Joseph's Nursery

Josephs Nursery Inspection report for early years provision

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321469 Unique Reference Number 06 November 2007 Inspection date Elizabeth Patricia Edmond Inspector

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The Pavillion, Rawcliffe Lane, York, North Yorkshire, YO30 6NP Setting Address

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E-mail

York Childcare 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 good. The registered person meets the National Standards for under 8s day care and childminding.

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

The quality and standards of the nursery education are satisfactory.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

Joseph's Day Nursery opened in 1990. It is one of three nurseries owned and run by the charity York Childcare. It is situated in the Rawcliffe area of York and operates from a detached two storey building which is set back from the road. Children aged under two are cared for on the first floor in an open plan playroom with separate milk kitchen, changing area and laundry. Sleep facilities are provided using cots in the playroom. The ground floor has been divided to create two rooms for the two year olds and the pre-school children respectively; each room has its own toilet facilities. There is an enclosed outdoor area at the rear of the premises with equipment for outdoor use and the nursery has use of the adjoining playing field. Children would not normally access the kitchen, office or staff facilities.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

The nursery serves the local community and surrounding areas. It cares for a maximum of 58 children aged from birth to eight years, 18 of whom may be under two years. The nursery is registered with the local authority to provide funded nursery education to those children of eligible age. Of the 80 children currently on roll 27 children are in receipt of such funding. The nursery opens from 08.00 to 18.00 Monday to Friday all year round with the exception of Bank Holidays. Children attend for a variety of sessions. The nursery welcomes and supports children

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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 who have learning difficulties or disabilities and those who speak English as an additional language.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

The management board employ 13 staff to work with the children, the majority of whom have appropriate qualifications and experience. Extra staff are employed for additional duties, such as cooking and cleaning. The manager has a supernumerary role; additional administrative support is provided at the head office. The nursery occasionally receives support from the local authority's development workers. It is a member of the National Day Nursery Association (NDNA) and the Pre-School Learning Alliance (PLA).

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is good. Children are cared for in a warm clean environment where they learn to manage their own personal hygiene needs independently. The babies wipe their own hands at the table before eating and the older children wash their hands, use the hand drier and wipe their own noses with the minimum of adult direction. The toddlers, proud of the smiley face stamp on their potty chart, also learn to manage their personal hygiene. Staff follow procedures for preventing cross infection diligently which further promotes the children's good health.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children enjoy the healthy meals and snacks provided by the nursery's cook. The babies relish the homemade lasagne and wave their hands excitedly as they see their lunch arrive; older children often ask for second helpings. Fresh fruit or vegetables are included on the menus each day; older children guess which fruits will be served for tea and are pleased when it is apple, pear and banana. A high level of independence is also encouraged and this is, on the whole, very successful. For example, babies learn to use a spoon very well and older children pour their own water very capably when they want a drink. Younger babies are held closely by an adult as they have their bottle; content and nourished they play happily, sleep well and wake refreshed.

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Helping children to be healthy

Because of the layout of the building access to the garden is not easy for all children. For example, there are not always enough staff to help to carry the babies downstairs at a time when they are awake and the pre-school children have to pass through the toddler room to get out. However, the staff provide opportunities for the babies to enjoy their developing mobility in their play room; there is good space available for them to crawl and toddle and they develop their muscles and skills as they bounce on the small trampoline. A programme to aid the pre-school children's physical development means that they enjoy developing their strength and balance indoors and they enjoy running in the 'big field' or playing on the larger equipment at the nearby park when they are taken out as a group. This timetabled access to the outdoors does not fully promote the children's health and development.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is good. Children can play freely in the indoor environment because staff and management have a professional approach to identifying and minimising risk. They use general risk assessment documents and daily check lists to ensure that the premises are safe and suitable for the children. Because the emergency evacuation procedures are practised regularly staff are very confident in how to get the children out of the building quickly. This is particularly important because of

