Safe Haven Day Nursery

Safe Haven Day Nursery Inspection report for early years provision

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253270 Unique Reference Number 17 January 2008 Inspection date Janice Walker Inspector

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61a High Street, Mansfield Woodhouse, Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, NG19 8BB

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E-mail

Sarah Jane Jenkinson Registered person Integrated Type of inspection Full day care, Sessional 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?

Safe Haven Day Nursery is a privately-run provision. It opened in 2000 and operates from a converted barn in the centre of Mansfield Woodhouse. The nursery comprises a large playroom on the ground floor along with bathroom facilities. On the first floor there is a large dining room and kitchen facilities along with a large room which is used for group times and physical play. There is a secure garden area for outdoor play.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

The nursery is open each weekday from 07.30 to 18.00. It is open all year round, closing only for Bank Holidays and for two weeks over the Christmas period. A maximum of 22 children may attend the nursery at any one time. There are currently 32 children on roll. Of these, 10 children receive funding for early education. Children attending come from the local and surrounding areas. There are currently no children on roll who have learning difficulties and/or disabilities, the setting supports children who speak English as an additional language.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

The nursery employs eight members of staff to work with the children, all of whom hold appropriate early years qualifications. The setting receives support from the early years support team from the local authority.

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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 are cared for in an environment which is warm and comfortable. They are very well protected from the risk of the spread of infection due to the high standards of cleanliness maintained and good health and hygiene practices, such as food preparation and serving arrangements and hand washing routines. Policies relating to sick children, including incubation periods for infectious illnesses and the care of the nursery chipmunks, help to support this. There are sound systems in place to deal with accidents or emergencies, with sufficient staff holding first aid qualifications and very well-equipped first aid boxes, conveniently sited to be within easy reach at all times, including outdoors. Effective systems are in place to meet identified health needs of individual children, with risk assessments in place and clear procedures to follow.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children are well nourished. They have regular meals which the on-site cook prepares using mainly fresh ingredients. Menus aim to minimise processed foods and include a wide selection of seasonal fruits and vegetables. Staff have a clear awareness of children’s individual dietary needs as information is collated from parents onto a useful 'at-a-glance' list which is on hand in the kitchen and the dining area.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children benefit from set times for physical activity and during good weather they spend lengthy periods outdoors where a wide variety of activities are planned which cover all areas of development. However, they rarely play outdoors during poorer weather or when the grass in the garden is wet and muddy, limiting their access to fresh air during these periods. Children do still take part in physical activities as they use the spacious first floor room although sometimes, the organisation of these times is not effectively planned to be of maximum benefit to all children. In the main though, sessions are well organised and children practise their throwing, catching and balancing skills, increasing in confidence through the good levels of support from staff. Children enjoy many opportunities to develop their fine motor skills and skilfully use tools and small joining materials during craft and construction activities. They

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Helping children to be healthy

begin to learn the importance of a healthy diet and taking care of their bodies through activities and displays linked to healthy living along with the provision of healthy menus.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is good. Children are looked after in safe and welcoming environment. The building is secure with systems in place to ensure that only known adults can collect children. Staff work hard to create an environment which is bright, attractive, warm, welcoming and inviting to children and their families. Children use good quality toys and play equipment and staff implement comprehensive checking procedures to ensure that they remain in good condition and safe for them to use. Staff present toys so that children can access them safely and independently.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

There are some good systems in place which help to support children’s safety within the setting. Risk assessments are in place and possible hazards have been identified and minimised. Staff provide good levels of supervision, deploying themselves effectively to ensure that they supervise children in all areas and there are clear procedures in place to ensure children move around the building safely, particularly when moving up and down stairs. Appropriate procedures are in place so that staff can respond effectively in the event of an emergency or unplanned situation.

