Chestnut@Earlham Grove

Chestnut Nursery School Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY300788 Inspection date 11/01/2010 Inspector Vivienne Rose

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Setting address 177 Earlham Grove, Forest Gate, London, E7 9AP

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Telephone number 0208 503 0394 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 0300 123 1231, 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: 0300 123 1231 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

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.

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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

Chestnut Nursery School was registered in 2005. It is a part of a group of nurseries owned by Chestnut Nursery School Ltd. It operates from a converted semi- detached premises situated in a residential area of Forest Gate, within the London borough of Newham. The accommodation comprises of four rooms, staff room and office two of the rooms are on the first floor in addition the company office is situated on the third floor. All children have access to an enclosed outdoor play area. The nursery school operates Monday to Friday from 8.am to 6.30 pm for 51 weeks of the year.

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Description of the setting

The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. A maximum of 55 children may attend the nursery at any one time. There are currently 53 children on roll. Some are in part-time places. The nursery currently supports a number of children with special education needs and/or disabilities.

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Description of the setting

The nursery employs 11 members of staff. All staff including the manager hold appropriate early years qualifications. The setting receives support from the local authority early years service and provides funded early years education for three and four-year-olds. The setting is currently taking part in the pilot for funded places for two to three-year-olds. The ground floor of the building with two classrooms is fully accessible.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Overall the quality of the provision is satisfactory.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

The nursery provides children with a comfortable, generally safe and stimulating place to play and learn. Children make satisfactory progress with their development because they enjoy a wide range of play opportunities. The staff work effectively as a team and they organise the provision to promote children's welfare and learning through appropriate systems and procedures. Management and staff work together to identify areas for development and to set targets for improvement which provides benefits for all children. The setting has made significant strides in meeting the recommendations from the last inspection.

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further?

To fully meet the specific requirements of the EYFS, the registered person must:

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further?

 develop a more rigorous system for risk assessment which identifies all hazards within the environment that need to be checked on a regular basis and maintain a record of these aspects and by whom they have been checked; pay particular attention to the baby room ( Safeguarding and welfare) 25/01/2010 This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006  improve staffs' knowledge and understanding of the EYFS so that they provide children with an educational programme that will enable them to make progress towards the early learning goals in all areas of learning (Educational programmes) 22/02/2010

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further?

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

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further?

 continue to develop the systems to monitor and evaluate the provision to ensure continuous improvement is promoted

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the early years provision

Many of the aspects of the nursery's work supports children well. The safety and well-being of the children are at the forefront of the nursery's practice. Thorough vetting procedures are in place for all staff who work in the setting including those who work on casual basis. There is a safeguarding policy in place which has recently been updated. Staff are vigilant and understand their responsibilities to safeguard children, and have recently attended training to update their knowledge. They record any incidents or concerns they have about children. Generally day to day procedures and practice ensure that the building and equipment are safe for children; this includes daily risk assessments, fire evacuation drills and a visitor's book. However, the risk assessment process is not always sufficiently robust, and although completed daily, it does not record the signature of those that carry out the task. Its effectiveness is not consistent and some tasks, such as recording

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the early years provision

accidents to children, and ensuring that babies sleeping arrangements are flexible and conducive to their good health are not monitored sufficiently.

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the early years provision

The setting overall is inviting to children and well organised. There are some picture prompts and labels to inform and guide them, for example, when washing their hands or eating their snack. Children easily access toys and equipment which are stored at low- level to promote independence. The nursery has clear arrival and departure systems in place for children and staff. There is good range of furniture and resources available to meet the children's needs. The nursery's policies and procedures are regularly reviewed to ensure they are current and in line with recent legislation. The setting has started to evaluate its practice to enable managers and staff to build on areas of strength and areas for improvement. The use of parent's views in questionnaires has helped to support their self-evaluation.

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the early years provision

Some of the recommendations from the last inspection have been addressed to benefit the children by ensuring that the baby changing areas provide privacy for children. Observations and annual six-monthly staff appraisal ensures that staff are well supported. Staff are motivated to attend further training which has recently included Safeguarding, First aid and Healthy Eating. This ensures that continuous improvement is encouraged to support the needs of the children. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 The nursery promotes inclusive practice and children are supported as individuals. Boys, girls, children with educational needs and/or disabilities and English as an additional language make progress because staff take their needs into account. Staff are able to provide first language support. In addition they seek information from parents about the child's home language in order that all children feel

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the early years provision

included. Children are developing an awareness of their own culture and those of others as they celebrate various festivals and religions such as, Diwali and Christmas. They begin to understand about the needs of others when they raise money for Children in Need. While there are limited displays of positive images in the classrooms there are some examples in the entrance hallway of people from different cultural backgrounds who help us, to encourage children's awareness. Local walks to the park and shops familiarise children with their local community.