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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 the babies being cared for on the first floor; the overall procedures and responsibilities of each staff member are very clear. Children learn to keep themselves safe because staff talk to the children in terms that they understand and help them to remember for themselves what they need to do. For example, when prompted, older children remember that they need to wear gloves when holding sparklers because they get very hot. Staff demonstrate a clear understanding of how children need to learn to keep themselves safe without their play and development being hindered; to this end they remind toddlers to hold on carefully as they climb up the slide and down the ladder. Consequently, toddlers also learn the necessary skills to keep themselves safe as they develop.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

There is broad range of equipment and good quality child sized furniture so that the children can play and eat together. The resources are in good safe condition and are generally freely accessible to the children or rotated as appropriate to provide a good level of variety. However, whilst the baby room is bright and cheerful, it is not very homely. For example, whilst babies enjoy the commercially produced toys, there are few household items in the baby room to add interest to their play. Similarly, there is no domestic furniture to assist the children's developing mobility and to continue their normal life experiences. Clear policies are in place to protect the children and safeguard their welfare. This includes a rolling programme of child protection training for all staff, and the support of the company's senior management. All local and national guidance are kept on file and displayed clearly for staff should advice be needed.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is good. Children are happy and settled in the nursery environment and they enjoy their time there. The babies are happy to explore their surroundings supported by the staff with whom they develop trusting relationships. For example, they raise their arms to staff to be lifted up and they smile broadly as staff bob them up and down on their laps. They crawl or toddle to explore the toys set out on the floor by the adults; more mobile babies laugh as they peep through the playhouse window. Children aged under three enjoy different types of messy and creative play presented appropriately for their level of development. The babies enjoy scooping up the sand and are fascinated as it trickles on to the floor. Toddlers develop their fine motor control and strength as they squeeze and shape the freshly made play dough. Some children are very confident in their role play; they roam the larger spaces freely wearing the dressing up clothes and bags.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The babies also engage in pretend play in their own way, having removed the doll from the cot they experiment with size and shape by trying to fit into it themselves.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Babies develop their language skills as they babble into the toy phones and watch the adults' faces carefully when they are speaking. Toddlers are also listened to as they practise their communication skills. This means that as well as practising these skills they know that they adults value what they are trying to say. All children develop an interest in books and they enjoy the stories and pictures. Babies often snuggle onto an adult's lap and point at the pictures as they try to repeat the words. Toddlers confidently help themselves to the low level book case and they learn to handle the books carefully. Older children listen intently at group story time and explain about the characters and what happened in the story. They laugh as they retell the part about the giant's trousers falling down. Children enjoy music. Babies move their arms excitedly as the staff sing 'Wind the Bobbin up.' More-able children join in enthusiastically

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

with the words and dance energetically to the action rhymes, sometimes following the instructions and sometimes making up their own dance to the music.

