Bright Horizons Leytonstone Day Nursery and Preschool

Little Green Man Nursery Inspection report for early years provision

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156214 Unique Reference Number 27 November 2007 Inspection date Maxine Rose Inspector

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15 Lemna Road, Leytonstone, London, E11 1HX Setting Address

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E-mail

Janbarree Limited Registered person Integrated Type of inspection Full day care, Out of School care Type of care

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E-mail

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

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ABOUT THIS INSPECTION

The purpose of this inspection is to assure government, parents and the public of the quality of childcare and, if applicable, of nursery education. The inspection was carried out under Part XA Children Act 1989 as introduced by the Care Standards Act 2000 and, where nursery education is provided, under Schedule 26 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998. This report details the main strengths and any areas for improvement identified during the inspection. The judgements included in the report are made in relation to the outcomes for children set out in the Children Act 2004; the National Standards for under 8s day care and childminding; and, where nursery education is provided, the Curriculum guidance for the foundation stage. The report includes information on any complaints about the childcare provision which Ofsted has received since the last inspection or registration or 1 April 2004 whichever is the later.

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The key inspection judgements and what they mean

Outstanding: this aspect of the provision is of exceptionally high quality Good: this aspect of the provision is strong Satisfactory: this aspect of the provision is sound Inadequate: this aspect of the provision is not good enough

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The key inspection judgements and what they mean

For more information about early years inspections, please see the booklet Are you ready for your inspection? which is available from Ofsted's website: www.ofsted.gov.uk.

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

On the basis of the evidence collected on this inspection:

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

The quality and standards of the care are 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 good.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

The Green Man Day Nursery and Out of School Club were registered in 1996. Both operate from rooms in the nursery which is in the Leytonstone area of the London borough of Waltham Forest. A maximum of 131 children under five may attend the pre-school at any one time and a maximum of 16 children aged between four and under eight years may attend the Out of School Club at any one time. The nursery is open each weekday from 07:00 to 19:00. The Out of School Club is open each weekday from 07.00 to 10:00 and 15.30 to 18.00 during term time only/and 07.00 to 19.00 in school holidays. There are currently 94 children aged from 0 to under five years on roll of the nursery. Of these, 27 receive funding for early education. The pre-school currently supports a number of children who speak English as an additional language. The nursery employs 31 members of staff. Of these, 27 hold appropriate early years qualifications

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

and four are working towards a qualification. There are currently 20 children aged from four to under eight years on roll of the out of school club. All children attending are taken to and collected from local schools on foot. The out of school club employs 2 members of staff. Of these, all 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 good. The children enjoy the meals provided for them. Children attending the nursery, breakfast and after school club can choose between a range of healthy options such as cereals, fresh fruit and vegetables. Fresh drinking water is available to all children during the day to keep them hydrated and alert. The children are learning to maintain their personal hygiene because they wash their hands before handling food. This also helps to prevent the spread of bacteria. Occasionally there are shortcomings in the arrangement for nappy changing, ventilating and heating the group rooms. This does not ensure children’s individual needs are fully met. The children have daily opportunities to enjoy physical exercise to keep their bodies healthy. For example, running outdoors or playing in the ball pool. There are practical procedures in place to ensure children receive appropriate medical care in the event of any emergency. For example,

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Helping children to be healthy

staff are trained in first aid. They also obtain consent for emergency treatment and keep a record of medication given to children.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is satisfactory. Children attending the nursery, breakfast and after school club are kept safe in some areas because some safety measures are implemented well. For example, the premises are well maintained. Also the resources are organised well enabling the children to have full access to the space and play equipment. There are practical arrangements in place for managing fire safety and accidents. This helps to ensure children know what to do in the event of a fire and that they are monitored consistently after an accident. Children’s attendance is also recorded. This helps to ensure staff are deployed to supervise the children. The group conducts risk assessments but this does not take full account of times when children are collected late. The staff are trained in safeguarding children. They have clear procedures to guide them on how to protect children from harm. This helps to promote a secure environment for children.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is satisfactory. Children are provided with a range of fun and interesting activities in the nursery and after school club. These activities include water and sand play, role play using hand puppets, puzzles, creative art using jumbo chalks and paper, construction, computer games, and painting. Most children are keen to take part in the activities. At times babies who are not fully mobile do not always have access to the full range of play equipment. All the children enjoy the chance to listen to music and sing songs which help to promote their language skills. The staff have received training in the Birth to three matters framework. They plan a programme of activities for the children which include an annual outing to the sea side. This enables the children to enjoy new experiences. The children are developing confidence because they have made friends with other children and they receive praise from the staff.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The quality of teaching and learning is good. The staff have attended training in the Foundation Stage and they demonstrate a good understanding in this area. They plan effectively to provide a programme of activities that help children make good progress in all areas of 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 Plans are linked well to the stepping stones thereby providing children with a balanced curriculum. The staffs also observe and assess children’s learning. They use this information well to inform plans for supporting children in the next stage of learning.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The children are becoming more confident and independent as they initiate their own ideas and select resources off the shelf to work together. The children behave well and are developing appropriate social skills. They organise themselves well in group tasks to decide who will lead and how to share and take turns with resources. For example, when children play ‘traffic lights’ they wait in turn while one shares the cards. The children have access to a wide range of art and craft materials that enable them to explore colour and texture in more than one dimension. For example the children have endless fun pouring the pink corn flour and they use recycled boxes to design models. The children are proud of their achievements and happily display their work for all to see. The staff acknowledge the children’s efforts in positive ways thereby motivating the children to learn.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The children make good use of group activities to talk about their experiences. Most children speak clearly for example when talking about the games on their computer or when explaining they will draw a “red strawberry”. The children show an interest in books. They understand the narrative of ‘Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs’ and use appropriate language such as ‘the end’. The children enjoy activities that enable them to use a range of writing tools such as pencils, pens and brushes. Children write their names making correct use of upper and lower case letters. They are able to recognise the names of their friends and they are introduced to new words through the ‘reading scheme’.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

