Hephzibah Day Nursery

The Heritage Family Centre Inspection report for early years provision

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137805 Unique Reference Number 14 July 2008 Inspection date Bharti Vakil Inspector

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161 Pitfield Way, London, NW10 0UW Setting Address

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E-mail

The Heritage Family Centre Limited 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 inadequate - enforcement action. The registered person does not meet 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 Heritage Family Centre is run by a management committee. It opened in 1994 and is situated in a purpose built building on the St Raphael's Estate, in Harlesden, in the London Borough of Brent. There is one large room which is divided in to two play areas for children aged two to five years; and there are two separate baby rooms. All children share access to an outdoor play area. A maximum of 60 children may attend the nursery at any one time.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

The nursery is open each week day from 08.00 to 18.00 for 50 weeks of the year. There are currently 50 children from 14 months to under five years on roll. Of these, 20 children receive funding for nursery education. The nursery currently supports children with learning difficulties and/or disabilities.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

The nursery employs 12 members of staff. Of these, eight staff hold appropriate early years qualifications.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is inadequate. Children’s health and well-being are not sufficiently promoted. The setting does not obtain prior written parental permission for the administration of medication and parents are not consistently asked to sign medication records. This places children at risk of being given the wrong dose of medication either at the nursery or at home. Suitable procedures are not in place for children with long term medical conditions; medication is stored in bags which are accessible to children and there are no records in place.

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Helping children to be healthy

The procedures for storage of children's formula milk, food and drink do not promote children's welfare. These items are not clearly labelled to ensure individual children eat or drink the items that are for them. This poses a risk to children with special dietary requirements and/or allergies. Younger children are offered drinks regularly and suitable bottles, feeder cups and mugs are available for various age groups. However, children's feeder cups and mugs are not labelled with their names. This increases the chances of cross infection. Older children can help themselves to drinking water and staff assist children to help themselves where appropriate. Children learn the importance of taking regular drinks as a way to maintain their health as they make comments, such as 'water is good for you' and staff reinforce such comments by talking with the children about importance to remain hydrated.

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Helping children to be healthy

The arrangements for providing food do not meet children's dietary needs effectively. Snacks prepared on the premises for afternoon tea have poor nutritional value and offer limited choices. Children are provided with a hot lunch and dessert, prepared and delivered daily by an outside caterer. Although, these meals are varied and nutritious the amount of boiled vegetables, fish or chicken is not sufficient for children. The bulk of children's lunch is supplemented with boiled rice prepared on site. In the baby room, food is inappropriately moistened with tomato ketchup.

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Helping children to be healthy

Staff follow good hygiene practices when changing nappies to support children's health and welfare. However, the procedure to store blankets in the baby room and the management of older children's rest periods do not promote children's welfare. The blankets are piled on top of each other after children have used them and washed once a week. The rest mats are arranged close to each other leaving no space in between and in some instances four mats are joint together for up to six children. Besides increasing chances of cross infection it restricts older children's movements during rest periods.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children enjoy a range of physical activities which contribute to their good health. They participate in many activities to help develop small muscle movements and hand eye coordination as they knead and roll dough, use pencils and scissors. Children strengthen their large muscle skills and develop their coordination as they use push and pull-a-long toys, and sit and ride vehicles. Older children use the climbing and balancing equipment with increasing skill and show a good awareness of others. This helps ensure their safety and that of others. They enjoy energetic games and enthusiastically join in group games, confidently following the instructions.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is inadequate. The setting does not adequately promote children's safety. The attendance record is not updated as children arrive and leave. This means that the setting does not have an accurate record 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 number of children present at any one time for use in case of an emergency, such as fire. The required staff ratios are not maintained at all times, which impacts children's safety. Although, emergency evacuation procedures are practised they are infrequent. This does not ensure that staff and children can leave the premises quickly and safely in the event of a real emergency.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

There are systems in place to minimise children's risk from accidental injury. Most potential hazards are identified and rectified by staff as they carry out regular risk assessments. However, in the outdoor area there are potential risks, such as a broken bench, ivy and sand pits with inappropriate covers.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