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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 Young children develop their natural curiosity as learners. Babies are motivated to explore their surroundings, sometimes simply spending time examining something they have found under a cot or they sit engrossed as they observe their faces in the moving mirror. Toddlers confidently help themselves to the range of opportunities offered in their area. This is because there is an effective balance of free play and group time as appropriate to their age.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The quality of teaching and learning is good. There have been some staff changes; but because of clear plans and effective team work staff worked well to support the children's learning. Staff have a good understanding of the Foundation Stage for children's learning and they plan and provide activities which help the children to make good progress. Plans also show how the whole curriculum is covered effectively by focusing on particular areas of learning each term. A key strength at the setting is in staff's consistent use of informal conversational questioning throughout the day to challenge the children to think about what they are doing and to offer them additional vocabulary as they play. For example, staff join in with the children's role play and encourage them to check if they have enough cups for everyone, and how many more they will need; similarly, they ask them what is special about two particular words when they rhyme.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Staff are beginning use observation to establish what the children can do and what they are interested in and it is used to inform activity plans. However, this information about the children is not yet being harnessed to maximise individual learning.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children play well together and generally they become confident motivated learners. Their good behaviour is an asset to their learning because they sit well at group time and they listen attentively at story time. However, there is an over emphasis on the use of adult led activities to facilitate learning and this inhibits children’s confidence at times. Children learn to count well. Staff encourage them to check how many spoons they will need for their lunch and to use simple mathematical language to talk about size and shape as they play with the construction. There is a wealth of number in the indoor environment and children learn to recognise familiar numbers.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The new role of the staff with responsibility for communication, language and literacy is beginning to have a positive impact on the children's development. Children speak and listen well, and they develop their vocabulary to a good level and begin to hear rhymes in words. More importantly, when children want to talk about the fireworks that they saw, staff take the time to listen and join in the conversation. This means that they know that what they say will be valued, thus encouraging their language skills. Children understand about print carrying meaning; they find their name card to register that they are here and they use letters to write their names and their families’ names as part of adult led activities.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children enjoy learning different paint and craft techniques as part of adult led activities for their art work and sometimes have opportunities for free painting. For example, they learn how to use printing and collage as adults focus their attentions on such matters as Diwali or to prepare puppets to act out the story about the 'Three Bears'. There are merits in this because children learn about the topics coving all areas of learning in a fun and interesting way. However, the over use of adult-led craft activities to facilitate learning in other areas means that children have few opportunities to express themselves freely in their art work. The pre-school room is decorated with pictures which all look the same because the adults have chosen the subject matter, the material and have often cut out the shapes first. This does not value what the children have to offer. Children enjoy role play and this is also used well to aid the children's

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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 learn about the world around them. Because adults provide gardening activities, children know how flowers and tomatoes grow and they learn that the fish have to be fed each day. Children begin to understand time. They name the days of the week confidently because they help to complete the calendar each day and staff engage them in conversation about the past. Children's assessment folders show that they use information technology to support their learning in other areas; however the computer was broken at the time of the visit.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is good. Children are welcomed warmly into the nursery and staff get to know the children and their families very well. This means that children feel valued and respected as individuals and have their needs met. For example, staff are especially caring because they know when babies are teething and they work with parents to sensitively include all children in the range of activities. Children have good opportunities to learn about the wider world and their local environment through a range of activities. For example, they learn about festivals, such as Diwali and they play happily with the range of resources showing positive images of diversity within the community. Children are relaxed and confident in the care of the adults and they behave very well. Proud of the warm praise and encouragement they receive for pulling themselves up, helping to tidy the room or for sharing the bricks they are encouraged and motivated to repeat

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Helping children make a positive contribution

the action, thus aiding their behaviour and their development. Children's spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is fostered.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Partnership with parents is satisfactory and relationships are positive. Children are beginning to develop effective three way relationships with the staff and their parents. The close liaison, mainly in relation to the children's care promotes a coordinated approach. However, the key worker system is not yet fully developed to strengthen this relationship further. There is information for parents in written and verbal form. For example, newsletters, activity plans and time tables as well as main policies, such as how to make a complaint, are all easily accessible to parents. However, it is not clear which policy statements are the most up to date and some are less accessible; also the registration certificate, whilst displayed, is not in a very prominent position. Parents have access to their children's development folders and sometimes add their own comments. Parents of pre-school children are provided with the 'poem of the month' so

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Helping children make a positive contribution

that they can help their children to learn the words. A professional approach to working with parents means that their views can be sought and any concerns addressed at the regular parents forum meetings. These are sometimes well attended. Parents are pleased with their children's level of learning, particularly in relation to their social skills.