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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 kept safe when outside of the building due to clear procedures which are understood and effectively implemented by staff.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Children’s welfare is effectively promoted because staff have a sound awareness and understanding of their responsibilities regarding child protection. They are fully familiar with the setting’s clear policies and procedures and the roles of identified staff. The designated person has undertaken relevant training which underpins her knowledge and relevant contact numbers are readily to hand if needed. Good procedures and practices ensure that children are protected from adults who have not been vetted.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is good. Children enjoy their time at the provision, they arrive happy and settle quickly to play because staff provide high levels of attention and provide an interesting range of activities which capture their interests. Children benefit from being cared for by consistent staff who have developed warm relationships with them, enabling them to feel secure and to confidently explore their environment. Children move around freely and independently, playing co-operatively together at times, and independently if they wish. Younger children are making sound progress and benefit from taking part in a stimulating range of activities as staff are skilled in adapting activities to meet the needs of these children and incorporating the ‘Birth to three matters’ framework into planning and assessment systems.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The quality of teaching and learning is good. Staff have a good knowledge of the Early Learning Goals. They plan an interesting and stimulating range of activities which sustain children’s interest. Children’s development is tracked and recorded and staff effectively use this information to inform their planning which is based around the individual needs of children. Key workers are fully aware of their role in supporting each of their children, adapting activities to ensure they provide adequate support or challenge to help children make progress in the six areas of learning.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Staff create a caring, nurturing environment and children are settled and happy. They build strong relationships with staff who display an avid interest in them, listening intently to what they have to contribute, effusively praising their efforts and sharing snippets of personal information, such as their favourite colour, likes and dislikes. This inspires children's confidence and they actively seek staff's attention and are keen to please. Good relationships between children are evident as they play co-operatively together, particularly in the role play area and older children openly announce they are ‘looking out’ for younger children during large group times. During free play times they develop their independence well, freely moving around the room making their own choices, either from the activities planned by staff or they select their own, thus fostering their enjoyment and interest. Their behaviour is generally good. They are

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

developing skills of sharing, turn-taking and respecting each other through the consistent and appropriate expectations and support from staff. Children confidently use language to express themselves and have many opportunities to speak and listen in large and small groups and individually with staff. They frequently visit the book area where the wide selection of good quality books helps to foster their enjoyment of reading. Children are beginning to recognise their written names and learn to link sounds to letter shapes through planned activities. They use a wide range of materials to make marks and practise writing for different purposes, they

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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 benefit from being able to access these freely and independently in other areas outside of the writing area, for example, in the role play area.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children confidently use numbers during practical activities and daily routines. They are beginning to learn about simple addition and subtraction through number rhymes and planned activities support their knowledge of basic shapes. They learn about patterns through activities, such as printing and bead threading and explore the concepts of size and capacity during sand and water play. Children’s knowledge and understanding of the working and natural world is developing well through an interesting range of planned activities and visitors to the setting including nurses and police officers. They enjoy exploring their environment, for example, they look closely at objects through magnifying glasses, make footprints in the snow, watch tadpoles turn into frogs and plant seeds and watch them grow. Children operate computer programmes with skill. Their active participation in planned activities supports their understanding of the

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

world around them along with their awareness of the wider world. They take part in a traditional wedding celebration, enjoying dressing up and eating wedding cake; dance to music from different countries and taste ethnic foods linked to topics, such as ‘around the world'. Children have good opportunities to freely express themselves using a variety of mediums. They explore a range of construction and craft materials and older children design and construct complex models with purpose. They explore malleable materials, adding different substances to explore the changing texture. They have learnt a wide variety of songs and join in singing times with enthusiasm. Children discover the sounds of different instruments during planned large group music sessions and continue to enjoy music as they dance and move to different types. Children play collaboratively and imaginatively, particularly in the role-play areas where the good range

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

of equipment encourages them to explore and extend their imagination.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is good. Children are happy and settled in the nursery as, through effective and ongoing communication with parents, staff have a good understanding of their individual needs. Their sense of belonging is encouraged as they see their art work and photographs attractively displayed along with their identified coat pegs and space for personal belongings. They are beginning to develop an awareness of the wider world through the curriculum and the range of vivid posters and resources which reflect positive images of race, gender and disability. There are effective systems in place to support children with learning difficulties and/or disabilities and those who speak English as an additional language. Staff demonstrate appropriate behaviour management strategies, promoting children’s self-esteem though praise and rewards. Through organised small group activities, children are beginning to learn to share and take turns. Children are

