Tiddlywinks Nursery

Tiddlywinks Nursery

Inspection report for early years provision

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Tiddlywinks Nursery

Unique Reference Number EY274887 Inspection date 08 July 2005 Inspector Susan Smith

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Tiddlywinks Nursery

Setting Address Tithe Farm, Laxfield Road, Fressingfield, Eye, Suffolk, IP21 5PY Telephone number 01379 586111 E-mail tiddlywinks.nursery@tiscali.co.uk Registered person Havers Development Ltd Type of inspection Integrated Type of care Full day care

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Tiddlywinks Nursery

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 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?

Tiddlywinks Nursery is privately owned. It opened in 2003 and operates from a converted barn building. It is situated in Fressingfield which is a rural area close to Harleston. A maximum of 54 children may attend the nursery at any one time. The nursery is open each weekday from 08.00 to 18.00 for 51 weeks of the year. All children share access to a secure enclosed outdoor play area. There are currently 78 children aged from birth to under 5 years on roll. Of these 29

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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 children receive funding for nursery education. Children come from the local area and surrounding villages. The nursery currently supports a number of children with special educational needs. The nursery employs ten full and part time staff who work with the children and have appropriate early years qualifications, including the manager. They receive support from a support teacher.

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is good. Children's health is promoted by good hygiene procedures, for example, staff consistently wear gloves when changing nappies. In addition, staff follow the correct procedure for giving medication and recording accidents and obtain parental consent to seek emergency medical advice or treatment. Young children are learning about the importance of simple health and hygiene practises through the routines of the session and are very competent at hand washing. Children rest and sleep according to their needs, for example, a baby started to fall asleep in the high chair so staff gently moved her into a cot to sleep. Children increase their understanding of the importance of a healthy diet through a choice of healthy meals and snacks which are well presented and cooked daily on the premises. Children's individual needs are cater for in a sensitive way. For example, the nursery has gluten free sausages made so all the children can enjoy

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Helping children to be healthy

them. Children enjoy a good range of physical activities indoors and outdoors that contribute to a healthy lifestyle all year around. They develop an awareness of space and others around them as they run, kick and throw balls and play on ride on toys. They have good opportunities to develop small physical skills, through a range of resources, tools and equipment, which they do safely and with developing control. Children learn about their bodies and health awareness through planned activities and daily routines.

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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 very clean and safe environment. They move around safely because of the organised and well maintained toys and equipment. They can independently access some resources from boxes and trays within easy reach. Children’s risk of accidental injury is minimised in the well-designed setting which has good safety and security precautions. For example, an intercom system is in place and a password is used for new parents collecting a child. Children are learning how to keep themselves safe, for example, staff remind them not to run inside because

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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 they may trip and hurt themselves. Children are kept safe in the nursery and on outings because staff understand and comply with health and safety requirements, for example, children are signed in and out of the premises with an estimated time of returning on outings and staff take a mobile phone. Children are protected because staff understand their role in child protection and are able to put appropriate procedures into practice when necessary.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is satisfactory. Children under the age of two enjoy a range of appropriate activities. The owner of the nursery has attended training on the Birth to three matters framework and intends to cascade his knowledge throughout the nursery and to use this framework to plan activities for the younger children. Young children acquire new knowledge and skills as they build the stacking toys up and knock them down again. They laugh when they fall down and are keen to stack them up again, beginning to balance them but not yet realising that they need to go in order of size. Most children arrive happy and confident, staff are kind and patient and give good one-to-one support in activities such as messy play or when comforting a distressed child.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Older children have opportunities to experience a range of interesting activities. However, staff do not provide an appropriate and stimulating range of activities for children aged 2-3 years, for example, they do not have access to sand and water play. Nursery education teaching and learning is satisfactory, with children making satisfactory progress towards the early learning goals. Staff are very caring, know the children's individual needs and value each child's contribution. They show an interest in what the children do and respond appropriately to their requests, sometimes they use questioning skilfully. However, staff do not always offer appropriate challenges to children by extending their learning within activities. Staff provide some interesting activities and varied opportunities for children to try new experiences, but some of these are not appropriate for the abilities of the children. An assessment system for children's

