Larkfields Junior School

Cannons Day Nursery Inspection report for early years provision

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122575 Unique Reference Number 11 October 2007 Inspection date Amanda Jane Tyson Inspector

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Simpson Way, Long Ditton, Surbiton, Surrey, KT6 4ER Setting Address

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E-mail

Cannons Health & Fitness Ltd 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 satisfactory.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

Cannons Day Nursery was registered in 1998. The playscheme provision was added to the registration in 2007. There are currently 70 children on roll in the Day Nursery, of whom 13 receive funding for nursery education. The Nursery is open five days a week. The numbers of children attending the playscheme vary on a day to day basis, but do not exceed 26 at any one time.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

Children aged under five years are grouped into one of five group rooms; Sweetpees (non mobile babies); Pumpkins, (mobile babies); Sunflowers (young toddlers); Daffodils (older toddlers); and Busybees (preschool).There are currently 13 permanent staff on roll, of whom six are qualified to level three including the manager and deputy. Four staff are currently in the middle of NVQ Level 2 training and three remain unqualified. The manager of the playscheme is qualified to level three in early years and a number of other staff hold NVQ Level 2 qualifications or are in the middle of teacher training.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

The nursery is located on the ground and first level of Cannons Health and Fitness club. The baby room is located on the ground floor and has separate play, sleeping and nappy changing

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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 facilities. The remaining four group rooms are located on the first floor. Toilet and nappy changing facilities are adjacent to the group rooms. There is a secure outdoor play area, and an indoor swimming pool which the nursery have the use of twice per week. The Playscheme operates from a sports hall, but they use other areas of the health centre as well. Opening hours for both the nursery and the playscheme are from 08:00 to 18:00 Monday to Friday, but the playscheme operates during the school holidays only.

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is satisfactory. Children enjoy daily outdoor play opportunities and weekly swimming lessons, which run twice weekly to enable all children to benefit. Slightly apprehensive children are sensitively helped to overcome their fears, and confident children are well challenged. They choose to either jump, slide, or walk into the water and have fun dipping their noses beneath the water during fun games. They use their arms to wade and learn how to float using supportive equipment. Children pedal bikes and use scooters with skill during outdoor play and have tremendous fun practising football dribbling skills with the weekly visiting sports teacher. This high emphasis on physical activity for young children is laying the foundations for them to adopt a healthy lifestyle. Pre-school children are thus making good progress towards the early learning goal for physical development. Furthermore, children enjoy a wholesome and nutritious daily diet of fresh fish,

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Helping children to be healthy

meat, carbohydrates, fruit and vegetables. They have constant access to drinking water which ensures they keep hydrated. Good attention is given to adapting the menus for babies and toddlers during the weaning stage and for children with specific dietary requirements. There are good arrangements for the storage of babies bottles, and feeding times are determined with parents on a daily basis, and in line with their wishes. Children who attend the playscheme benefit from a choice of cooked meals every day, or they bring their own.

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Helping children to be healthy

Overall, staff ensure good hygiene practice, for example, during nappy changing, when preparing and serving food, and by cleaning and sterilizing baby equipment. Rigorous attention is given to ensuring that children wash their hands after using the toilet, playing outdoors and before eating. Tissues are readily available for runny noses and appropriately disposed of. This along with the nursery's police on the attendance of children who are unwell, helps to minimise the risk of cross infection. However, the 2006 environmental health inspection recommended a 'deep clean' to the kitchen and this had not been organised by management prior to inspection. Furthermore, there is no ban on outdoor shoes in the base rooms for young children. This raises a significant risk of infection because babies use their mouths to explore toys from the floor.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children's good health is well supported because there is always at least one member of staff on duty with a current first aid certificate who can treat minor injuries and respond to certain emergency situations. All children that need a sleep can do so comfortably and undisturbed because there are integral sleep rooms and sufficient cots and sleep mattresses. There are good systems in place to document accidents, administered medication and all parental wishes relating to children's health, emotional and routine care needs. The nursery's committed approach to getting to know all about children's personalities and home routines prior to the commencement of a placement, and enabling children a gradual settling in experience helps to ease the distress of parental separation, especially if it is for the first time. If babies are usually comforted to sleep by parents, then staff mimic this. If they dislike being placed on their tummies for long

