Thrive Cotton Lane

Smarties Nursery Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number 305305 Inspection date 20/11/2009 Inspector Sylvia Cornock

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Setting address Cotton Lane, Cotton Edmunds, Chester, Cheshire, CH3 7PZ

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Telephone number 01829 741608 Email info@smarties.plus.com. 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

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

Smarties Day Nursery was registered in 1989 and is privately owned ; it is one of two settings the providers own. It is situated in Cotton Edmunds, a rural area approximately five miles from Chester. It operates from three distinct buildings, one for babies, one for toddlers and one for pre-school aged children. There are extended secure outdoor play areas for all buildings. The nursery is open Monday to Friday 8am to 6pm, 51 weeks of the year.

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Description of the setting

The nursery is registered to care for a maximum of 93 children in the early years age range at any one time, of whom, 31 may be under two years of age. The nursery currently has 124 children on roll, of whom, all are in the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS). It is also registered on the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. The nursery currently supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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Description of the setting

There are 26 staff who work directly with the children, of whom all hold National Vocational Qualifications (NVQ) at level 3, or level 2. This includes two teachers, with one of these teachers recently gaining an Early Years Professional Status (EYPS) qualification. The setting also employs three supply staff and five auxiliary staff. The setting has achieved the National Day Nurseries Association (NDNA) Quality Counts Accreditation at the highest level. They are members of the NDNA and receive support from local authority pedagogue.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Overall the quality of the provision is outstanding.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Children's welfare needs are rigorously safeguarded. The staff are very professional and they aspire to maintain the highest possible standards of care and education. The setting's highly stimulating and challenging environment enables children to develop independent, active learning as they have fun. Children make excellent progress within their individual learning journey, which is imaginatively shared through excellent partnerships with parents. The continuous improvement through well developed self-evaluation highlights areas for improvement to include, the upgrading of resources for information and communication technology (ICT). Children are valued as unique individuals, and a strong inclusive ethos threads through all aspects of the setting.

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further?

To further improve the high quality early years provision the registered person should consider:

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further?

 continuing with the plans to upgrade resources for information and communication technology. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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the early years provision

The staff's organisation and management are thorough. The safeguarding, complaints and emergency procedures are well known and robust. They have a great enthusiasm for continuous improvement, and a thorough working knowledge of the EYFS. The records, policies and procedures are superbly organised and are highly effective in supporting the service. The focus is always upon helping all children to make outstanding progress and promoting their welfare. For example, staff use daily risk assessments and safety checklists, to ensure that the environment is always safe, clean and fit for use. Robust risk assessments for all outings are undertaken and completed, to ensure children's safety. Each child has their own key person who works closely with parents and carers. They keep daily records of children's progress and make detailed topic and activity plans, to ensure that the six areas of learning are provided in stimulating and varied ways which

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the early years provision

also consider all the outcomes for children. As a result, children's interests are captivated, and they are quickly learning how to be healthy, safe, positive, considerate people with a desire to participate and achieve.

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the early years provision

The strong management team are actively involved within the nursery and are eager to achieve the highest service standards for the local community. The whole staff team is highly motivated towards providing good quality care and education for children. Staff are committed towards their involvement in the self-evaluation documents in order to bring about improvement. They have identified areas for improvement and strive to implement them. For example, through consultation with parents in July they identified dance and drama as an area that needed further development. This was implemented in October through inviting an external weekly dance group into the setting. They are currently looking to upgrade the information and communication technology equipment to further develop children's existing skills. Staff are well qualified and experienced, and annual appraisal systems are in place to support staff and identify future training

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the early years provision

needs. Staff meetings are held on a regular basis to further enhance staff development, and their roles and responsibilities have been clearly established. Consequently, staff work effectively as a team because they feel valued, supported and involved within the setting.

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the early years provision

Staff ensure their knowledge and understanding of individual children's needs are met. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities are progressing well through the Special Educational Needs Coordinator (SENCO), working closely with other professionals and parents. Staff update resources, activity ideas, inputs, policies and procedures accordingly. Staff regularly evaluate the outcomes for the children they are caring for, to ensure that the service continues to effectively improve. The staff organise the space, resources and outdoor experiences with great skill and keep all areas immaculately clean and accessible. This ensures that children receive an extremely rich and stimulating play experience, with a well balanced mix of adult-led and child-initiated play.

