Springhill Primary Academy

African Caribbean Day Nursery Inspection report for early years provision

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140402 Unique Reference Number 18 October 2007 Inspection date Asia Islam Inspector

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30 Hornsey Park Road, Hornsey, London, N8 0JP Setting Address

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E-mail

African/Caribbean Day Nursery 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 satisfactory. The registered person meets the National Standards for under 8s day care and childminding.

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

The quality and standards of the nursery education are satisfactory.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

The African Caribbean Day Nursery opened in 1992. It is a charitable organisation and run by a management committee. The setting has three play rooms, a kitchen, office, staff room, laundry and utility room within a converted house in the Wood Green area of the London borough of Haringey. Children have access to the three play rooms, toilet and the enclosed outdoor play area. The group opens Monday to Friday all year round from 08.00 to 18.00.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

The nursery is registered to care for a maximum of 24 children under five years. There are currently 21 children on roll. This includes the eight children in receipt of the nursery education funding.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

There are five full time staff working directly with the children and they all hold early years qualifications. Additional staff are employed for domestic and administrative support.

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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 satisfactory. Children are learning about the importance of hygiene through the daily routines. For example, hand washing before meal times. There is soap and individual flannels in the wash room for children’s use. Babies nappies are regularly changed to ensure their physical comfort. These contribute towards reducing the spread of any infections. The nursery has a cleaning regime in place but this is not very effective as some of the children’s resources are not so clean, particularly in the babies room, and can hamper their good health.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children’s emergency health needs are well catered for by the staff team as the required procedures are in place for the administration of any medication, accidents and illness. Most of the staff hold a valid first aid certificate and the written permission to seek any emergency medical advice and treatment for children is obtained.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children are offered healthy meals at the nursery. They have a choice of fruits at snack time. At lunch, pasta, spaghetti and broccoli are served. These are freshly cooked on the premises. For dessert, children have a choice of yoghurts and fruits. Drinking water is available throughout the day. Children’s self help skills are not encouraged so well during meal times as food and drinks are mainly served by the staff. Children’s individual dietary needs are effectively supported. For example, the staff team are aware of the needs of children with eating issues and they serve them both the nursery food as well as the lunch brought from home to promote their eating.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children’s daily fresh air and exercise needs are promoted. They have access to outdoor play during the morning and afternoon. They show great delight and enjoyment when playing outdoors in the tent, with the sand and water. They have bikes, climbing frame and steps to support their large physical development. Older children show good control of their movements when playing outside. Babies and toddlers are encouraged to play freely in the rooms which helps to promote their physical needs too.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is satisfactory. Children play freely and confidently in a setting, where strong emphasis has been given to promoting their safety and security. There is an entry buzzer to the premise and all people entering the nursery are monitored. Risk assessments are regularly carried out and reviewed for continued safety. Fire extinguishers, electrical and gas appliances are checked annually by professionals. Fire evacuation plans are in place and regular fire drills are practised with the children to support their understanding. The environment is decorated with children’s art work to make it bright and welcoming, although the decoration of the premises is old and not so fresh. Children's toys and equipment are safe, although there is some equipment that is old and not so attractive to children. Their welfare is promoted because the staff team demonstrated that they have a secure understanding about the procedures to follow in the event of any child

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

protection issues. The setting has a designated child protection worker who leads this area of work and they are aware of their responsibilities to report any concerns to the appropriate authorities. There is an appropriate policy and procedure in place for the management of any allegations of abuse made against staff members.

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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

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is satisfactory. Babies are calm, settled and happy. They enjoy the opportunity to explore on the floor. For example, they crawl, turn on their backs and sit up. Staff offer them close interaction and affection. Smiles, laughs, bilingual songs and positive gestures are shared with them to support their early communication. The Birth to three matters is used to plan their activities. Older children are confident, and mostly settled and content in their play. They have a choice of resources to play with, although these are not so well arranged to offer them effective challenge. Staff talk with the children about the activities and offer them positive guidance but not all children’s interests are captured and channelled into purposeful play. Most of the resources are within their easy reach to help them self select but these do not appeal and interest children for long. As a result, they become less attentive at times and do not sustain play for long. This