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the early years provision

The nursery has formed links with external agencies such as the local early years, speech and language therapists and nutritionists, and specialists to support children with additional needs. Management are happy to form links with other provisions should children attend more than one setting to promote continuity of care. Partnership with parents is well developed because the setting keeps the parents informed about the activities within the setting through newsletters and displays and the verbal exchange of information on a daily basis. Parents attend open evenings three times a year and are given clear written information about the settings policies includes the complaints procedure. The management and staff have made strides in further involving parents by the use of story sacks which can be loaned to parents to use at home with children.

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and outcomes for children

Children have good relationships with staff which gives them a sense of security. They are busy and engaged in their play. Children know what is expected of them and they become secure in their routines and feel valued. Children's emotional and social well-being is nurtured; the settling in process is individual to each child so that they are able to separate successfully from their parents and carers.

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and outcomes for children

Children are developing an understanding of healthy lifestyles as they are offered healthy meals and snacks for example, bananas, apples and pasta are enjoyed by the children. There are some good hygiene practices in place for example, staff ensure the children's health by following procedures such as adults taking off shoes before entering the baby room and by children learning to wash their hands before snack and after using the toilet. Water is available for children to drink throughout the day. In addition several members of staff have attended first aid training. However, staff do not always record minor accidents when they occur to ensure the wellbeing of children.

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and outcomes for children

Children are learning to keep safe when they practise fire drills and when they discuss stranger danger. Staff remind children to handle tools safely and to pick up items from the floor to prevent tripping. Most children and young babies show that they are relaxed in the care of the adults around them. Children are reminded about hazards in the outdoor area and to walk carefully in the snow and not to This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 climb where hazards may occur. The outdoor area is well resourced and all children have good daily opportunities to climb balance and to learn develop their sense of space and to obtain fresh air. They play happily outside learning about the melting ice and have fun making snowballs.

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and outcomes for children

Staff question children effectively to extend their language and literacy and problem solving skills. Staff make good use of small group activities such as circle time to encourage children to speak out and they listen to children's responses to extend their learning and involvement. For example, older children enjoy sorting and matching shapes and using construction. They count and stack the counters, counting confidently up to ten. Children use pencils, crayons, paint and various media to support their mark making skills and creative skills. Older children recognise their names on the drawer which contain their work and those of others. Some children are beginning to develop pre-writing skills. This promotes children's skills for future life. Children enjoy making the dough and identifying the ingredients, they play with sand, water and they use the medium of clay and enjoy painting their finished products. Access to the computer encourages children's

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and outcomes for children

understanding of simple technology. Babies have fun sticking, gluing and playing with sand and trays with cars and foam to make patterns to stimulate their curiosity and engagement. Children enjoy listening to stories and most rooms in the setting have accessible low-level book boxes to promote children interest and enjoyment of books. However, older children can only independently access a range of books easily when they use the upstairs room for part of the day.

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and outcomes for children

Children are achieving satisfactorily towards the early learning goals. The staff have a general understanding of the EYFS and as a result provide some engaging activities for children. For example, looking at ice in the garden, and making the dough using flour, salt and oil. There is key worker system in place and staff observe and record children's development and individual interests and next steps are devised. However, there are weaknesses in the staffs' understanding and implementation of the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS). This means that not all children are sufficiently challenged in their play. In addition the planning for children's next steps are not always relevant or sufficiently linked with the requirements of the Learning and Development guidance. However, the manager has recognised this as an area for development and has enlisted the help of the early year's advisory service and the company's quality and training executive.

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and outcomes for children

Staff organise activities such as, a multi-cultural day and children regularly pay visits to local shops, parks and the library. Visitors to the group from local police, fire service and the traffic club help to extend children's understanding of the wider world. Children have some access to books for example, about religious customs around the world. However, the manager is beginning to address this as part of a development programme.

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and outcomes for children

Children are developing some independence skills when they find their own coats and put them on before going into the garden. They are well behaved; they respond positively to praise and encouragement by staff. For example, when children help to clear away the toys to get ready for snack time. Children are encouraged when staff say 'well done ' and 'thank you' for helping. Staff use puppets to help children to express any feelings or fears they may have in a secure This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 environment. Children take part in group games and are supportive and caring towards each other when they wait their turn and are asked politely to share with each other. 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 2 The effectiveness with which the setting promotes equality and diversity The effectiveness of safeguarding 3 The effectiveness of the setting’s self-evaluation, including the steps taken to promote improvement The effectiveness of partnerships 2 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 3

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Stage

The extent to which children achieve and enjoy their learning 3 The extent to which children feel safe 3 The extent to which children adopt healthy lifestyles 2 The extent to which children make a positive contribution 2 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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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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