Portobello Day Care Nursery Ltd

Portobello Day Care Nursery Ltd Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY296614 Inspection date 15/10/2009 Inspector Helen Maria Steven

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Setting address 244 Acklam Road, London, W10 5YG

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Telephone number 020 8962 9306 Email Type of setting Childcare on non-domestic premises to achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children's social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, work-based learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It rates council children’s services, and inspects services for looked after children, safeguarding and child protection. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 08456 404040, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as

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you give details of the source and date of publication and do not alter the information in any way. Royal Exchange Buildings St Ann's Square Manchester M2 7LA

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T: 08456 404040 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk 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

Please see our website for more information about each childcare provider. We publish inspection reports, conditions of registration and details of complaints we receive where we or the provider take action to meet the requirements of registration. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Description of the setting

Portobello Day Nursery is privately owned. It was registered in December 2004 and operates from one room in the Muslim Heritage Centre in the Ladbroke Grove area in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. The nursery is open each weekday from 8.30 am to 5.45 pm for 50 weeks of the year. Children have access to a secure, enclosed, outdoor play area.

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Description of the setting

The nursery is registered to care for a maximum of 10 children at any one time. There are currently six children in the early years age range on roll. Three children receive nursery education funding. The nursery is registered on the Early Years register. Children come from the local community. The nursery currently supports a number of children with English as an additional language.

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Description of the setting

The nursery employs five staff most work on a part-time basis. All of the staff working directly with the children including the manager hold appropriate early years qualifications.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Overall the quality of the provision is inadequate.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

The setting does not adequately safeguard children due to ineffective procedures affecting children’s safety and well-being. Some documentation required for the safe and efficient management of the setting in order to meet the needs of the children is not available. Children’s individual needs are known to their keyworkers and children have developed strong relationships with the adults. They engage in a variety of activities that adequately support their journey towards the early learning goals. Staff have positive relationships with parents and carers which contribute to the children's care and aim to work alongside other agencies when needed. The provider has addressed most recommendations from the last inspection, but does not demonstrate a clear vision or a culture of reflective practice to identify the setting’s strengths and priorities for development that will improve the quality of provision for all children.

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The 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 that there are effective systems in place to ensure that practitioners and other people aged 16 or over likely to have regular contact with children are suitable to do so and make sure that records of the 30/11/2009 This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 information used to assess their suitability are kept to demonstrate that checks have been done (Suitable people)  ensure that any person with lead responsibility for safeguarding children has secure up to date knowledge in order to make certain that all members of staff understand the safeguarding policy and procedure (Safeguarding and promoting welfare) 30/11/2009

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further?

 ensure that there a named deputy who is able to take charge in the absence of the manager and this person is clear of their roles and responsibilities (Suitable people) 30/11/2009

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further?

 make sure that records are easily accessible and available for inspection by Ofsted (Documentation) 30/11/2009

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further?

 ensure that at least two adults are on duty in the setting at any time when children are present (Staffing arrangements) 30/11/2009

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further?

 carry out risk assessments for each and every outing (Safeguarding and promoting children's welfare) 30/11/2009

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further?

 implement an effective policy on administering medicines and obtain prior written permission for each and every medicine from parents before any medication is given (Safeguarding and promoting welfare) 30/11/2009

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further?

 ensure that records kept of accidents and first aid treatment given to children include sufficient details for the safe and efficient management of the setting (Safeguarding and promoting welfare) 30/11/2009

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further?

To improve the early years provision the registered person should:

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further?

 improve children's understanding of safety by being consistent regarding road safety and organise fire drills when children are present  continue to develop systems of observation, assessment and planning to further support children's learning and development

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the early years provision

Arrangements for safeguarding are not robust. Overall staff have a basic understanding of safeguarding procedures and know when to take action to protect children in their care, however not all staff have received recent training to keep their understanding of safeguarding updated. Available documents do not confirm that vigorous recruitment procedures are in place. Criminal record bureau checks are in place for current nursery workers, but support staff and volunteers have yet to receive a disclosure; the provider reports that they are never alone with the children. The risk assessment for the premises takes the form of a daily safety check list; however it is not in line with requirements as the recording system does not indicate who has carried out the assessment and the date. In This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 addition, no permanent record is now kept. There is no specific risk assessment for

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the early years provision

each and every outing as required. In practice staff do not routinely talk to children about road safety when crossing roads therefore not supporting them in developing an awareness of keeping themselves safe. Fire drills are not carried out very regularly and they are organised at an inappropriate time when very few children are present. There is currently no identified deputy who is able to take charge in the absence of the manager. This is a breach of requirements.

