Cambridge Day Nursery

Website: www.ofsted.gov.uk This document may be reproduced in whole or in part for non-commercial educational purposes, provided that the information quoted is reproduced without adaptation and the source and date of publication are stated. Cambridge Day Nursery Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY308230 Inspection date 14/07/2009 Inspector Emma Bright

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Setting address 67a Milton Road, Cambridge, CB4 1XA

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Telephone number 01223 566323 Email admin@cambridgedaynursery.com Type of setting Childcare on non-domestic premises This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Introduction

This inspection was carried out by Ofsted under Sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 on the quality and standards of the registered early years provision. ‘Early years provision’ refers to provision regulated by Ofsted for children from birth to 31 August following their fifth birthday (the early years age group). The registered person must ensure that this provision complies with the statutory framework for children’s learning, development and welfare, known as the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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Introduction

The provider must provide a copy of this report to all parents with children at the setting where reasonably practicable. The provider must provide a copy of the report to any other person who asks for one, but may charge a fee for this service (The Childcare (Inspection) Regulations 2008 regulations 9 and 10).

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Introduction

The setting also makes provision for children older than the early years age group which is registered on the voluntary and/or compulsory part(s) of the Childcare Register. This report does not include an evaluation of that provision, but a comment about compliance with the requirements of the Childcare Register is included in Annex B. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Description of the setting

Cambridge Day Nursery is run by Cambridge Associates in Management Ltd. It opened in 2005 and operates from premises close to Cambridge city centre. The premises is accessible and there is a staircase to the first floor rooms. All children have access to an enclosed outdoor play area.

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Description of the setting

A maximum of 46 children may attend the nursery at any one time. There are currently 55 children on roll who are within the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS), of whom 15 receive funding for early education. The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and the compulsory part of the Childcare Register. Children come from the local area. The setting supports children who have English as an additional language. The nursery is open each weekday from 08.00 to 18.00 for 51 weeks of the year.

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Description of the setting

The nursery employs 12 members of staff. Of these, 11 hold appropriate early years qualifications and one member of staff is working towards a relevant qualification. The nursery belongs to the National Day Nursery Association and Pre- school Learning Alliance accreditation schemes.

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Overall effectiveness of the early years provision

The overall quality of the provision is inadequate. Staff lack the skills and understanding about the children in their care and their knowledge regarding the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) is insufficient. Leadership of the provision is poor, and partnership with parents and carers is not strong enough to ensure children’s learning needs are effectively met. The system to evaluate strengths and weaknesses in the setting is weak and has failed to address a number of significant issues. The environment generally promotes children's welfare and most of the essential documentation is in place to promote their health and safety.

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Overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Overall, the early years provision requires significant improvement. The registered person is given a Notice to Improve that sets out actions to be carried out.

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further?

To comply with the requirements of the EYFS the registered person must take the following action by the specified date:

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further?

 ensure all adults with supervisory responsibilities have the appropriate skills and knowledge to manage the setting effectively, and have a clear understanding of their roles (Suitable people) 01/09/2009  organise systems to ensure that every child receives an enjoyable and challenging learning and development experience that is tailored to meet their individual needs. Ensure practitioners are familiar with 30/10/2009 This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 the content of the areas of Learning and Development in order to effectively support children’s learning and development (Organisation)  undertake sensitive observational assessment in order to plan to meet young children's individual needs and ensure parents have opportunities to be involved in their child’s learning (Organisation) 30/10/2009  improve systems to ensure that staff are effectively deployed in all areas of the nursery so that the

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further?

individual needs of all children are met (Organisation) 01/09/2009  promote equality of opportunity and anti- discriminatory practice, ensuring that every child is included and not disadvantaged because of culture and home language. This refers particularly to finding out about children's home language so they can use it in their play and learning (Organisation) 30/10/2009  develop an effective system for monitoring and evaluating the early years provision in order to maintain continuous improvement and promote positive outcomes for children (Organisation). 30/10/2009 To improve the early years provision the registered person should:

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further?

 update the risk assessment to ensure it identifies aspects of hygiene that need to be checked on a regular basis. This refers to some hygiene procedures in the baby room to prevent the spread of infection  develop the outdoor space further in order to support children's learning in a rich and stimulating environment, which offers challenging experiences and where they have freedom to explore and use their senses.

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provision

The leadership and management of the setting is inadequate and does not sufficiently support children's learning and development. Although areas for improvement have been identified, the management team lack the necessary knowledge and understanding of the EYFS requirements to maintain continuous improvement. For example, some actions from the previous inspection have not been effectively addressed. Practice is not sufficiently inclusive to ensure the needs of all children are met. For example, some groups of children do not receive adequate challenge to support their learning, and there are limited resources to reflect the diversity of the children attending. As a result some children do not make good enough progress and have fewer opportunities to explore their differences and similarities.

