Kindred Market Deeping Nursery and Pre-School

Headstart Nursery (Deeping) Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY330442 Inspection date 24/02/2010 Inspector Sharon Waterfall

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Setting address Towngate East, Market Deeping, Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, PE6 8LQ Telephone number 01778 380992 Email ssjenkikn@aol.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 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

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You may copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as 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

Headstart Nursery (Deeping) operates from a two-storey purpose built building in Market Deeping, near Peterborough. The ground floor includes a baby room including integral milk kitchen and nappy changing area, a large toddler room which is divided into two areas, for children aged up to three years of age. The first floor includes two large open plan classrooms for pre-school children and older toddlers. Children have access to toilet facilities on both levels. There is a fully enclosed play area at the rear of the nursery including a separate area for babies. The nursery has facilities for parking for staff and parents on site. There is a lift in the nursery to the first floor.

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Description of the setting

The nursery is registered to care for 104 children under eight years. There are currently 174 children on role of which 50 are funded three- and four-year-olds. It is open daily from 07.30am to 06.00pm throughout the year, closing only for bank holidays and for one week over the Christmas period. Children attend for a variety of sessions each week. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children for whom English is an acquired language are supported. The setting is registered by Ofsted on both the voluntary and the compulsory parts of the Childcare Register.

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Description of the setting

There are 24 members of staff both full and part-time, most of whom hold child care qualification, many others are working towards relevant childcare qualifications. The manager has a level 4 qualification in Childcare and Education. The nursery is supported by the local authority.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Overall the quality of the provision is good.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Children are cared for in a setting that is dedicated and committed to meeting children's individual needs and helping them to make good progress towards the early learning goals. The leadership and management are effective in monitoring and evaluating the quality of the provision ensuring that any improvements implemented have significant benefits to children's welfare and learning. The setting takes a lead role in establishing effective partnerships with parents, other providers and a range of professional agencies to meet the needs of individual children. Self-evaluation processes identify the main strengths and weaknesses of the provision and enable continual development through staff training and adaptations of the learning environment.

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further?

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

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further?

 encourage children to predict possible endings to stories and events and to consistently develop a simple story, explanation or line of questioning This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006  actively use the information from observations to make assessments of each child's achievements and identify learning priorities, then plan relevant learning experiences tailored to individual children's next steps.

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the early years provision

There is a strong emphasis on keeping children safe within the nursery both through practical procedures and written policies. The designated person with responsibility for child protection works collaboratively with a range of key agencies to promote children's ongoing welfare. Consistent training in identifying and reporting issues of concern is completed by all staff and referral procedures are in line with Local Safeguarding Children Board guidance. The robust vetting and recruitment procedures ensure that all persons employed are suitable to work with children and remain so through regular checks. They receive a comprehensive induction process and a formal appraisal process annually. The inside and outside environment are subject to rigorous risk assessments that ensure risks to children are minimised. Staff are responsible for checking any changes they make within their own rooms and reporting any concerns to the manager. The premises are

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the early years provision

secure and any visitor to the nursery must be verified by a management staff member to authorise entry. Extra safety systems include white boards in each room that inform staff of the total number of children present in the room at any one time. In the rooms where younger children are cared for this includes the number of children that are sleeping and their ages to ensures that staff ratios remain within requirements. The information is also used for continual headcounts of children when moving around the premises.

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the early years provision

There is a clear ethos throughout the nursery and all staff are committed to providing children with good quality care and learning. Regular staff meetings, reviews and a continual training and improvement plans ensure that they keep up to date with new legislation and regulation. New ideas are implemented from training courses such as a 'black and white' area for young babies in the changing area and staff evaluate the effectiveness of the different learning zones in their rooms, making changes to role play and imaginative play areas. Staff opinions and views from parents about the nursery are used to inform the self-evaluation processes, as well as advice and guidance from local authority advisors. The support from management ensures that the staff team are extremely well supported, resulting in a rich learning environment where children make good progress. The nursery has worked hard to improve the resources both inside and

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the early years provision

out to enhance children's play and uses them effectively to promote children's learning. For example; a roadway in the outdoor area enables children to learn about road safety, encourages numeral recognition and provides a one-way course enabling all children to enjoy riding the wheeled equipment. Inside a sensory room provides lights, sound and light stimulation and natural products are provided in all rooms to stimulate children's senses.

