Kingfisher Day NurseryOfsted inspection, 13 Jul 2009

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. Kingfisher Day Nursery Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY302965 Inspection date 13/07/2009 Inspector Diana Pidgeon

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Setting address 150 - 152 Porchester Road, Mapperley, Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, NG3 6LB Telephone number 0115 993 2915 Email 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

Kingfisher Day Nursery is one of four nurseries owned by Kingfisher Day Nurseries Limited. It has been under the current ownership since 2005. The nursery operates from a converted house in the residential area of Mapperley on a main route into the city of Nottingham. Children are accommodated in four rooms according to their age and stage of development, with younger children on the ground floor and pre-school rooms situated upstairs. The first floor is accessed via a staircase. Children have secure areas to play outdoors. There is the playground area that doubles as a drop off and collection point at each end of the day, an enclosed garden, and babies have their own veranda. The nursery is open each weekday from 07.30 until 18.00 for 51 weeks of the year, closing only for public holidays and one week at Christmas.

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Description of the setting

The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and both the voluntary and compulsory parts of the Childcare Register. A maximum of 60 children may attend the nursery at any one time, 54 of whom may be in the early years age range. There are currently 73 children aged from eight months to eight years on roll. Of these, 70 are in the early years range. The children come from a wide area and attend for a variety of sessions. The nursery is in receipt of funding for the provision of free early education for children aged three and four years.

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Description of the setting

The nursery employs 14 staff who work with the children, 11 of whom hold appropriate early years qualifications. Three staff are working towards a qualification. The nursery receives support from the local authority.

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Overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Overall the quality of the provision is good. Children are happy, well cared for and make good progress in their learning and development. Staff implement the policies and procedures appropriately to promote children's health and safety. Staff use their knowledge of children's interests and abilities to provide a personalised learning experience. Partnerships with parents and other professionals effectively ensure all children's needs are met in an inclusive environment. Careful monitoring and regular self-evaluation by the manager and the staff team ensure that priorities for further development are identified and appropriate action taken.

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further?

To further improve the early years provision the registered person should:

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further?

 update the risk assessment to cover anything with which children come into contact, with particular reference to the use of the kitchen door that leads into the children's playground  improve the opportunities for children to use a range of information and communication technologies (ICT) equipment, to use resources that reflect other cultures and abilities, and for toddlers to handle good quality books. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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provision

The management team rigorously monitors and evaluates the setting and this results in them having a good understanding of their main strengths and areas for improvement. They continuously look for ways to improve the practice in the nursery, for example, by updating policies and re-designing paperwork for record keeping. The manager oversees the practice of the staff and is beginning to formalise processes to support staff in their ongoing professional development. Staff work well as a team and implement the setting's policies and procedures effectively so that children's health and safety are promoted. They welcome changes to practice where they see the benefits to the children and contribute their ideas to making such changes successful. For example, staff support the children as they introduce a 'self-service' system at lunch-time and instantly evaluate and make suggestions how this could be improved within their rooms.

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provision

Staff develop warm relationships with all of the children and are particularly knowledgeable about the children for whom they are the key person. Good emphasis is placed on working in partnership with parents and carers, both at the time of placement and throughout the nursery, so that children's needs are known and respected. Parents are really valued as partners in their children's learning and the setting uses a number of ways to ensure they are informed and involved. For example, information about children's development is shared very regularly through their 'Learning Journeys' and parents are invited to contribute information about what the children do at home. Younger children have daily diary sheets to ensure accurate information relating to their care is passed on at the end of the day and ideas for activities that can be undertaken at home are shared. Systems to include children with learning difficulties and/or disabilities are well established.

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provision

The nursery recognises and values children who speak English as an additional language. They display words in languages significant to the children in the room and use greetings that are familiar to them.