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

learning is in place, but it is not comprehensive or robust enough to enable staff to identify their next step of learning or to enable staff to plan effectively for children. Therefore the older and more able children are not sufficiently challenged. Children are happy, confident and enjoy their time at nursery and they are able to initiate their own play and persevere at tasks, for example, initiating role play with a boat, building the train track, and selling tickets to many countries that they could point to on the map. They use language to negotiate with peers and adults and to convey their needs. They understand that print carries meaning. Children join in and listen to stories for example, going to Africa in a boat, and fishing. They have the opportunity to mark-make in planned actives and in labelling their own work. They link sounds to letters through planned and spontaneous activities. Children count

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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 confidently and use numbers correctly during play. They are beginning to recognise numerals and use mathematical language in context. Staff introduce basic mathematical learning such as size and shape throughout practical activities such as construction and modelling. There are missed opportunities for estimating and combining groups of objects during daily routines and activities. Children build and construct using a range of objects and tools. Good opportunities are provided to use information technology, which underpins learning in other areas. Children develop a sense of self and enjoy talking about past and present events in their own lives and those around them. They learn about the environment, the natural world and the wider world through an interesting range of activities, for example,

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

feeding the chickens on the farm. Children are given opportunities to explore colour when painting at the easel, however art and craft activities are mostly adult-led which impinges on children’s creativity. Through a range of planned activities they can develop their imagination and creativity. Their work is valued and well-displayed. Children enjoy role-play and develop good imaginary games, for example, imaginary fishing on a row boat and booking holidays in the travel agents. Children are motivated to learn and to try new experiences. They concentrate and persevere, with adult support where appropriate, for example, whilst making boats a child designed and coloured her boat to make it individual. She was clearly very proud of it and this achievement was re-enforced by staff with the comment of "well done, excellent colouring".

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is good. Children are highly valued as individuals and are developing a sense of pride in their work. They develop a positive attitude to others and learn about the wider world and community through planned topics, and celebrating festivals such as Chinese new year and harvest festival. Children are confident in their relationships with practitioners. They begin to play happily together and with adults, enjoying using resources such as puzzles, games, small world toys and outdoor equipment which are suitable to their age and development. Children feel a sense of belonging, babies get to know their peers, for example, one gave another a kiss as they sat close. Older children cooperate together as they make a train track and negotiate how to make it join to the rest of the track. Children's individual needs are met, for example, they are able to have comforters such as dummies and blankets and are able to carry them around when they need to.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Children with special needs benefit from the effective systems in place to ensure that their individual needs are met. Children are generally well behaved and polite in response to the expectations of practitioners. They take turns and show concern for each other. Children understand responsible behaviour, because staff use effective strategies to manage behaviour, for example, distracting children into meaningful play when they are disrupting other children's play. However, the range of activities

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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 available and staff deployment do not always keep the children engaged in purposeful play. Partnership with parents and carers is good. Children benefit from two way sharing of information between parents and practitioners to enhance their learning and to provide consistency of care, for example, daily chats, daily sheets for children under the age of 2 years, large notice board with photographs of the staff and information on the Foundation Stage. Children's spiritual, moral, social and emotional development is fostered.

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Organisation

The organisation is satisfactory. Systems are in place to ensure staff working with children are safe to do so. Policies and procedures are in place and work in practice to keep children healthy and safeguard their welfare. The owners and staff are aware of their roles and responsibilities and work well together. The staff team work together with enthusiasm to create a caring environment for children in all areas of the nursery. The quality of leadership and management of the nursery education is satisfactory. The owners and the staff team are committed to improvement. To meet the needs of the increasing number of 2-year-old children they have identified that they will have to be provided with their own space and activities. However, this has not yet been fully implemented, which means that these children do not consistently benefit from the good practice within the setting. Staff are eager to attend further training to improve

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Organisation

their understanding and practice in early years education and to enable them to help all children achieve well. Generally documentation is satisfactory, policies and procedures are in place that comply with current legislation and promote children's well being. Overall, the children's needs are met.

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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

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND 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 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): • provide an appropriate and stimulating range of activities for children aged 2-3 years.

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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): • ensure planning identifies learning opportunities in the everyday/routine curriculum and is linked to the stepping stones • adapt activities to meet the needs of the more able children and to provide them with sufficient challenges and opportunities to problem-solve.

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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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