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

is a contrast to when they are playing outdoors, where they show more independence, readily initiate and play together with their peers. Children are very helpful and readily help staff to tidy up before meal times and outdoor play.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The quality of teaching and learning is satisfactory.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Staff demonstrated that they have an appropriate understanding about the Foundation Stage and use it to plan children’s activities. The planning covers all areas of learning but children’s next steps are not always identified, which means not all children’s learning is channelled very well in practice.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children are active and full of energy. They mostly engage well with the staff and their peers. Staff encourage them to say 'please' and 'thank you' to support their social development. As a result, they are beginning to learn to play well together, share and take turns. They are provided with a range of resources to support their learning. For example, there is a home area, collage making activity, constructional play, flash cards, puzzles, play dough, drawing around stencils, books and outdoor play. These offer children some choice but do not always offer them much interest and challenge. For example, the home area is set out with pretend food and other basic play props but children do not initiate any imaginative role play in this area until a staff member encourages them to do so. Some of the children respond positively to the adult led activity and play with the dolls and pretend to have a party. Staff engage some of

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

the children to listen to a group story, recognise the letters of the alphabet as part of a game, make sounds of the letters and guess the name of the objects. Children are encouraged to talk about colours and shapes during activities. Mark making opportunities are available through drawing and painting activities but these are not arranged interestingly to support children’s understanding of writing in everyday use. Numbers and mathematical skills are not focused on with the children in practical ways, although the numbers and letters are displayed to support their recognition and sometimes children are involved in counting up to five. Two computers are available within the setting but these are not in operation. Knowledge and understanding about the wider community is being encouraged through variety of artwork and displays about cultures. A strong emphasis is given to increasing children's understanding about Black History

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

and heritage as this is the main ethos of the nursery. Although children are making satisfactory progress, the planning of resources and activities do not fully capture their interest and therefore do not help to effectively sustain and extend their learning.

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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

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is satisfactory. Children’s spiritual, moral, cultural and social development is fostered. They are strongly supported to learn about their culture through an appropriate range of activities. There is an excellent range of books and equipment reflecting positive images of black culture within the setting. The nursery’s current theme is on Black History and the children are involved in learning about the important figures in their heritage, such as Martin Luther King. There are also displays of other cultures within the setting to positively support children’s awareness of the wider communities. There are currently no children in attendance with any learning difficulties and disabilities but the nursery operates an inclusive policy and endeavours to support individual needs together with the parents and other professionals. Initial information about the children is obtained from the parents to help them settle. Thereafter, the regular exchange of information

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Helping children make a positive contribution

about children’s daily care and events ensure consistency is effectively maintained. Babies engage very well with the staff as they approach them with warmth and affection, which increases their sense of belonging and security. There is some inconsistency in the way older children’s behaviour is managed because sometimes their challenging behaviour is overlooked and they are not fully involved in resolving the issues. As a result, they sometimes pay less attention to staff guidance and do not develop a full understanding about the impact of their behaviour on others and themselves, although, most of the time they are well behaved and respond positively staff’s guidance. For example, they help to tidy up before meal times and outdoor play upon staff’s request. The complaint procedure is effectively in place and the required records are maintained. These are available for parents' viewing on request.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The partnership with parents and carers is satisfactory. Information about the nursery education is shared with parents through displays of children’s activities and at parents’ meetings. They are encouraged to be involved in their children’s learning. For example, as part of the current theme on Black History parents have been asked to put together a book around this interest to ensure children’s learning is further extended in the home. Staff regularly report on children’s nursery education progress with the parents. The strong ethos about Black heritage and culture is valued by the parents of the children in attendance. They expressed that staff team are very warm and approachable and that their children are happy, making progress and learning.