There is a procedure for staff to follow should they become concerned about child protection issues and includes what to do in the event if an allegation is made against them. However, the written regulatory procedures to follow in case of a missing or lost child are not in place. This impacts significantly on children's safety and welfare.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Children and parents are warmly welcomed by staff on arrival. There are sound security precautions in place, such as an entry system on the main door. The setting is adequately maintained, clean and attractively decorated with colourful posters, children's artwork and photographs. There is a wide range of suitable toys and play equipment in all rooms. These are attractively stored and easily accessible for children to make choices and have independence in their play. The suitable range of furniture and equipment meet the needs of the children attending the nursery.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is satisfactory. Staff have begun to use the Birth to three matters framework when planning activities for younger children, although this has not been refined to fully support younger children's learning and development.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The improvement in the provision of resources for babies and the presentation of these resources means the very young children gain much more from their play. For example, children are provided with treasure baskets to encourage them to use their senses to explore natural and man-made objects which feel and sound different. Staff are beginning to understand what children can gain from such activities.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children aged two to three years play together, are beginning to take turns, share and to talk to others. They are participating in activities appropriate for their age and stage of development, for example, sand, dough, puzzles, interactive toys and books. They thoroughly enjoy joining in action songs, for example, children giggle as they sing ‘wind the bobbin up’ and work out whether they should be pointing to the ceiling or the door. Children are able to select and participate in activities of their choice, staff provide support and offer help when needed.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The quality of teaching and learning is satisfactory and children are making satisfactory progress in all six areas of learning. Staff have a sound understanding of the Foundation Stage of learning and provide a well-balanced educational programme to promote children's learning. Systems are in place for planning, observing and evaluating children's progress. Staff make use of planned activities to extend children’s learning. Planning shows learning objectives and how individual children’s needs are to be met. Staff make observations of children’s progress and

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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 record these in the assessment portfolios, which include children’s photos during activities and samples of their work. However, not all observations, samples of work and photos are annotated or dated; and there is no information about some children’s starting points. This makes it difficult to evaluate their rate of progress and consequently some learning opportunities and challenges for more able children are missed.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children confidently express their needs and ideas and relate well to each other and familiar adults. For example, children demonstrate to an adult organising a running activity 'no, first we have to do on your marks, get set and run'. They generally enjoy the activities on offer and concentrate, and persevere well to complete tasks. They often initiate their own activity, creating a big birthday cake with bricks, inspired by a child who, with great delight, re-lives his participation in a birthday party. They behave well and share and cooperate during play. Children independently choose and use resources and develop basic self-help skills, such as using the bathroom independently.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children’s speaking and listening skills are developing well. They communicate confidently both with peers and adults. They make valuable contributions to small group discussions and happily listen to each other as they recall activities they have taken part in. Staff ask questions which encourage the children to think and to introduce them to new words such as slimy, slippery and mucky. Children enjoy practising their early writing skills in a variety of ways as they draw, paint and write for a purpose, for example, shopping lists and menus. Many children confidently recognise letters or words in their environment and write their names. Children are learning to handle books which they readily share with each other. The organisation of story and discussion times in large group is not meeting needs of all the children. This is because some younger children lose interest, stand up and move away, which affects other children's

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children are learning about shape and space as they fit puzzles together and use equipment in the water and sand play. They are able to name shapes, describe size and position and have opportunities to weigh and sort objects. Children are solving mathematical problems as they construct with a variety of materials, such as bricks and proudly display their models. However, there are few opportunities for children to practice simple calculation through addition and subtraction.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children develop their imagination and creativity through a well resourced craft area. They enjoy role play, for example, home corner and shops, where they mimic their observations of the world. Consequently, children are practising their early-writing skills, operating programmable toys and interacting positively together. Children explore colour and texture using a range of collage and painting materials. They are learning that they can create a new colour by mixing two colours together as staff bring this to their notice. Children are excited when singing songs from memory and using musical instruments, which enables them to learn about rhythm and the sound of the instruments.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children are able to develop an understanding of technology and how things work as they look through magnifying glasses to count the number of spots on ladybirds. They confidently use the camera as they organise their peers and staff to ensure all are within the range to capture a photo. Children are able to recall past events through use of photographs. They are learning about changes in seasons and use of suitable clothes through planned activities. Children enjoy cooking activities and learn from them, for instance, organising ingredients, following the recipe, weighing ingredients and noting the changes once the flapjacks are cooked.

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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 inadequate. The systems in place do not sufficiently meet individual children's medication, food and drink requirements. The lunch time routine of the nursery does not always meet older children's needs. All children are expected to lie down after lunch. Those children who may not wish to lie down are not offered appropriate choices. Consequently, this does not adequately prepare children who would be leaving the nursery to attend full time school.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Staff offer on going encouragements for children's efforts and achievements. Children give a beaming smile as they are asked to point to their name cards and talk through their photographs. They are learning to be thoughtful and kind towards others. Overall, staff use age-appropriate strategies to manage any behavioural difficulties that may arise. As a result, children behave well, most take turns and share resources with their friends.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The nursery supports children with learning difficulties and/or disabilities. A suitable special needs policy is in place and the setting is receiving support from the Early Years Special Needs team. The staff work with the parents and any therapists who may be involved in the children's care.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Children from different backgrounds are welcomed into the setting. They develop positive attitudes to others through planned activities and an environment that reflects the lives of those who attend and the wider community. They begin to appreciate the customs and cultures of others through celebrating festivals. They show concern for others around them, for example, put arms around children who are upset. Staff encourage children to talk about their feelings. Overall, children's spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is fostered.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Children benefit from warm relationships between staff and their parents. Each child is allocated to a named member of staff called a 'key worker' who has responsibility for coordinating their child's care and development. Children are able to gain confidence in separating from their parents and settle because of the sound settling in process. Staff are available to exchange information on a daily basis. Parents of children under two years are provided with daily written information about their child's food intake and sleep patterns. Parents are welcome to spend a day in the setting to observe their child.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The partnership with parents whose children receive nursery education is satisfactory. Parents are welcome to see their child's profile of development at any time and are provided with written reports about their child's development and progress twice a year.