There are opportunities for children to use and recognise numbers and shapes. For example, when counting, adding and playing games. Children’s work shows they draw numbers, count to twenty and beyond and talk about position. There are times when staff do not act spontaneously to intervene in children’s play to encourage more use of numbers and simple calculations. The children enjoy first hand experience of observing changes in their environment. For example, when they visit the sea side in the summer and play in the snow in winter.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is good. The children behave well. They are learning appropriate social skills such as sharing and turn taking. This encourages children to show consideration for others. Children are provided with resources that reflect diversity in positive ways. For example, books, dolls and small world equipment. Children under two years have personalised photo albums. This helps children to feel valued. There is a key worker system in the nursery that enables staff to work closely with individual children and thus helping children to settle. There are no children with learning difficulties and/or disabilities in the nursery, breakfast or after school club. Practical supports systems are in place to ensure all children are included. Children’s spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is fostered.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Parents can develop close links with the nursery because they have opportunities to exchange information with staff about children’s progress and concerns. This includes annual parent evenings, information slips, a parent notice board and a complaints book. The notice board features curriculum plans and information about the early learning goals. Parents also have access to children’s assessments. These are clearly recorded and regularly updated to provide

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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 a good profile of children’s progress. The children’s reading scheme enables parents to be involved in and support children’s learning.

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Organisation

The organisation is satisfactory. Most children have easy access to play resources because these are stored or displayed on low shelves and tables. Some children who are less mobile do not always have full access to resources. This limits their choices. The group maintains all the necessary policies and procedures. Some procedures such as risk assessments do not take full account of all safety risks. For example, what arrangements are in place to ensure ratios are maintained when children are collected late? The staff operate a key worker system. This enables then to monitor the children’s progress and support their settling in. There are opportunities for staff to receive training to develop their knowledge and understanding in areas such as the Birth to three framework.

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Organisation

Leadership and management is good. A long serving team of staff work purposefully to provide children with a range of learning experiences that help them make good progress. The staff seek guidance and support from the early year’s advisory team. The curriculum programme and children’s assessments are guided by the early learning goals. These provide useful information about what children do. At times there is no information about what children are expected to learn from activities to keep children’s progress in focus. In most cases the information is evaluated, clearly linked to the early learning goals and used well to inform the next stage of learning. The setting meets the needs of the range of children for whom care is provided.

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Improvements since the last inspection

At the last inspection the group was given five recommendations to address. These recommendations included the following. Obtain parental consent for using private and public transport, review the transportation of lunch to group rooms and minimise any hazards, update operational plans to include how all resources will be readily available to all children including resources that reflect diversity and also, ensure routines of the nursery do not impede upon care of the under two’s especially during meal and sleep times. The group has made some improvement in these areas. Children’s welfare is safeguarded because parents provide consent for children to use transportation and better systems are in place to reduce hazards to children when food is served. Children are provided with resources such as books and dolls which positively reflect diversity. Most children have access to the full range of resources but

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Improvements since the last inspection

occasionally babies who are less mobile have limited choices.

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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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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

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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 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): • ensure risk assessments take full account of all safety issues including the arrangements for ensuring ratios are maintained when children are collected late • ensure children under two especially those who are less mobile have easy access to the full range of resources

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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): • encourage staff to be more spontaneous and intervene in children's play to promote more use of numbers and simple calculations for problem solving • improve children's assessments to include the learning intention of activities to maintain consistency in teaching and learning

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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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