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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 satisfactory. Children are cared for in a secure, warm and well maintained environment. Play resources and equipment are maintained in good working order, but overall there is not enough for the number of children attending. Soft furnishings are minimal, for example, there is no feeding chair in the baby room which means staff have to bottle feed on the floor. There are limited soft cushions or chairs in the book corners, and role play areas are sparsely resourced.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Sleeping babies are physically checked every 10 minutes, the sleep room is integral to the play room and benefits from having a viewing panel. There are clear procedures for placing babies in 'safe' sleeping positions and responding to emergency situations, but there is no baby monitor. This compromises the otherwise excellent procedures for minimising risks to young babies.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The number, cause and location of all accidents are closely monitored with the use of a map of the premises and colour coded sticker system which is constantly observed by management. Accidents are relatively few and mostly where to be expected; in the garden and sustained by toddlers as they develop mobility and coordination. The setting have robust procedures in place to cover every eventuality, for example, a rucksack now filled with emergency supplies, such as water, nappies and emergency contact details so that in the event of an emergency evacuation children's needs can be fully met. Portable electrical appliances are regularly tested and children are prevented from accessing hazards by the installation of numerous safety gadgets.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Premises security is good; CCTV and an electronic entry system mean that all persons can be identified, where necessary asked to show identification, and asked to sign the visitors book. There is a robust 'missing child' procedure in place which addresses incidents both on and off the premises and T-shirts with the organisation's name and telephone number detailed prominently have recently been ordered for older children to wear on outings. Playscheme children learn to keep themselves safe as they transfer to different areas within the health club by walking in single file down the stairwells. They know to ask for a staff escort when they need to go to the toilet, and understand the number restrictions on the bouncy castle because of the risk of injury when there are too many children.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Children's welfare is safeguarded because staff are familiar with the setting's child protection policy and understand their role, such as to record all existing injuries, no matter how minor. However, once recorded the entries are not monitored as closely as accidents are. This raises the possibility of developmental or child protection concerns being missed.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is satisfactory. Children are cared for in a calm environment by caring and gentle staff. Children are confident and happy in their base rooms, but very young children do become unsettled if, as a result of staff shortages, they are cared for in less familiar surroundings. Babies benefit greatly from the strong focus on partnership with parents which enables their care to be totally consistent with their home experiences. Activity planning is based on their individual developmental needs, for example, encouraging the 'leaning forward stage' which usually precedes crawling. Babies benefit from the individual time that staff spend communicating with them through animated gestures and what is best described as 'silly talk'. They gurgle, smile and are stimulated by the range of colourful and interactive toys around them, but less attention is given to enabling

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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 heuristic play. Mobile babies and toddlers have plenty of opportunity to play and communicate together and they benefit from good opportunities to find out about the world using their senses, for example getting messy with wood shavings, sand, water, paint, cornflour and shaving foam. However, heuristic play is weak here too and the use of complicated themes such as 'night and day' is unhelpful for children who are still at the stage of making more simple connections through play. Creative activities overall focus far too heavily on producing an end product for attractive wall displays. Home play, which is such an important part of play and learning for young children, is poorly resourced and lacking in inspiration. Singing is a regular feature for all children; they find their voices and participate with confidence. Children enjoy

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

trips into the community such as to the river or park and benefit from daily use of the garden. Children are happy, interested in play and demonstrate a secure and affectionate relationship with the staff. Children's development is well monitored through record keeping which show good links to the outcomes of the 'Birth to three matters' framework, but the framework is not so well used to guide planning.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

School aged children who attend the playscheme enjoy a wide range of exciting activities with a significant emphasis on sports and creative arts. The success of the scheme, which opened this summer, is well demonstrated by the accelerating numbers of attendance throughout the holiday as word has spread. The developing good practice is well achieved through staff's commitment towards monitoring and evaluating the daily outcomes for children, listening to the children's views and then being flexible enough to make changes. For example, planned creative activities were abolished in favour of 'junk modelling competitions', visits to the park became a very regular feature and table tennis, snooker and karaoke equipment has been ordered.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The quality of teaching and learning is satisfactory. Staff have a reasonable understanding of the Foundation Stage and the expectations for children's learning. This is best demonstrated by the way in which play and learning areas have been defined to enable constant access to the early learning goals, and how children's progress and development is monitored through the use of instantaneous observations, which are used to inform assessments. However, these records are not being used to identify next steps for learning and activity planning lacks inspiration and direction in relation to the thematic approach used. Children's topical learning is mostly restricted to a daily adult-led creative activity, a story and a brief focus during circle time. Role play lacks inspiration and opportunities to weave the theme into exciting play are missed.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children are keen to communicate and use developing articulate language to share their news at circle time. They listen attentively to stories and are willing contributors. Many older three year-olds write their names clearly with well-formed letters, recognise the written names of all their friends and are beginning to link letters to sounds to work out simple words. Most younger three year-olds recognise their own names and are attempting to write some of the letters in their name. The graphics area inspires frequent visits. However, children rarely take writing resources to other areas themselves and opportunities to encourage the use of purposeful print and writing, for example, within role play or outdoors, are not exploited enough. Children count confidently and when asked by staff to collect specific quantities of objects, they do so accurately. The nursery is well equipped with resources to encourage mathematical exploration

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

and number awareness; there are weighing scales, calculators, telephones and cash tills, but again, opportunities for children to do this within imaginative and outdoor play are often missed.