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Organisation

The organisation is inadequate. The setting does not meet the needs of the range of children for whom it provides. The setting does not have effective systems to monitor practice and ensure that the National Standards are met successfully. The minimum staff ratios are not being met across the nursery. This impacts on the staff to be able to adequately perform their duties and spend quality time with children. Staff work hard and are keen to access training and improve practice. Children share warm relationships with staff who have been vetted for their suitability to work with young children.

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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 The poor organisation does not ensure efficient and safe management of the provision to promote the welfare of children. The written regulatory procedures to follow in case of a missing or lost child are not in place. The medication records do not include the required details. Although records of accidents are maintained, a procedure to review accident records is not in place. This is essential to identify any trend of recurring causes of injuries. There are significant weaknesses in the procedures to store children's formula milk, food and drink. The arrangements for providing food do not meet children's dietary needs effectively. The storage of blankets and the management of children's rest periods do not promote children's welfare. As a result, this has significant impact on children's safety and welfare.

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Organisation

The leadership and management of the setting for nursery education is satisfactory. The manager has a suitable understanding of the Foundation Stage curriculum; she holds the main responsibility for the planning of the educational programme. As a result, children are making sound progress towards the early learning goals.

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Improvements since the last inspection

At the previous care inspection the quality of care and nursery education was judged as inadequate and the setting was required to act on a number of actions. The nursery has made some improvements in the care offered since the last inspection. Children under two years are now provided with a range of suitable activities and experiences in line with the Birth to three matters framework. This increases the opportunities for children to learn and make progress in their development. Suitable equipment is now available for babies and toddlers at meal times. This ensures children's safety and comfort. However, the setting has failed to address all the actions. As a result the following three actions remain outstanding: ensure the minimum staff ratios are maintained at all times; ensure staff implement good hygiene practices; and improve the nursery menu to ensure foods are nutritious and healthy and ensure individual children's

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Improvements since the last inspection

dietary needs are met. As a result, Ofsted is taking enforcement action to safeguard the welfare of children.

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Improvements since the last inspection

At the last inspection the quality of nursery education was judged satisfactory. The following recommendations were made: improve the methods of recording children's development so that it clearly identifies the next steps for learning to ensure children are offered appropriate challenge and ensure staff have a consistent approach to planning and observation. Suitable systems are now in place to enable staff to record their observations of children participating in various activities. The planning and children's assessment records identify the next steps of children's learning. Although, further development is needed to ensure each child has the best possible support to fulfil their potential.

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Complaints since the last inspection

Concerns were raised to Ofsted in March 2008 regarding correct staff: child ratios not being maintained, food hygiene, settling in procedures for new children and frequency of nappy changing. There were also concerns raised regarding the provider implementing parental requests for the administration of medication, a mark found on a child’s arm, and babies milk being warmed correctly. The concerns raised related to National Standard 2: Organisation, Standard 3: Care, learning, and Play, Standard 7: Health, and Standard 12: Working in partnership with parents and carers.

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Complaints since the last inspection

Ofsted wrote to the provider requesting that they investigate the concerns and report back and followed it up with a telephone call to obtain further information.

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Complaints 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 Upon review of all the information obtained Ofsted set the following actions: under National Standard 2 ‘ensure that minimum staff: child ratios are maintained at all times’ and ‘ensure registers are accurately maintained, clearly recording the times of arrival and departure of staff and children’; and under National Standard 7 ‘ensure that written parental permission is obtained for the administration of medication’. The provider responded to Ofsted detailing the measures that had been taken to meet this action. Ofsted were satisfied that the action had been met and that the provider meets the National Standards. Therefore Ofsted took no further action and the provider continued to be qualified for registration

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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 inadequate - enforcement action. The registered person does not meet 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

Ofsted is taking enforcement action to safeguard the welfare of children.

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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): • further improve systems for monitoring the quality of the nursery education provision and evaluating its impact, especially in relation to the progress of more able children • review the organisation of large circle time to meet needs of all children

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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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