Leapfrog Day Nursery - Sudbury Hill

Leapfrog Day Nursery - Sudbury Hill Inspection report for early years provision

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EY307311 Unique Reference Number 26 September 2007 Inspection date Katie Dempster Inspector

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Leapfrog Day Nursery, Greenford Road, Greenford, Middlesex, UB6 0HU

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E-mail

Leapfrog Day Nurseries (Trading) Ltd Registered person Integrated Type of inspection Full day 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 good. The registered person meets the National Standards for under 8s day care and childminding.

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

The quality and standards of the nursery education are good.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

Leapfrog Day Nursery is one of 134 nurseries run by Leapfrog Nurseries (Trading) Ltd. It opened in 2004 and operates from a purpose built nursery in Greenford, in the London Borough of Ealing. A maximum of 100 children may attend the nursery at any one time. It is open each weekday from 07:30 to 18:30 for 52 weeks of the year. All children have access to secure enclosed outdoor play areas.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

There are currently 93 children aged four months to under five years on roll. Of these, 16 children receive funding for nursery education. Children come from the local and wider community. The nursery supports children with learning difficulties and/or disabilities.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

The nursery employs 19 staff, of whom 11, including the manager, hold appropriate early years qualifications. The setting employs an administrator and two cooks, both of whom hold food and hygiene 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 fully promoted within the nursery. They are cared for in a clean environment where staff maintain good hygiene procedures. There is a good daily cleaning routine carried out by cleaning staff and both gloves and aprons are worn when attending to children's personal needs. Children are encouraged to wash their hands after visiting the toilet and before eating their snack and lunch. A picture display in all the toilets show diagrams of how to wash hands thoroughly. Good written consent, accident and medication records are maintained. This ensures children receive appropriate care if there is an accident or if medication has to be administered.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children enjoy a well-balanced diet. The qualified cooks prepare a range of nutritious meals and snacks such as, fruit salad, flap jacks and roast chicken. Children's dietary requirements are displayed in the kitchen and on the serving trolleys for the cook and staff to refer to. Snack and meal times are sometimes rushed and can become noisy, meaning some children may become unsettled. Appropriate furniture is available for children and young babies to sit and eat comfortably. Children are able to help themselves to water throughout the day when they are thirsty.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children enjoy regular fresh air and exercise in the large garden. They have opportunities to run around, jump and climb. They develop a sense of spatial awareness as they ride and steer trikes and bicycles. Children have access to a construction room where they have balance beams and play with skittles. These activities promote children's physical development and large motor skills.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is good. Children are cared for in a safe, welcoming and child-friendly environment. Staff greet children enthusiastically as they arrive, and make time to chat with parents. The nursery is brightly coloured and children's work is displayed on the walls. Children's individual needs are met effectively as there is ample furniture for children to rest, eat and play comfortably. There is a good range of resources available to meet the needs of the children, they are clean and well maintained. Children explore safely and freely as they experience lots of good play opportunities.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Children are kept safe and secure on the premises. There is a buzz door entry system and CCTV throughout the nursery. Detailed risk assessments are carried out by staff on a daily basis, to reduce possible risks on the premises. A clear fire evacuation procedure is displayed at various points around the nursery and children experience regular fire drills. Staff are deployed effectively to maintain ratios and ensure children are supervised at all times.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Children's welfare is safeguarded as appropriate policies and procedures relating to safety are in place. The majority of staff hold first aid certificates, including the managers. All staff have received child protection training and are fully aware of their responsibilities in reporting concerns. Good monitoring and recording procedures are in place to record such concerns, including record forms & body maps. A good child protection and safeguarding children policy includes action to be taken in the event of an allegation being made against a member of staff.