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the early years provision

The nursery actively promotes equality of opportunity and works in strong partnerships with parents and other agencies to support and meet children's individual needs. Consistent and inclusive systems of communication with all This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 parents, including those with English as an additional language, result in good relationships. Welcome signs and displays reflect a range of languages and resources are used that value the children's home languages and cultures. Staff learn how to pronounce words specific to individual children in their home language to promote communication, make children feel valued and encourage the other children to understand the importance of different languages. All parents are actively involved in their children's progress as they can access their development folders frequently, take books to share from the library and display their own

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the early years provision

photographs of children's activities at home. Parents evenings enable them to review their child's progress with their key person, however, there is an effective verbal communication on a daily basis. Parents state that they feel very welcomed by staff, their children are respected as individuals and are progressing well. The nursery also works well in partnership with other settings locally, to provide smooth transitions for children and to support a continuity in their learning and progression.

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and outcomes for children

Staff have a secure understanding of the Early Years Foundation Stage and provide a range of interesting and varied activities that support children in achieving good outcomes. Weekly planning links to activities the children have enjoyed doing the previous week. Staff plan activities to link to next steps they have defined but scrutiny of the whole system shows that often staff are only linking these next steps to adult-led activities and some observations are identical as are the next steps planned from them. Some spontaneous observations are done and these are better linked to individual children's specific learning needs. Activity plans clearly demonstrate how staff extend and support children's learning but again they do not clearly evidence how they do this for specific children. Key persons complete observations and assessments for their own key children and in discussion know them well but the documentation does not support this and it is possible that staff

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and outcomes for children

are not challenging children as much as they can to reach their full potential.

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and outcomes for children

Staff in the baby rooms are attentive to the needs of the children, they confer daily with parents regarding children's care needs and meet their individual routines. The resources include many natural and 'every day' products such as wooden implements in the treasure baskets which the children can easily explore. Many different textures are used in play, older toddlers experiment with raw spaghetti, rice and baked beans, they smell the produce, listen to the different sounds such as the spaghetti snapping and discover how the squashed beans hold their shape and can be moulded. Very positive interaction helps the children to become confident and to develop their communication skills. During a singing session the children are involved as they use props which are themed to the songs, whilst young babies smile and enjoy the staff's singing, older toddlers join in with many actions and words. The babies are taken outside daily to experience a new

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and outcomes for children

environment and different activities such as musical instruments. Therefore, the children are having first hand experiences which broaden their learning and develop their curiosity. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 Throughout the older children's rooms there is a wide range of activities and resources available for the children to make their own choices. Children's independence is greatly encouraged as they access their own toys, prepare their own snacks and have responsibilities such as tidying and clearing away at the end of the session. Paints and creative activities are easily available for all children in the older rooms and supports the development of their imaginative and creative designs. Pre-school children enjoy building with old tyres and planks to make obstacles such as balancing beams, this supports their problem-solving skills as they manoeuvre the planks into place and are aware that an overhanging plank

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and outcomes for children

will not be secure enough to stand on. Children use the wheeled equipment to move around large bricks, they ride carefully with their loads and investigate how many high to stack them without them falling. Although children sit well and listen intently to stories, they do not always have broad opportunities to predict the next sequence in the story or develop lines of questioning.

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and outcomes for children

The range of choices and the encouragement of their independence enable the children to be actively involved in the nursery. They are aware of familiar routines and respond extremely well to staff requests, with positive strategies such as the shaking of bells and music used to gain children's attention. Positive praise is used consistently by staff to encourage good behaviour and this is observed throughout the nursery. Children are actively made aware of safety precautions such as walking slowly down the stairs and to have respect for other users of the building as they walk quietly past the sleeping babies. Meals are sourced from a local caterer and are nutritious, the children send the vegetables they grow to them to be included in their meals, developing their awareness of where food comes from and how it is grown. Healthy and nutritious snacks are offered twice daily and older children benefit from regular cooking activities to learn about making

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and outcomes for children

appropriate choices. The children are becoming aware of the importance personal hygiene as they wash their hands frequently and use tissues for noses. A wide range of charity activities enable the children to learn about the similarities and differences in children's lives around the world and the importance of helping others. 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 2 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 2

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Stage

The extent to which children achieve and enjoy their learning 2 The extent to which children feel safe 1 The extent to which children adopt healthy lifestyles 2 The extent to which children make a positive contribution 1 The extent to which children develop skills for the future 2

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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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