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the early years provision

There are detailed policies and procedures in place which have been updated earlier this year; however the policy handbook available for staff, parents and visitors is not the latest version. The provider has addressed most of the recommendations set at the last inspection to benefit the children; however some records still lack required details. The provider reports that they have undertaken a self evaluation, however there is no evidence available at inspection and the provider does not demonstrate how she effectively drives ambition and presents a clear vision of the areas that they intend to develop. The nursery is bright and welcoming and the space is suitably organised. The low level shelving enables children to self select from a varied range of resources. However, the deployment of staff is not always effective, for example at times there are four adults to one child. There are no medication records in place as required for children needing

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the early years provision

long term medication. Some records do not contain sufficient detail, for example, attendance registers do not state the full date or children’s name and accident records contain only first names of children and adults involved. Some entries do not indicate the name of the child at all and therefore are totally ineffectual. The nursery's documents indicate that at times there is only one person on duty when children are present. This is a breach of regulation. There is an electronic staff register which records the times that staff arrive and depart, however this does not feature all the adults working with the children. For example, the manager’s attendance is not recorded at all and therefore the system does not present accurate historical data with regard to staff:child ratios and who is the person in charge at any given time. Documentation is not readily available for inspection as required because it is stored in a locked cabinet not accessible by the person in

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the early years provision

Parents are positive about the nursery and receive feedback each day about their child, both verbally and through written activity sheets which mainly focuses on children’s welfare. The provider reports that they have sought feedback from parents as part of their evaluation; however no evidence is available of this. Staff report that they aim to work with various agencies if needed to ensure children’s individual needs are met.

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and outcomes for children

Children settle well in the nursery, they are confident and have a sense of belonging. Children have developed strong relationships with the staff and their peers, they talk fondly of missing their friends who are not present. However, as safeguarding procedures are not robust this impacts on children’s safety. Although they have some opportunities to learn how to keep themselves safe, it is not This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 consistent and therefore not effective. Children respond to staff’s behaviour management strategies, some of which are more successful than others. Staff speak to the children and each other calmly and with respect. Children make suitable progress towards the early learning goals as staff provide interesting activities and are flexible with their planning if, for example, very few children are present. There are systems in place to record observations, some of which identify

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and outcomes for children

the areas of learning and children’s next steps although there is no clear link with planning. Profile books display photos used as illustrations of observations, the books also contain samples of children’s art work.

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and outcomes for children

Children learn about different cultures and religions as well as their own, there are reflective resources such as books and dolls available and Arabic text in the nursery. Children with English as an additional language are supported as staff speak a range of community languages. Children learn about nature as they explore the garden looking for worms and listen for the sound of birds. They have opportunities to develop their mathematical skills, for example, they count the number of bounces they complete on the trampoline and they discuss the size of the gardening gloves predicting if they will fit adults and children. Beautiful photos of patterns are displayed which have been taken in the local environment, these patterns are then pointed out to children on local outings.

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and outcomes for children

Children are introduced to the pleasure of books as they relax in the cosy book corner and share books with staff members; however more ‘formal’ story times for the children are less successful as they are distracted and somewhat overwhelmed when more adults than children are present at this time. Children’s creativity is enhanced by opportunities to explore musical instruments and role play activities. They engage adults into their imaginative play and children talk about how costly things are saying ’10,000 is expensive!’ Children develop a sound understanding of healthy lifestyles, for example, by hand washing prior to eating and they are offered fresh fruits as a snack as well as presented with freshly cooked nutritious meals prepared in the canteen. Staff are aware of children’s dietary restrictions and adhere to these effectively. Children can ask for a drink during the day when they identify that they are thirsty, but cannot access drinks independently. They

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and outcomes for children

have time each day in the garden for physical play and fresh air. Older children are provided with more challenge as they visit a local playground giving them the opportunity to climb, scramble over nets and whiz down the slides. Children show confidence in using the equipment but as staff do not give them space to use the apparatus freely children begin to reassure the staff that they will not fall and then ask them to step away from the equipment requesting that they ‘move right back near the gate’. Children have resources available to develop their fine motor skills; they use tools to manipulate dough. 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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children in the Early Years Foundation Stage?

The capacity of the provision to maintain continuous improvement

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and managed?

The effectiveness of leadership and management in embedding ambition and driving improvement The effectiveness with which the setting deploys resources 3 The effectiveness with which the setting promotes equality and diversity The effectiveness of safeguarding 4 The effectiveness of the setting’s self-evaluation, including the steps taken to promote improvement The effectiveness of partnerships 3 The effectiveness of the setting’s engagement with parents and carers

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Stage

The quality of the provision in the Early Years Foundation Stage 4

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Stage

The extent to which children achieve and enjoy their learning 3 The extent to which children feel safe 4 The extent to which children adopt healthy lifestyles 3 The extent to which children make a positive contribution 3 The extent to which children develop skills for the future 3

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Stage

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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