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Organisation

The organisation is satisfactory. Children benefit from care from a nursery establishment, where the ethos is strongly based on Black culture and heritage. The staff team have a positive awareness about how children develop and they offer children a choice of resources and make the environment safe and secure for their free play. They provide children with fresh cooked food and snacks, which are healthy and nutritious. However, there are some weaknesses in the organisation of space, activities and resources to offer children more appeal and challenge. Also, not all children’s interests is captured and channelled to help then engage in purposeful play. The cleanliness of the premises and resources do not fully promote children’s health and hygiene needs. Management of challenging behaviour is not always effective. The staff and adult ratio is appropriately met within the setting and the required records and written policies are in place to support children’s

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Organisation

welfare. These are shared with the parents as required. The nursery meets the needs of the range of children for whom it provides.

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Organisation

The management and leadership of the nursery is satisfactory. Through discussions, the manager demonstrated that she has a clear commitment to provide children with quality nursery education

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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 together with the staff team and in partnership with parents. She expects the staff at the setting to operate within the ethos of the nursery and work together as a team to ensure children make progress. She ensures that the staff team have undergone the necessary vetting procedures for suitability. Staff have access to regular staff meetings, supervision and training to support their professional development. The manager considers herself to be a positive role model to the staff team and is committed to offering them coaching to develop their practice when required. The manager and the staff team work very hard together to ensure children’s overall needs are supported. However, some of the areas for improvement in the quality of teaching have not been recognised, for example, the skills necessary to capture children's

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Organisation

interest and help them more to initiate, sustain and extend learning through play. This means the current systems for monitoring and evaluating is not fully effective.

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Improvements since the last inspection

At the last care inspection the nursery had an action to devise and implement the procedures to follow in the event a child was lost or not collected by parents. Recommendations included the maintenance of children’s attendance register with arrival and departure times, and the persons looking after them and any visitors. To ensure all records relating to day care activities are accessible and readily available for inspections and that confidentiality is maintained. Also to meet any recommendations made by the Fire Safety Officer.

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Improvements since the last inspection

Since the last inspection the nursery has developed the policy and procedures for lost and uncollected children, records of children, staff and visitors attendance are maintained with the required details and the fire exit signs are displayed to effectively promote children’s safety and welfare.

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Improvements since the last inspection

At the last nursery inspection the recommendations made were to: extend short term plans and include what children are to learn, resources to be used, grouping methods and adaptations or extensions of activities for children of differing abilities; strengthen the programme for communication, language and literacy and place more emphasis on older children learning the sounds of letters of the alphabet, organise the story time session to provide more challenge and make the book area more inviting; develop opportunities for children’s learning in communication, language and literacy, mathematics and personal, social and emotional development in planned activities, practical routines and free play; and also to give consideration to how resources and play equipment are stored and presented in order to increase accessibility and choice.

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Improvements since the last inspection

The nursery has since extended the planning to include the required details asked for and it covers all areas of children’s learning and differentiates their need. However, in practice the grouping methods, adaptations and extension of activities adopted for children’s differing abilities is not fully effective as not all children's interest is captured, sustained and extended. Staff encourage children to talk about the activities, learn the sounds of letters of the alphabet and organise story times in small groups. This currently helps to generally support their communication, language and literacy development. Planned activities and free play does include some practical opportunities for promoting communication, language and literacy, mathematics and personal, social and emotional development. However, opportunities are missed in practice to continually promote these in children’s everyday events. Some consideration

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Improvements since the last inspection

has been given to how resources and play equipment are stored and presented as these are now more accessible and offer children choice. These are at times invitingly arranged to appeal to children, which means there is some inconsistency in the practice. Therefore, the children continue to make satisfactory progress in their learning.

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

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

The quality and standards of the nursery education are satisfactory.

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The quality and standards of the care

To improve the quality and standards of care further the registered person should take account of the following recommendation(s): • ensure the procedures for hygiene are improved to effectively raise the standard of cleanliness of the premises and all resources • better organise resources and activities to offer children effective challenge, appeal and purposeful engagement in play • manage children's challenging behaviour more consistently to support them to understand the impact of the behaviour on themselves and others around them

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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): • continue to improve the planning of activities and resources to capture children's interest and help them more to initiate, sustain and extend their imaginative play, communicate their ideas and thoughts and understand the purposes of writing and counting in everyday use • enhance the systems for monitoring and evaluating the quality of teaching to improve the delivery of the Foundation Stage

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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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