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the early years provision

Partnership with parents is superb as staff discuss every aspect of their child's learning and development with them. Displayed information, children's artwork and This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 informative portfolios clearly display to parents the high quality care and education that is offered. Parents are able to access their child's learning profile book. In addition, parents are given their own copies of the policies and procedures of the setting. The staff welcome into the setting parents and carers, as they exchange information, in order to facilitate good liaison arrangements. The setting supports families and children with special educational needs and/or disabilities exceptionally well. Parents are included in what their child is doing, and are encouraged to continue this at home so that they too can enjoy seeing their child develop. The provider has introduced a system to liaise with schools to ensure the

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the early years provision

progression and continuity of learning supports the transition for children.

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and outcomes for children

The learning environment provided by the staff and their personal skills, is inspirational. Resources are varied, stimulating and easy to access. The routines for indoor and outdoor play are consistently used and applied. As a result, all children feel secure, confident and at home, and make significant gains in their learning and development. Their levels of achievement are excellent in relation to their starting points and capabilities.

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and outcomes for children

The staff start with a clear focus upon personal, social and emotional development. There is an emphasis on self-esteem; they teach children to participate, to adopt safe and hygienic routines, to behave with pride in themselves and have consideration for all others. Staff consistently use all their own personal skills and insights into each child to promote this development, making great use of praise and confidence building to successfully teach children to behave well, respond enthusiastically and play cooperatively. They also encourage children's development of communication, language and literacy skills. They provide time for reading as children can freely access books from the wide selection provided. They sit well as some of their friends act out the fairy story 'Cinderella' as they have dressed-up as their favourite character to support 'Children in Need'. They use their imagination as they change the names in the story; for example, the slipper

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and outcomes for children

becomes a wellington and great fun and laughter pursues when the staff member tries to put on the wellington. All children and babies throughout the nursery have stories read to them, they enjoy looking at the print and pictures. They enjoy going for walks into the community and the adjoining field, where they view the environment and collect leaves, acorns and branches for their autumn display.

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and outcomes for children

The staff throughout the nursery extend children's creative and physical skills, their problem solving skills and their understanding of the world, as they engage in a variety of activities which are suitable for their age and stage of development. Staff take every opportunity to develop mathematical skills, as children count objects and use imagination, as they collect items from around the room to add interest to the story. Most of the older children are competent in recognising numbers and letters. All children enjoy the outdoors where they can choose activities which are also available indoors, giving them the choice of indoor or outdoor play; such as, water play, sand, painting, and planting bulbs, vegetables and herbs. They use what they have grown to make soup and talk about being healthy. They select This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 musical instruments which represent other cultures and countries, which are freely

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and outcomes for children

available. Children throughout the nursery are involved fully in all aspects of an activity from start to finish and the staff never waste an opportunity to explain why something happens or how it works.

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and outcomes for children

Children's welfare is promoted by the staff to a consistently high level. They blend daily routines and activities expertly together so that children acquire competency, confidence and independence in all areas. For example, children are taught how to be safe through themes, discussions and taking part in evacuations of the building. The setting promotes healthy eating as they provide children with an understanding of what is good for us, through offering healthy snacks and meals prepared by the cook. Children celebrate different festivals and enjoy the planned visits to other places of interest. This gives them an insight into the environment and the world around us and how items can be recycled. The setting focuses upon emotional and physical health, and cultural diversity, as they embrace and welcome everyone into a wholly inclusive environment. As a result, children exhibit excellent skills. They know how to act safely outdoors, and to make healthy eating

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and outcomes for children

choices and adopt good personal hygiene. They are considerate to others and are self-confident in choosing activities and resources of their choice. 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 1 The effectiveness with which the setting promotes equality and diversity The effectiveness of safeguarding 1 The effectiveness of the setting’s self-evaluation, including the steps taken to promote improvement The effectiveness of partnerships 1 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 1

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Stage

The extent to which children achieve and enjoy their learning 1 The extent to which children feel safe 1 The extent to which children adopt healthy lifestyles 1 The extent to which children make a positive contribution 1 The extent to which children develop skills for the future 1

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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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