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Helping children make a positive contribution

generally well behaved and staff’s sensitive handling of unwanted behaviour supports their understanding of right and wrong. Staff’s commitment to meeting the individual needs of children and creating an inclusive environment means that children’s spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is fostered.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Children settle well due to sensitive settling-in procedures and because staff work well with parents to share information about children’s individual needs. Staff make themselves available to exchange information relating to activities on a daily basis. Policies and information about organisational issues and activities are shared prominently on notice boards and through regular newsletters which helps promote consistency of care for children. Parents speak positively about the setting, commending the written information they receive and state they are confident to speak to the approachable staff about any aspect of their child's care and education.

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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 The partnership with parents and carers of children in receipt of funding for nursery education is good. Parents receive useful information about the Foundation Stage along with detailed information in newsletters at the beginning of every topic explaining forthcoming activities and so they develop an awareness of the curriculum and how children’s learning is supported in the setting. Parents are involved in their child’s learning as children take activities home to share with them and they are invited to bring in artefacts from home linked to topics. Key workers share information verbally on an ongoing basis about children’s progress and development and provide a written regular report which includes identified next steps so parents are clear about their child’s achievements and what they are working towards. However, systems

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Helping children make a positive contribution

are not yet in place for them to share what they know about their child on admission so that staff can establish clear starting points for learning nor for them to formally contribute to their child’s developmental assessments to form a more global picture of their child’s progress.

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Organisation

The organisation is good. Children are cared for by staff who are well qualified and sound recruitment procedures ensure that they are suitable to work with children. They are clear of their roles and responsibilities due to comprehensive induction and appraisal processes and very regular meetings. Children benefit from being cared for by a staff team who are consistent and who attend regular training to build on their existing skills and knowledge. All legally required documentation which contributes to children's health, safety and well-being is in place and regularly reviewed to ensure it reflects current practice.

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Organisation

The effective organisation of the setting enhances children’s care and learning. Staff work well together, they support each other to aid the smooth running of the day and deploy themselves effectively to ensure that children are well supervised and supported during activities. They make effective use of indoor space, creating a stimulating environment where children freely and safely move around and make their own choices regarding their play. The spacious first-floor room is used in bad weather to enable children to have opportunities for physical activities throughout the year although limited use of the garden during these times restricts opportunities for children to access fresh air. The organisation of some large and small group times, such as lunch time, story time, physical play time etc, is not always best planned or delivered to be of maximum benefit to all children. Consequently, at times, some children are not always

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Organisation

purposefully engaged and opportunities for learning are more limited.

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Organisation

Leadership and management of early education is good. Staff work well together as a team to plan and deliver a broad and balanced curriculum. They deploy themselves well to provide high levels of support and supervision and ensure children achieve well. They evidence a strong commitment to developing their skills and knowledge through their attendance at regular training. Effective systems are in place to monitor the provision, such as regular staff meetings and a staff appraisal system. Good links with other relevant professionals helps to monitor the effectiveness of the education provision and staff’s willingness to take on board advice offered helps to continually improve this. Good planning and assessment systems are in place ensuring all aspects of the curriculum are sufficiently covered. Overall children’s needs are met.

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Improvements since the last inspection

At the last care inspection, the provider agreed to one recommendation which was to improve the detail in the child protection policy relating to a possible allegation being made against a member of staff. The child protection policy has since been reviewed in conjunction with relevant

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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 external agencies. It now contains detailed information in line with the Local Safeguarding Children Board procedures and includes procedures to follow in the event of an allegation being made against a member of staff. This helps to safeguard children’s welfare.

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Improvements since the last inspection

At the last nursery education inspection, there were no recommendations raised but the setting agreed to give consideration to improving the involvement of parents in the assessment of children’s progress. This is an area that the setting is continuing to develop and is carried forward from this inspection.

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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): • continue to develop opportunities for children to access outdoor activities and fresh air during poorer weather • review the organisation of large and small group times so that they are of maximum benefit to all children and all children are purposefully engaged (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): • gather appropriate information from parents to identify starting points for children’s learning to enable staff to build on children’s previous learning and skills and improve systems to include parents contributions to their child’s assessments.

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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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