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provision

Policies and procedures work well in practice to promote children's health and safety. Staff are alert in their supervision of children and attention to safety. They take clear steps to minimise the risk of cross-infection by following the recognised hygiene routines and explaining to children why this is important. Additional measures, such as providing sanitising hand gel for adults and children as they arrive at the setting, show that the management is committed to minimising the spread of infection. The nursery is secure, with a recently installed fingerprint recognition entry system ensuring only those authorised to enter can do so. Risk assessments and daily checks are used to identify and minimise most hazards with which children come into contact. Whilst staff recognise and, on a practical level, minimise all potential risks the safety of the new kitchen door and children's possible access to the kitchen has not been fully considered. Children are

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provision

safeguarded through effective recruitment, vetting and ongoing checks that ensure suitable adults work with the children. Staff and managers understand their responsibility towards protecting children and are able to implement the Local Safeguarding Children Board procedures if necessary. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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The quality and standards of the early years provision

The nursery promotes children's care and learning well. Children are happy and thoroughly enjoy the range of play opportunities that are available to them in and out of doors. Staff plan activities based around children's interests and take account of the evaluations of previous activities, children's enjoyment of them and how these can be extended to promote learning even further. Staff have a clear understanding of how to extend children's learning and ensure that what is offered supports all areas of the curriculum and is appropriate to the ages and abilities of the children in the group. As a result, children make good progress. Babies benefit from the close attention of their key person who provides consistent care and deals with all of their needs. They form warm emotional attachments that help children gain the confidence to experiment with new materials and explore their environment. Children enjoy using activity centres and they laugh as their actions

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The quality and standards of the early years provision

make the lights flash and the music play. Toddlers love to experiment using coloured glue with a range of different pasta and cereals to use as collage materials. They happily drizzle and spread the yellow glue and feel the different textures of the pasta with their hands. The value of such activities is enhanced through the quality of the staff's interaction with individual children so that particular aspects, such as their communication skills, are reinforced. Older toddlers begin to play organised games such as colour matching, and develop coordination skills as they thread beads onto a string. They enjoy energetic games using wheeled toys and small apparatus outdoors as well as digging in the sand and writing on the white boards. Pre-school children have positive attitudes towards learning and an ability to act independently. They competently recognise their names as they self-register and write for their own purposes within their play.

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The quality and standards of the early years provision

They are good communicators who are able to negotiate with others and are developing the necessary listening skills to enable them to be part of a large group. Staff encourage children to count, sort and solve problems within their play and to use their imagination through role play and dance. Throughout the nursery, children's personal, social and emotional development is promoted well so that they develop a strong sense of identity and self-worth. Children behave well and start to take responsibility for simple tasks such as tidying away toys when they have finished with them. All areas of the nursery are bright and well equipped so as to provide exciting play opportunities for the children. A good variety of wall- mounted items in the younger rooms clearly attract the children and support their manipulative skills. All rooms provide space where children can use messy materials of their choice and areas for quiet play and relaxation, such as nice areas

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The quality and standards of the early years provision

to sit and read. However, some of the books available for the toddler age children to use are rather worn and are not particularly attractive, which means opportunities to help them learn how to care for such items are lost. Overall younger children have some exciting interactive toys to use, but older children have less opportunities to use a range of information and communication technologies (ICT) to support their play.

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The quality and standards of the early years provision

The nursery helps children to develop a good understanding of keeping themselves safe and healthy. Children follow good hygiene practices and describe why it is important to 'wash off germs'. They learn about healthy foods as they sit with staff in small groups to eat their meals and snacks. The new procedure of children This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 starting to serve themselves with food ensures they are fully engaged in making healthy choices. Activities, such as contributing to charity events, help children understand about the wider world. However, their routine access to resources that reflect different lifestyles, cultures and abilities is somewhat limited and therefore restricts the opportunities to further their understanding. Children show a good understanding of safety in the sun and readily apply sun cream and wear hats when out of doors. Overall children are developing the skills needed for the future.

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The quality and standards of the early years provision

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? 2 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? 2

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Years Foundation Stage promoted?

How well are children helped to stay safe? 2 How well are children helped to be healthy? 2 How well are children helped to enjoy and achieve? 2 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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Annex B: the Childcare Register

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

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