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provision

Staff deployment is ineffective. For example, meal times are not positive experiences for some children because staff are not well-organised, or are too busy with daily routines and chores. An over-reliance on supply staff means that children do not benefit from a consistent staff team that know and understand This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 their individual needs. Clear risk assessments are carried out on a regular basis to ensure that hazards are identified and minimised to safeguard children. However, some hygiene aspects are not addressed and this puts children’s health at risk of cross infection.

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provision

Staff have a suitable understanding of the setting’s Safeguarding Children procedures and some of the staff team have attended child protection training. There are sound procedures in place for the recruitment of new staff. All required documentation is in place, and policies and procedures are shared with parents. Information is provided for parents about the setting and sound systems are in place for staff to gather information about children's individual care needs. Staff offer daily verbal and written updates to ensure parents are informed about their child’s care.

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The quality and standards of the early years provision

Children’s progress towards the early learning goals is limited because staff do not understand how to deliver the learning and development requirements of the EYFS or what they need to do to support children’s learning effectively. This limits their ability to plan relevant and motivating learning experiences which meet individual children's needs and provide sufficient stimulation and challenge. Staff do not effectively observe, evaluate and assess children’s progress, although, each child has an assessment record in place it is not used to systematically identify appropriate learning priorities for each child. Planning does not adequately cover all areas of learning in a broad range of motivating experiences for each child’s stage of development. As a result, staff are not able to adequately help children learn and develop to their full potential.

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The quality and standards of the early years provision

Staff have developed warm relationships with children and babies enjoy being cuddled. They engage with the children when they are not busy with chores and other duties. However, children in the pre-school room have few opportunities to develop their independence skills given their capability and starting points and this affects their disposition to learn. Not enough information is gathered about children's home languages and staff do not work closely with parents to ensure cultural diversity is embraced and respected. However, links are developed with parents and carers to discuss the child’s care and keep them informed. An adequate system is in place to support children who have learning difficulties and/or disabilities. Although children show an interest in art activities they have fewer opportunities to express and develop their own ideas because adults are over concerned with the end result. This means children have insufficient challenge

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The quality and standards of the early years provision

and it inhibits their ability to create, experiment and learn independently.

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The quality and standards of the early years provision

Children label simple shapes and colours and sing songs to learn about numbers and counting. Babies play with shape sorters and push and play toys. However, they are not adequately supported in developing their understanding of problem solving, reasoning and numeracy in a broad range of contexts. Children enjoy visits from people in the community and photographs show them dressed as police officers and they explain ‘that’s us being a policemen’. Children have opportunities to draw and look at books, and they enjoy painting with water or making marks This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 with chalk outdoors. However, they make limited progress in their communication, language and literacy skills because they are insufficiently supported and activities lack challenge. Children have fewer opportunities to explore and experiment and find out things for themselves because sometimes adults do too much for them. As

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The quality and standards of the early years provision

a consequence, children’s future economic well-being is not adequately supported.

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The quality and standards of the early years provision

Children enjoy opportunities to play outdoors, they run around in the sunshine, competently riding on trikes and crawling through tunnels so they benefit from exercise and fresh air. Babies who are mobile have space to move around and to pull themselves up to standing. However, the outdoor space is not always used effectively to support children's learning where they have freedom to explore and use their senses in meaningful experiences. Children are learning about the importance of a varied and nutritious diet, they are provided with healthy snacks and meals, which include lots of fresh fruit and vegetables and these are prepared and cooked daily on the premises. Staff are aware of children's individual dietary requirements and any specific needs are well catered for. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Annex A: record of inspection judgements

The key inspection judgements and what they mean

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Annex A: record of inspection judgements

Grade 1 is Outstanding: this aspect of the provision is of exceptionally high quality Grade 2 is Good: this aspect of the provision is strong Grade 3 is Satisfactory: this aspect of the provision is sound Grade 4 is Inadequate: this aspect of the provision is not good enough

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of children in the Early Years Foundation Stage?

How well does the provision promote inclusive practice? 4 The capacity of the provision to maintain continuous improvement.

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Foundation Stage led and managed?

How effective is the setting’s self-evaluation, including the steps taken to promote improvement? How well does the setting work in partnership with parents and others? How well are children safeguarded? 3

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Years Foundation Stage promoted?

How well are children helped to stay safe? 3 How well are children helped to be healthy? 3 How well are children helped to enjoy and achieve? 4 How well are children helped to make a positive contribution? How well are children helped develop skills that will contribute to their future economic well-being?

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Years Foundation Stage promoted?

procedures set out in the guidance available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Annex B: the Childcare Register

The provider confirms that the requirements of the compulsory part of the Childcare Register are: Met

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