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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 safeguarded in the nursery as they are cared for by staff who are appropriately vetted to care for them.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is good. All children are making good progress in their development. Babies and younger children are enthused by the activities, they are happy and interested to learn and explore. They experience different textures as they squeeze play dough, and experiment with corn flour and shaving foam. They develop their imagination in the home corner which has been set up as a kitchen. Using crayons, paint and chalk children start to be creative as they enjoy art activities. Puzzles, building blocks and shape sorters are available for children to learn about problem solving. Babies enjoy playing with the interactive toys, shakers and soft books. They have colourful rugs and soft bean bags to enjoy as they explore their environment. Children have good relationships with staff as they receive lots of cuddles and affection. Babies are learning to communicate as they laugh when rolling a ball to a member of staff. Staff constantly chat and

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

respond to babies to further help develop their communication skills. Those children who are capable are not always given opportunities to self serve or take their food independently.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Staff have a sound knowledge and understanding of the Birth to three matters framework and implement this effectively within the setting. They refer to the framework for effective practise and use their observations to plan activities for the younger children.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The quality of teaching and learning is good. Children benefit from staff's good knowledge and understanding of the Foundation Stage of learning and how children learn and progress. They plan a well-balanced curriculum which is clearly linked to the stepping stones, helping children to make good progress in all areas of their development. Staff observe and record children's progress in order to recognise the next steps for their individual learning. They effectively identify key strengths and weaknesses and provide suitable support and challenges to help children achieve. Staff use effective teaching methods to help the children make good progress, for example, open-ended questioning to encourage the children to think and help them develop a wider vocabulary.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children are stimulated and excited. They have high self esteem as they express their opinions, for example, when reading a book about teeth they confidently show each other how they brush their own teeth. They are able to sit and focus on an activity, for example, sitting down quietly colouring in number shapes. Children have good relationships with staff, often including them in their play. They enjoy being given roles, one child gives out the plates for snack time, this gives children a sense of self worth.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children enjoy spending time in the role play area that has been set up as a kitchen. They negotiate roles as they decide who will do the washing up. Children respond with excitement as they join in with familiar songs, such as Bob the Builder, they sing along as they help tidy away. There are many opportunities for children to practise mark making and early writing skills, they use crayons, pencils, and make patterns in the sand. They are able to recognise letters and words in the environment such as their name on their trays. Many children are able to write correctly formed letters, including their name.

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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 are developing their number and problem solving skills as they construct towers with Lego bricks and sort objects in colours and shapes. Children use mathematical language confidently, for example, when playing with the sand, they talk about how some buckets are bigger and heavier. They have good opportunities to recognise numbers in the environment as there are many displays, posters, and number lines. Children enjoy playing with the clocks, calculators and puzzles.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children are exploring and investigating their environment. They study life cycles of tadpoles and use magnifying glasses to examine bugs in the garden. An outside agency, 'ZooLab' come in and visit the children with a range of bugs and animals such as snakes and centipedes. They have opportunities to use the computer and talk about how thing work such as the keyboard and mouse control.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Creative activities such as collage, junk modelling, mosaics and glitter pictures allow children to be creative and explore textures, colours and shapes. Older children start to choose colours for a specific purpose, as they colour their pictures to make 'pretty patterns'. Children enjoy dance and movement as they listen to different paces of music. Musical instruments that the children have made are hung up outside as they experiment with the different sounds.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is good. Children's spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is fostered. Children are motivated and have high levels of confidence and self esteem. They have lots of fun as they learn about the world they live in, participating in festival celebrations, for example, they make wall displays and prepare for harvest festival. Children experience quiet times in the book corner with soft chairs and bean bags. They also have access to a sensory room with soft lighting, bubble tube and textured surfaces, this gives children time to relax and reflect.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

There is a good range of toys and resources to promote children's understanding of diversity, for example, dressing up clothes, dolls, books, posters and puzzles. They are kind and considerate towards offering praise for each others work.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