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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 benefit from having access to some really good and useful resources, such as the giant magnifiers and microscopes which they use to examine objects that arouse their interest. They enjoy occasional trips out to the river, parks and local shops. A recent visit from a variety of small animals and a chameleon has clearly left a lasting impression because children remember with excitement how they held them and found out about their habitats. Activities such as these broaden the children's awareness of the natural and living world, and wider community, but they are not all daily features. The outdoor play area has yet to be developed to enable children to access the natural environment. Whilst the children participate in activities that are linked to specific religious and cultural festivities throughout the year such as Divali, Christmas

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

and Chinese New Year, opportunities to consolidate and enhance children's learning of diversity are not consistently provided or considered on a day to day basis.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children create and design pictures on the computer and have opportunities to use audio equipment, but access to these is determined by planning. They build and construct with a range of equipment and make interesting models with clay. The development of musical skills is steadily progressing through daily singing and occasional use of instruments, although these are not freely available. Some children benefit from extra musical tuition from a visiting teacher, but this is not part of the curriculum. Children enjoy exploring different foods and raw materials such as sawdust, sand and water which are often made more interesting by food colouring and glitter. Children use their imagination to express themselves in imaginative play, but the potential for them to do this extensively is thwarted by an uninspiring role play area which has limited real or diverse resources to influence play.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is satisfactory. All children are welcomed into the nursery and playscheme, including those with disabilities. The premises is accessible to wheelchairs and staff enthusiastically support children and adapt activities to enable their full inclusion. Two staff within the nursery have completed training in the 'Code of Practice' for Special Educational Needs, but staff working with younger children have not. Nonetheless, experienced and Level 3 qualified staff are based in each room and children's growth and development is well monitored which indicates that concerns are more likely to be identified. Staff pay excellent attention to the information provided by parents detailing children's individual health, routine and emotional needs and this is particularly beneficial for babies and less confident children. However, play resources that depict positive images of ethnicity, gender, and disability, or that represent cultural diversity are minimal. This

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Helping children make a positive contribution

means that not all children have opportunities to act out their real experiences because role play resources are mostly restricted to those more typically English, such as a teapot. Nonetheless, staff do spend a lot of time talking and listening to what the children have to say. This is well demonstrated in a number of ways by staff seeking the views of playscheme children and changing the provision to meet their requirements; by staff encouraging children to listen to each others news in pre-school circle time; by staff who respond to the way that babies communicate their needs. Children behave well because staff are gentle and kind in their interactions and intervene sensitively at appropriate times. Garden play equipment is in good supply, and this reduces the more typical squabbles, such as 'over a bike'. They share and take turns and pre-school children are particularly good at helping to tidy away. School aged

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Helping children make a positive contribution

children attending the playscheme follow the well displayed 'golden rules' which reminds them to be kind, that bullying will not be tolerated, and about remembering to use acceptable language. Children's spiritual, moral, social and some cultural development is 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 Parents are kept very well informed about the day to day operations and of the nursery's regulatory responsibilities within the setting. They are provided with copies of all policies and procedures, receive monthly newsletters, and are reminded of important issues via poster notices. The menu is displayed and the daily diary for each child aged under three details their care routines each day, for example, sleep times, nappy changes, bottle feeds, activities and general demeanour which is highly beneficial for ensuring continuity of care for children when they go home. Staff are friendly and approachable and exchange information with parents on a day to day basis. This is especially thorough on children's first day of their week when staff and parents identify a care plan and developmental targets for children's week.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The partnership with parents and carers of children in receipt of funding for nursery education is satisfactory. They receive a written report of children's progress towards the early learning goals twice per year and are invited to attend a formal meeting with their child's key worker to discuss this, but not all parents attend. They are clear about what children can do, but are not provided with information about what children need to be helped with next. Although the Foundation Stage is explained within the prospectus, most parents read this when children are admitted as babies and have forgotten it by the time children move up. Curriculum planning is displayed, but is too basic to provide parents with any useful information to support children's learning within the home. Occasionally parents are asked to help by contributing resources, or their knowledge and skills to support topics. Staff ensure a friendly exchange of information

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Helping children make a positive contribution

with parents and carers at the end of each day.

