Wellington College

Doves Day Nursery Inspection report for early years provision

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110125 Unique Reference Number 03 June 2008 Inspection date Heidi Wilton Inspector

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1 Stoke Road, Gosport, Hampshire, PO12 1LT Setting Address

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E-mail

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

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

The quality and standards of the nursery education are satisfactory.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

Doves Day Nursery has been registered since 1996 and is privately owned. The nursery is situated close to the town centre of Gosport. Children who attend the nursery come from a variety of cultural and social backgrounds. The nursery operates from three rooms on the ground floor and two rooms on the first floor of a converted, detached house. Children over two years of age use the ground floor rooms, children under two years are based on the first floor of the premises. There is a ground floor room available to all children for additional activities and a secure outside play area.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

The nursery is registered to provide care for a total of 48 children. There are currently 62 children aged from three months to five years on roll of which 24 children receive nursery education funding. Children may attend who have English as an additional language or learning difficulties and/or disabilities.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

The nursery is open from 07:00 until 18:00 for five days a week for the whole year, with the exception of Bank Holidays. Children may attend for a minimum of eight hours a day for full day care, or for sessional care of four hours or more between the hours of 07:00 until 13:00 or

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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 12:00 until 18:00. There are 13 members of staff employed to work with the children. There is one member of staff with a Level 4 qualification and is currently studying towards a Level 5 qualification. There are seven members of staff with a Level 3 qualification including the owner/manager. There is one staff member with a Level 2 qualification. There are three staff currently working towards a relevant Level 3 childcare qualification and one working towards a Level 2. The nursery receives support from the Early Years Development and Childcare Partnership.

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is satisfactory. Children have a sound understanding of protecting themselves from germs as they know to wash their hands after using the toilet and before having meals. The staff team use cleaning checklists to ensure the environment and resources are clean to protect children from cross contamination. The nursery have a sickness policy in place which is shared with parents at the outset to ensure they are informed. However, the nursery have not currently obtained written parental permission to seek or gain emergency medical advice or treatment for the children. This does not ensure children will be treated without delay in an emergency.

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Helping children to be healthy

The nursery use appropriate nappy changing procedures to ensure children are protected from germs. Accident and medication records show required information and staff demonstrate a satisfactory knowledge of how to complete these appropriately. The nursery use sound hygiene procedures in the kitchen areas such as washing hands between preparing different foods and spraying work surfaces with antibacterial cleaners. Parents provide children's meals and these are stored in a clean fridge. Staff preparing children's food have food and hygiene qualifications and record the temperature of the fridge both at the beginning of the morning and afternoon sessions. The nursery staff use a temperature probe to check any reheated food is at the correct temperature to ensure children are kept safe. The nursery provide children with a snack of fruit and/or a biscuit. However, children's independence is limited at this time as they do not have

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Helping children to be healthy

the opportunity to cut their own fruit and many children struggle to lift the large jugs of milk and water.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children engage with physical exercise. They climb the climbing frame unit and jump from the low level platforms to the safety mats below. Children move ribbons in the air to make different shapes and move their bodies to familiar music. They jump between the large tyres in the outside area and make objects on the ground with wooden blocks. Babies and toddlers crawl through low level tunnels and slide down low level slides.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is good. Staff are vigilant within the nursery and they are deployed well to ensure the needs of the children are met. The front entrance to the nursery is fully secured and staff can see visitors through the window of the door before allowing them to enter the building. The garden area is fully enclosed and the nursery have recently installed a canopy in the garden to shield children from the rain or protect them from the sun. This ensures children can free-flow to the garden area and play safely within all types of weather.

