Overall, children choose what to play with from the wide range of good quality resources and equipment, that meets their play and development needs well. The set up of the computer desk for children in the pre-school room does not effectively support them to develop their skills because the computer screen and mouse are too high, and the chair too low for children to use comfortably. Children are well protected from harm or neglect. Staff have a good understanding of local child protection policies and procedures to ensure the welfare, safety and protection of the children in their care.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is satisfactory. Children are happy, settled and enjoy their time in the nursery. They are cared for by consistent staff who know them well. Children become competent learners because staff provide an interesting range of activities, based on the 'Birth to three matters' framework, that meets their play and development needs well. Children under 2 years purposefully explore their environment. They cuddle the dolls, pull themselves up onto furniture as they learn to walk and listen with pleasure to sounds made by musical toys. Children develop their language as staff respond to their sounds and gestures by talking to them consistently. They listen to stories with interest and enjoy singing simple songs and rhymes. All children become independent as they make decisions about what to play with from the range set out, put their own coats on before going outside to play and learn to feed themselves using appropriate cutlery,

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

with support from staff where needed. Although children aged 2 to 3 years old benefit from a stimulating environment, opportunities for them to make choices and express their own ideas is limited by the very structured daily routine. Nursery Education The quality of teaching and children's learning is satisfactory. Children are making steady progress towards the early learning goals because,overall, staff plan and provide a suitable range of activities based on their secure knowledge of the Foundation Stage. Information from observation and assessment records are used effectively to plan for individual children, and plans show clearly what all children are expected to learn. This ensures they are sufficiently challenged to move on to the next stage in their learning. Occasionally, activities are too complicated for the intended age group which prevents children from achieving the learning intention,

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

and activities are not sufficiently evaluated to show how successful they were, or how they could be improved. Children share good relationships with staff and their peers. Generally they play well together and benefit from staff's skilled approach in helping them understand right from wrong. Children understand they can play in the home corner for 10 minutes at a time and must take turns using the mouse for the computer. Children participate enthusiastically in the activities provided. They have good opportunities to develop their own ideas as they select their own resources to develop their play and ideas. Children choose from the wide range of media whilst creating models, collages and pictures at the art table and make sense of the world

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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 during role play where they take on characters. They have fun as they use musical instruments to interpret the sound of rain and thunder. Children persevere at activities until they are complete and take pride in their achievements, for example, they carefully build a spaceship from construction toys and call staff over to show them. Children have good opportunities to develop their language and literacy skills. They speak with confidence as they compare their favourite television programmes during snack, clearly describe what they are doing, and develop their language for thinking as they respond appropriately to open ended questions posed by staff. Children who have special educational needs feel included in the life of the nursery because all children and staff are learning to use sign language. This also aids children who are

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

learning to speak English. Children have good opportunities to develop early writing skills and some children write their name competently. Overall, children are gaining a good understanding of maths. They count confidently to 10 and beyond, and use shapes to build models such as rockets and spaceships. Numbers are used attractively in displays and children use calculators, weighing scales, and look at books about numbers. Children do not, however, solve simple number problems as part of everyday practical activities. Children start to show interest in the world around them. They enjoy visits from the local fire officers where they explore the fire fighting equipment including the fire engine. Children take travelling Ted on holiday with them to different countries, and share photographs with their peers when they return. They show interest in the jobs people do as parents take the business bear to

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

their place of work, and write about the bears experience to share with children. Children observe change during simple cooking activities and care for the seeds they planted as they grow.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is satisfactory. Children gain a strong sense of belonging and feel secure in the nursery. They share warm, caring relationships with staff and older children start to form friendships with each other. Children develop a positive self-esteem as they each take turns being the special helper. Children behave well because they know what is expected of them and respond well to the regular praise and support that helps them to learn right from wrong. Staff take time to explain the benefits of sharing and playing together, and pre-school children look forward to receiving a reward, such as a sticker, for being kind or helpful, trying hard or behaving well. Overall children's individual needs are met because of the effective partnership staff have with parents. Information about children is obtained from parents during the settling in period, and shared daily thereafter in order to provide consistent care to children. At times the daily routine is