There are no children with learning difficulties and/or disabilities currently attending the setting. A suitable special needs policy is in place and there is a Special Educational Needs Coordinator who is responsible for integrating children with learning difficulties and/or disabilities into the setting. Children with English as an additional language are supported within the nursery. Staff take time to understand children as they often say words in other languages.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Partnership with parents and carers is good. Parents of children receiving funding are given good quality information about the Foundation Stage of learning. Parents evenings take place twice a year where they meet with staff to discuss their children's progress and future development. Reports about their children's progress towards the early learning goals are clear and can be easily understood by parents. Quarterly newsletters are sent out to all parents detailing nursery events, activities, menus and relevant information about the early years curriculum and the birth to three matters. This information can also be found on the notice boards that are placed outside every room. Parents of younger children are given daily individual report sheets that include information about activities and routines, for example, what their child has eaten, how long they slept for and any relevant information about nappy changes.

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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

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Organisation

The organisation is good. The nursery is very well organised because managers have a clear understanding of their roles and responsibilities and support the staff team very effectively, as a result the day runs smoothly for the children. The managers have good relationships with staff and they work well together as a team. Staff have specific roles such as Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator and behaviour management co-ordinator. Their training needs are identified at six monthly appraisal meetings where their role analysis is also revisited. They have good opportunities to attend ongoing training through the Local Authority.

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Organisation

The leadership and management of the nursery is good. Managers and staff have a sound understanding of the early years curriculum and how to implement this effectively within the setting. There are good systems in place for monitoring the quality of teaching as managers observe and work alongside the staff. Managers consistently assess the strengths and weaknesses of the pre-school and all staff are involved in planning the curriculum. Therefore, children are making good progress towards the early learning goals.

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Organisation

Thorough recruitment procedures are in place and the policies and procedures work well in keeping the children healthy and safe; they reviewed and updated to stay in line with current legislation. Staff are motivated and children are happy and content. The setting meets the needs of the range of children for whom it provides.

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Improvements since the last inspection

At the last inspection, three recommendations were made relating to the quality and standards of care. First, to ensure flooring in all areas are clean at all times to promote the health of children. A good thorough daily cleaning routine has been implemented. Cleaning staff refer to a cleaning task sheet to ensure all areas have been completed. A yearly deep clean of the nursery takes place where all carpets, windows and resources are thoroughly cleaned and the kitchen is cleared away and cleaned.

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Improvements since the last inspection

Secondly, to plan activities and play materials to provide a stimulating environment for children. Activities are taken from observations of what children have enjoyed and found stimulating. Plans are flexible to allow children to extend their play within certain activities. New resources have been purchased and children have access to a sensory room with stimulating lights and textured surfaces.

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Improvements since the last inspection

Finally, to ensure resources are available and used which reflect positive images of culture, ethnicity, gender and disability. Children have access to a range of books, small world people and multicultural dolls to play with. They also celebrate many festivals throughout the year, dressing up in themed clothes and making displays for harvest festival.

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Improvements since the last inspection

One recommendation was made relating to the quality and standards of nursery education. To increase staff's knowledge and understanding of the curriculum guidance for the Foundation Stage in all six areas of learning to improve the quality of teaching and children's learning. The two staff members co-ordinating the nursery education have attended relevant Foundation Stage training. Staff have a sound grasp of the six areas of learning and the quality of teaching and learning is good.

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

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Complaints since the last inspection

The provider is required to keep a record of complaints made by parents, which they can see on request. The complaints record may contain complaints other than those made to Ofsted.

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

On the basis of the evidence collected on this inspection:

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

The quality and standards of the care are good. The registered person meets the National Standards for under 8s day care and childminding.

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

The quality and standards of the nursery education are good.

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The quality and standards of the care

To improve the quality and standards of care further the registered person should take account of the following recommendation(s): • ensure all children have opportunities to be independent at snack and lunch times (this also applies to nursery education) • organise the snack and lunch time routine to allow children to eat in a relaxed and social environment.

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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): • make improvements as indicated in the care section above.

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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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