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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 equipped with the tools to manage their own safety because staff inform children of the reasons safety rules are put into place. For example, staff talk to children about waiting at the top of the slide until their friend has moved from the bottom to ensure they do not bump into each other. All hazardous cleaning materials are kept out of reach of children and appropriate safety equipment is in place such as highchairs, stair gates and cots. The nursery conduct formal risk assessments annually of the large equipment and environment and staff have informal checklists on a daily basis of both the inside and outside environments. This ensures hazards are identified and minimised.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The manager has a good understanding of her role as child protection co-ordinator. She has a clear understanding of what signs and symptoms to look for and how to record these appropriately within the incident record. The owner/manager also has a thorough understanding of child protection procedures and both the owner/manager and the manager demonstrate a good understanding of where to report any concerns. The nursery team all have a clear knowledge of what to do should they have any concerns about any of the children. The nursery have a child protection policy in place in line with the current Local Safeguarding Children Board's procedures.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is good. Children of all ages are happy and settled within the nursery environment. They arrive happily and separate from the main carer well. Those who become upset are given reassuring hugs and are distracted into favourite activities. They enjoy a range of interesting activities such as messy play, music times and planting in the garden. Staff throughout the nursery interact well with the children to extend their development and enjoyment. Staff have developed close bonds with the children. Staff within all rooms use positive praise and encouragement with the children which in turn boosts children's self esteem and confidence. All children under the age of three benefit from a strong curriculum with activities that are linked to the curriculum.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Babies and young toddlers in the baby room play happily in a calm environment. They regularly enjoy messy play activities and giggle excitedly as they submerge their hands in flour and water. Low level furniture supports young toddlers when walking and moving around the environment. Young toddlers laugh as they crawl through low level tunnels and have fun as they push buttons on the interactive toys. Children aged between two and three years in the Tweenies room are occupied and busy. They are developing their confidence with walking and enjoy joining in with familiar rhymes and songs. Children love to explore the musical instruments and giggle as the instruments produce sounds. They enjoy a wide range of art and craft activities and lots of free play.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The quality of teaching and learning for children in receipt of funded nursery education is satisfactory. Children are making sound progress towards the early learning goals. They enjoy opportunities to develop in all areas of learning. Staff demonstrate a sound understanding of the curriculum and have developed an effective system of observing the children. Observations are made regularly of all the children. However, although staff know the children well, children's individual records are not regularly updated with the observations they have conducted and next steps in learning are not identified. This does not ensure other staff and parents have a true reflection of the children's current stages of development and their next stages in 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 Staff do plan age and stage appropriate activities for the children and these are evaluated and used to inform future planning.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children play outdoors on a regular basis and have opportunities to free-flow between the inside and outside areas for most of the session. They develop a range of skills as they run around in the fresh air and climb play equipment. Children plant seeds in the garden and watch them grow. They are able to select toys and resources from low level shelving and labelled drawers. However, children do not often choose from books or the role-play resources. These resources are limited and are not effectively presented to stimulate children's interest to use them for their enjoyment and play.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children link sounds to letters as they identify letter symbols on the alphabet line and sound out letters found in their names. They listen to stories at group times and are kept interested by the staff member changing the intonation and expression in her voice. Children develop an understanding of number incidentally throughout the session as they count the blocks to build towers and count how many children are in the group.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children develop their creativity as they participate with a range of messy play activities such as shaving foam and play dough. They sing familiar rhymes and songs and move their bodies to music. Children join in with music sessions where they foster an understanding of musical vocabulary and learn about the different sounds instruments make. Children are able to use the nursery computer which is readily available for them at anytime. They develop mouse control skills and interact with a range of age and stage appropriate programs.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is good. Children are valued wholly as individuals within the nursery and are treated with equal respect. They are all encouraged to access all toys and resources. Children type their names and create pictures on the computer and these are printed out and displayed on the walls. They also have the opportunity to print out photographs of themselves and their comments are printed and displayed next to the photographs. This ensures children feel valued for their contributions and for what they say. The nursery celebrate festivals with children throughout the year where they make arts and crafts and taste multicultural foods.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The room leader of the pre-school room has responsibility for the role as learning difficulties and/or disabilities co-ordinator. She has a good understanding of her job role and has attended the Code of Practice training. She is booked onto the Advanced Special Needs training to further her knowledge and understanding. The nursery do not currently have children with identified needs but are caring for children with English as an additional language. They have gained words from the children's own language from parents and are in the process of contacting outside agencies for support and advice. The learning difficulties and/or disabilities co-ordinator has a good understanding about forms needed to create individual learning plans for the children.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The pre-school have a sticker chart in place and children love being rewarded for their good behaviour and achievements. Staff throughout the nursery use positive praise and lots of encouragement for children's achievements and behaviour. They talk to children at their level and help them to resolve the reason for unwanted behaviour. Staff communicate with parents about children's behaviour to ensure consistent methods are used between the home and the setting. Children's social, moral, spiritual and cultural development is fostered. They communicate

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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 with parents verbally at the beginning and end of each day about their child's day. In addition, staff within the baby and toddler rooms complete written information about children's routines and what they have been doing. This enables parents to refer to this information within their own homes. The owner/manager shows prospectus parents around the nursery and shows them the policies and procedures. Parents receive a parents' prospectus which details nursery routines, nursery practice and some policies and procedures. They are able to gain important and new information from the displays on parents' notice boards throughout the nursery. The nursery send newsletters and letters home to ensure parents are updated with latest information. Staff photographs are displayed at the entrance to the nursery. This ensures parents have a good

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Helping children make a positive contribution

understanding of who everyone is within the staff team. Staff work with parents for what is best for them and their children. They are offered settling in visits with their children at the outset to ensure a smooth transition from the main carer to the setting is achieved. Parents are very happy with the provision and state the staff team are all friendly and approachable. They inform the childcare inspector that 'the staff are all very warm and loving to their children'.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The partnership with parents and carers for children in receipt of funded nursery education is satisfactory. Parents are given suitable information through verbal discussions about what their child learns when at the nursery. However, parents are not given formal opportunities to view their child's assessments records in planned meetings. This means that parents do not always have sufficient opportunities to discuss their child's assessment records and next steps in learning with relevant staff. There are colourful displays of photographs that illustrate how children learn through doing the range of activities. Parents have access to monthly topic plans displayed on the notice boards to ensure they know what their children are learning. However, information linking to the stepping stones is not kept up-to-date and displayed. This does not ensure parents are fully informed of what the outcomes of learning are and how they relate to

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Helping children make a positive contribution

the curriculum. Parents are invited into the nursery for special events and celebrations. This enables parents to meet with staff and gain an overview of the work and ethos of the nursery.