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Helping children make a positive contribution

not flexible enough, to ensure the needs of children under 3 years are met. Children start to appreciate diversity. They use the wide range of toys and play materials that positively represent themselves and people of other cultures, beliefs and abilities. Children enjoy learning about their own and other cultures during activities that reinforce their understanding of various cultural festivals such as Diwali, Chinese New Year and Christmas. Children who have special needs receive appropriate care and support because staff confidently implement the Special Educational Needs Code of Practice. They ensure children who have special educational needs are fully included in the life of the setting by using methods such as teaching all children sign

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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 language and making toys with positive images of disabled people easily accessible to them. Staff work closely with parents and other professionals involved in the child's care to enable them to reach their potential. Children's spiritual, moral, cultural and social development is fostered. The partnership with parents and carers of children who receive funding for nursery education is satisfactory. Parents receive good quality information about the Foundation Stage and activities their children are involved in. They are able to support their children's learning through the effective practices, such as bringing books home as part of an early reading scheme and completing simple tasks set by staff, at home, such as learning to recognise numbers or shapes. Staff regularly

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Helping children make a positive contribution

share information about children, however, not enough information is obtained from parents about what their children know and can do when they enter the Foundation Stage to ascertain children's starting points. Children's development records are shared with parents regularly during parents evenings, and parents have good opportunities to contribute to them.

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Organisation

The organisation is satisfactory. Children benefit from a robust recruitment and selection procedure that ensures they are cared for by suitable staff who have been carefully vetted. The effective use of staff, space and resources allows children to play and develop their ideas in a safe environment. Children are grouped appropriately and staff are deployed effectively which ensures that, overall, the care and activities meet their play and development needs well. Clear policies and procedures that work in practice are implemented consistently by motivated staff who work well as a team and are clear about their roles and responsibilities. Children's records are well maintained and shared with parents appropriately. Children are starting to benefit from activity plans and progress records based on the 'Birth to three matters' framework, to promote the outcomes for children under 3 years of age. The leadership and management of the nursery is satisfactory. The welfare, care and

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Organisation

learning of children is promoted well because the organisation has a strong commitment to staff training and development in order to enhance the quality of care and education. Although there are some systems in place to monitor the quality of teaching, such as annual appraisals and staff training and development profiles, the use of evaluation is not sufficiently developed to identify where the quality of teaching has been successful or areas for improvement. Overall, the provision meets the needs of all the children who attend.

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Improvements since the last inspection

The last care inspection recommended that the nursery further develop the resources which promote equality of opportunity and anti-discriminatory practice throughout the nursery, and further develop staff's knowledge and understanding of child protection issues. Children throughout the nursery are now developing their understanding of

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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 diversity as they use small world toys and participate in activities that help them learn about our similarities and differences. Children's safety and welfare are promoted well because staff have developed their knowledge and understanding of child protection issues and implement the procedures well. The last nursery education inspection recommended that staff develop their knowledge of the Foundation Stage, develop the opportunities for children to initiate activities and select resources for themselves, develop the system for obtaining information from parents about what their child can do when they enter the Foundation Stage and continue to develop the use of evaluation to monitor all aspects of the nursery. Children benefit from most staff's secure knowledge of the

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Improvements since the last inspection

Foundation Stage, and overall they enjoy a wide range of worthwhile activities that helps them make progress towards the early learning goals. This has also resulted in children being able to select their own resources and develop their ideas as they play. Some progress has been made in the use of evaluation, however, this is still being developed throughout the nursery to identify more clearly where the quality of teaching and children's learning has been successful, and areas that require improvement. Although more information is obtained from parents about what children know and can do when they enter the Foundation Stage, it does not relate enough to the stepping stones to enable staff to provide activities that build on their existing skills.

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Complaints since the last inspection

There have been no complaints to Ofsted 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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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 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 children are able to use the computer in line with health and safety guidelines

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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 • continue to ensure the individual care and learning needs of children under 3 years are met

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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): • develop children's understanding of maths by including simple calculation and problem solving into everyday practical activities. • continue to develop the information obtained from parents when their child enters the Foundation Stage • continue to develop the use of evaluation to monitor all aspects of the nursery, including activities.

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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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