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Organisation

The organisation is satisfactory. The quality of leadership and management is satisfactory. A well established supervision and appraisal system highlights any quality or training issues and some staff talk with enthusiasm about recent and forthcoming training which will improve outcomes for the children. For example, since recent training, the staff member with responsibility for the outdoor environment has started detailed plans showing the intended development of the outdoor classroom. However, because staff training files are not kept on site, it is difficult to establish whether basic requirements for first aid or minimum qualification levels were being met. Measures put into place during recent staff changes have provided the children with a good sense of continuity and robust recruitment procedures means that staff's suitability to be working with children is

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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 clear. For example, staff have quickly been appointed to take on additional roles on such matters as child protection, or communication, language and literacy and relevant training has been arranged. Similarly, pre-school staff are now becoming more confident with the nursery's planning systems. The group welcomes the inspection process as part of their overall development and the local authority has also visited occasionally with advice.

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Organisation

Children are secure in the well-organised regular routines. Babies settle quickly for their nap and they enjoy sitting at the table with their friends ready for lunch. Toddlers also assemble themselves quickly for snack and prepare themselves when it is their turn to play outside as a group.

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Organisation

Pre-school children are similarly confident in their routines which are on the whole meaningful and sometimes necessary. For example, they help to lay the table, count how many spoons they will need for their desert and can put on their own boots to play outside. They also help to complete the daily calendar and find their name card for self registration. This develops their skills and their independence to a good degree. Children follow these routines patiently and listen to story attentively. However, some routines take up too much of the children's time. For example, because snack is taken as a group and activities have to be rearranged for this, children spend time waiting until the tables are prepared, for the snack to be served and then for the activities to be set out again. The outdoor learning environment is still being established and currently outdoor play is also arranged as a group activity. Children have to wait until the

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Organisation

room is cleared, and then again until everyone has their boots and coats on before they can all go out. Therefore, some of these routines impact on the children’s opportunities to extend and develop meaningful play and independent learning.

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Organisation

A professional approach to maintaining records about the children's care ensures that all records, such as those of accidents, medication and attendance are kept up to date and signed by parents where appropriate. Staff update babies’ daily care records vigilantly through the day so that effective feedback can be given to parents when children are collected. Overall, the provision meets the needs of the range of the children for whom it provides.

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Improvements since the last inspection

At the last inspection two recommendations were raised in relation to the care of the children. The group was asked to ensure that the arrival and departure times of the children were recorded consistently and to attend to the maintenance of the outdoor area. Records of children's attendance are now clearly recorded and kept up to date at all times. At the last inspection the outdoor area contained play equipment which was in the process of being discarded. This was removed immediately after the inspection.

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Improvements since the last inspection

At the last inspection of the funded nursery education several key issues for improvement were raised in relation to the children's learning. Staff were asked to actively encourage the children to make choices and independently access the resources that are available in the areas of learning, to plan and provide opportunities for the children to regularly access and use the nursery computer, to use mark making to support their play in other areas and use a wider range of techniques and resources to join materials. They were also asked to improve the presentation of the role play area so children are motivated to use this area to develop their imaginative and creative skills. These specific areas of the children's development were addressed

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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 to a degree at the time. Since the last inspection the partitioning of the room and the new arrangement of the resources has provided the type of environment where children can access all areas freely, confidently and independently for their play and learning, thus addressing all the issues raised. However, the overly adult-led routines and activities currently provided inhibit the children's independence and their true creativity.

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Improvements since the last inspection

A further key issue was raised to develop a system to enable the parents to contribute their observations to their child's records of progress. Parents now occasionally use a post-it note system to add to the children's folders and there is a parents' comments box for them to comment on the observations made by staff.

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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. 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 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): • improve the environment for the babies by introducing more household items to enhance the children's play and by providing some domestic style furniture • ensure that up to date policy statements as well as the registration certificate are more easily accessible to parents • record staff's training in such a way that suitability can be evidenced • establish routines to improve all children's access to the garden and ensure that all areas of learning can be freely accessed there by all children. (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): • review and revise routines for outdoor play and for snack to meet children's independent learning needs and preferred learning styles • make improvements to the outdoor area as indicated in the care section above.

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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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