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Organisation

The organisation is satisfactory. The setting meets the needs of the range of children for whom it provides. The nursery have correct adult to child ratios and staff are deployed well to ensure children's needs are met. However, the organisation of some resources and activities within the pre-school room need further development to ensure children use these things within their play. Children are cared for by qualified staff and at least one first aid trained member of staff is on site at all times. This ensures children are treated appropriately in an emergency.

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Organisation

The nursery have sound recruitment and vetting procedures in place. Any staff member who is currently awaiting their Criminal Records Bureau check is never left unsupervised with any of the children. The owner/manager conducts induction periods with new staff members to ensure they gain knowledge of their job role, the nursery environment, routines, staff and the children. Children and staff are recorded into attendance registers at the actual times of arrival and departure. This ensures they will be accounted for in an emergency. Documentation is filed securely to ensure confidentiality is maintained.

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Organisation

The leadership and management for children in receipt of funded nursery education are satisfactory. The owner/manager and the manager work together alongside the senior staff. The manager has the main responsibility for the day to day running of the nursery and the owner/manager has main responsibility for paperwork such as appraisals and recruiting staff. However, they do work closely and support each other within all areas. The manager works

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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 within the pre-school room alongside the room leader. She monitors staff on a daily basis and deals with achievements and concerns as they arise. The manager ensures staff all participate with the planning and monitors staff are conducting their observations. However, staff are not consistently updating the children's individual records with the observations they have conducted. The records therefore do not show an up-to-date picture of where the children are with their development and their next steps in learning.

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Organisation

The owner/manager monitors staff through a two way annual appraisal process. At this time achievements and targets are discussed and training needs are identified. All staff, including the management team are encouraged to attend training. Any training attended is cascaded back to the rest of the staff team.

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Improvements since the last inspection

At the last inspection the nursery were asked to consider two recommendations with regard to the provision of care and five recommendations concerning the provision of nursery education. Most have been suitably addressed. With regard to the care provision, the nursery have implemented effective health and hygiene procedures with regard to children sleeping in the two to three year old room. Staff are qualified and many have attended relevant training with regards to the curriculum to develop their knowledge.

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Improvements since the last inspection

With regard to the provision of nursery education new practices have been implemented. Children have many opportunities to develop their knowledge of letter sounds and how these link to the written symbols of letters. For example, children identify letters and sound out letter sounds from their names. The nursery have a computer readily available for children to use at anytime of the session and children have fun interacting with various light up and push button toys. Staff limit the amount of activities children have out at one time and encourage children to put activities away before selecting the next activity. The nursery staff have developed their systems and now evaluate structured activities and use these evaluations to inform their next planning. The nursery have created an area for children to read and look at books. However, the presentation of the books is not appealing and stimulating and children do not independently

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Improvements since the last inspection

choose and select books for their own enjoyment.

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Complaints since the last inspection

Since the last inspection one complaint has been received that required the provider or Ofsted to take action in order to meet the National Standards. The complaint related to National Standard 1: Suitable Person, National Standard 2: Organisation, National Standard 3: Care, Learning and Play, National Standard 6: Safety and National Standard 7: Health. Concerns were received that staff were not vetted; that unvetted staff were left unsupervised with children; that adult to child ratios were not being met; that the provider was exceeding the number of children under two years that they were registered to care for and that staff were not deployed effectively. Concerns were also raised that children were made to eat with their right hand; that children were not appropriately supervised and that paper towels from the toilet area were used for meal times. Ofsted carried an unannounced visit to investigate the concerns. Evidence

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Complaints since the last inspection

was found that National Standards were not being met and set nine actions under National Standard 1, National Standard 2, National Standard 7, National Standard 8: Food and Drink and National Standard 14: Documentation. A response to the actions was received from the provider. Ofsted was satisfied that the provider was now meeting the National Standards and took no further action. The provider remained qualified for registration.

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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 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 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): • further develop children's independence at snack times by providing opportunities to cut their own fruit and pour their own drinks from child sized jugs • ensure written parental permission is obtained to seek or gain emergency medical advice or treatment for all the 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 develop the organisation and presentation of the book corner and role-play area to encourage children to access the range of books and resources for their enjoyment • ensure staff regularly track the observations of children into their individual records and identify children's next steps in learning • introduce planned opportunities for parents to discuss their child's progress on a regular basis • ensure monthly plans detailing links to the stepping stones are up-to-date and displayed for parents.

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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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