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Organisation

The organisation is satisfactory. Rigorous recruitment procedures ensure that children are cared for by appropriately qualified and suitably vetted staff. Regular team meetings and the fact that staff all know each other well means that they work harmoniously together. However, training opportunities have been minimal. As a result, staff working with children aged under three have only a very basic understanding of the 'Birth to three matters' framework which is highlighted by the weaknesses in activity planning. Unexpected staff absences impact on the outcomes for children too, mainly when it necessitates one room closing which is unsettling and confusing for very young children's developing sense of belonging. Nevertheless, management use regular agencies who wherever possible send familiar staff. There are five group rooms, and for some children this means five room changes before starting school. Where there are groups of children ready to move up

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Organisation

together, arrangements are made for key staff to move up with them. When this is not possible, children's key workers always help to settle the children.

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Organisation

Leadership and management of the nursery education is satisfactory. The manager and deputy show a commitment towards continual improvement and development. This is best demonstrated by the recent improvements to the layout of the pre-school room, the progress and assessment systems, and action plan for the development of the outdoor play area to a curriculum rich learning environment. However, the procedures for monitoring and evaluating the quality of nursery education are not at this stage rigorous enough because key weaknesses are missed. Nevertheless, management are committed to working with the early years partnership to address the issues.

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Organisation

All records and documentation required to support and promote the welfare, care and development of the children are maintained and where appropriate shared with parents. The setting have devised a comprehensive set of policies and procedures which underpin the operational plan generally very well. Children are happy and secure and the whole team

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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 demonstrate a united vision for continual improvement. The setting meets the needs of the range of children for whom it provides.

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Improvements since the last inspection

The last inspection for care raised 12 recommendations for improvement. Many of these related to safety such as making the windows safe or inaccessible, or record keeping including ensuring that parental consents for various situations and activities are obtained. One recommendation was raised in relation to the labelling of babies milk bottles and one as follows; provide a suitable range of toys and activities, in order to meet the developmental needs of babies and children up to the age of five years.

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Improvements since the last inspection

With the exception of the latter, the setting have met all the recommendations. The setting still requires more play and learning resources, and furniture.

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Improvements since the last inspection

The last inspection of nursery education raised four key issues for improvement which were; improve staff knowledge and understanding of the stepping stones towards the early learning goals; improve the manager's knowledge and understanding of the stepping stones towards the early learning goals to enable effective monitoring and evaluation of teaching, planning and assessment; make better use of the information gained from regular assessment and record keeping to plan activities that will help children to move forward in their learning; develop planning to ensure that activities are adjusted to provide appropriate challenge for older or more able children.

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Improvements since the last inspection

At this stage, most of the above have not been met. However, improvement is steadily progressing; children have access to resources and the early learning goals through clearly defined play areas and open access shelving. Evidence of children's progress towards the early learning goals is documented and used to inform assessments. Adaptations are made to activities to provide extended challenges for more able children, and this is evident by the variations in children's literacy skills.

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Complaints since the last inspection

Since 1 April 2007 Ofsted received two complaints that required the provider to take action in order to meet the National Standards. The complaints related to National Standard 1 (Suitable Person), National Standard 2 (Organisation) and National Standard 6 (Safety).

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Complaints since the last inspection

The first complaint raised concerns about adult to child ratios at the setting. Ofsted made an unannounced visit to the setting and as a result of the visit three actions were set under National Standard 2, one action was set under National Standard 6, one action was set under National Standard 7 (Health) and an action was set under National Standard 14 (Documentation).

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Complaints since the last inspection

The second complaint raised concerns about supervision and suitability of staff in sole charge of children attending the playscheme. Ofsted wrote to the provider and asked them to investigate the concerns and report back on their findings. As a result of the information provided, two actions were set relating to National Standard 1 and National Standard 6.

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Complaints since the last inspection

The provider responded to Ofsted to confirm that suitable measures had been taken to meet the actions set following both complaints. No further action was taken and the provider continues to be qualified for registration.

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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 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): • conduct a full review of all play resources, equipment and furnishings and make sure that they are appropriate for the needs of the children in each room, sufficient in quantity and inspiring enough to encourage play and learning (also applies to nursery education) • take steps to minimise the risk of cross infection to babies and toddlers from playroom floors, and meet the recommendations of the Environmental Health Officer • create daily opportunities for children to access diverse cultural influences (also applies to nursery education) • implement clear procedures for developing and supporting staff's knowledge and skills: pay particular attention to the 'Birth to three matters' framework; the Foundation Stage curriculum; and Child Protection (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 further the registered person should take account of the following recommendation(s): • improve partnership with parents: develop parents understanding of the Foundation Stage curriculum and implement a system that includes them in building an individual learning programme for their child • improve the use of the thematic approach to planning across the curriculum and increase the variety of learning opportunities within all activities, particularly role play • further develop the assessment systems; identify what children need help with next and use this information to guide planning.

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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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