Aristotots Nursery School

Aristo-Tots Private Nursery

Inspection report for early years provision

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Aristo-Tots Private Nursery

Unique Reference Number EY270136 Inspection date 18 November 2005 Inspector Dorcas Elizabeth Forgan

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Aristo-Tots Private Nursery

Setting Address Soskin Drive, Stantonbury Fields, Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, MK14 6DP Telephone number 01908 311800

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E-mail

Registered person Aristo-Tots Private Nursery School LTD Type of inspection Integrated Type of care Full day care

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E-mail

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000

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ABOUT THIS INSPECTION

The purpose of this inspection is to assure government, parents and the public of the quality of childcare and, if applicable, of nursery education. The inspection was carried out under Part XA Children Act 1989 as introduced by the Care Standards Act 2000 and, where nursery education is provided, under Schedule 26 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998. This report details the main strengths and any areas for improvement identified during the inspection. The judgements included in the report are made in relation to the outcomes for children set out in the Children Act 2004; the National Standards for under 8s day care and childminding; and, where nursery education is provided, the Curriculum guidance for the foundation stage. The report includes information on any complaints about the childcare provision which Ofsted has received since the last inspection or registration or 1 April 2004 whichever is the later.

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The key inspection judgements and what they mean

Outstanding: this aspect of the provision is of exceptionally high quality Good: this aspect of the provision is strong Satisfactory: this aspect of the provision is sound Inadequate: this aspect of the provision is not good enough For more information about early years inspections, please see the booklet Are you ready for your inspection? which is available from Ofsted's website: www.ofsted.gov.uk.

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

On the basis of the evidence collected on this inspection:

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

The quality and standards of the care are satisfactory. The registered person meets the National Standards for under 8s day care and childminding.

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

The quality and standards of the nursery education are good.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

Aristo-Tots Day Nursery has been registered since September 2003. It is privately owned by Ms Amanda Massey who runs another nursery in Bedford, Bedfordshire. The nursery is a two storey building which is situated in the north of the city and serves the whole of Milton Keynes and surrounding areas. A maximum of 75 children may attend the nursery at any one time. The nursery is open each weekday from 07:30 to 19:30 for 51 weeks of the year. Children may attend on a full or part-time

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 basis. All children share access to a secure enclosed outside play area. There are currently 70 children aged from 3 months to under 5 years on roll. Of these 10 children receive funding for nursery education. Children come from a wide catchment area, as most of their parents travel in to work in the town centre. The nursery currently supports a number of children who speak English as an additional language. The nursery employs 16 staff. Fifteen of the staff, including the manager hold appropriate early years qualifications. One member of staff is working towards a qualification.

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is satisfactory. Children are cared for in a warm, clean, well-maintained and stimulating environment. They stay healthy because practitioners follow current health and hygiene guidance, policies and procedures. Although the hygiene risks have not been assessed for the sleeping arrangements. Parents have not been asked to consent to advice or treatment from a doctor or hospital in the case of an emergency. Children are gaining a good understanding of how to keep themselves healthy. They receive consistent support and guidance from the staff to help them gain independence in their personal care. For example, the children make regular use of the bathrooms that are designed to be inviting to the children, as they have Mickey Mouse features. Babies rest and feed in line with their family routines. The older children fit into the nursery routine and rest after lunch if they need to. They are learning about their body's needs.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children enjoy a wide range of energetic physical activity that contributes to a healthy lifestyle, both inside and outside. They benefit from very regular use of the garden, where they play with a varied selection of toys and equipment, they practise riding wheeled toys, playing with balls and digging and planting. Inside activities include dance lessons, which are very popular. The lobby area is used for planned activities such as practising balancing skills and P.E. activities. Children benefit from an extremely healthy diet. They receive freshly cooked nutritious meals daily, which are prepared on the premises by the cook and include fresh fruit and vegetables. Children with specific dietary needs are also very well catered for. Effective procedures are in place to ensure that they receive appropriate meals. Drinks are always available to the children. At snack time they choose which juice they would like, they also choose from a variety of tempting, healthy snacks.

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Helping children to be healthy

The older children pour their own drinks, gaining pride in their achievements. These times are an opportunity to socialise and be relaxed.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 Appropriate procedures help to keep children safe in an attractive well-presented environment. Risks of accidental injury are minimised as the staff carry out daily risk assessments to reduce hazards, such as with the security of the front door and access to the garden. The children develop a good awareness of safety through practising the emergency evacuation every six weeks. Children move around safely and have independent access to a wide range of good quality resources and equipment. Chairs are not always accessible for staff to sit on comfortably, whilst feeding and comforting babies and toddlers. Children are learning to keep themselves safe; staff give them gentle reminders to take care of equipment and to walk as they go between activities so that they do not hurt themselves or

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

anyone else. Children are well protected by staff who are confident and secure in their knowledge of child protection policies and procedures. They give high priority to the children's welfare.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is good. Children are developing confidence and are happy. They are learning to concentrate and to explore. The majority of the children are well settled and they have formed good relationships with the adults and other children. Children make good friends and play happily together. Babies and toddlers receive lots of cuddles and individual attention, which increases their sense of well being and encourages self-assurance. They benefit from daily routines that reflect their experience at home. Babies have opportunities to experience and enjoy items such as activity toys, rattles and holistic items, which are stimulating. They are also very interested in what they see in the mirror. The older children in the nursery have opportunities to take part in a wider range of experiences such as painting, making collages, playing in the home corner and with small world figures. Babies and toddlers' early communication skills are developed by staff talking

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

and singing with them. Children in the 2-3s rooms play happily alongside each other. They choose from resources that are suitable for their ages and stages in development such as the hospital corner, drawing, puzzles and books. Staff do not always suitably supervise activities. Children enjoy activities with the older children such as stories, dancing and French lessons. They make good use of the lobby area to carry out physical activities. Nursery Education The quality of teaching and learning is good. The children are making very good progress, supported by staff who are gaining a clear knowledge and understanding of the early learning goals. Staff extend the children's learning with interesting challenges introduced through planned activities usually in line with the theme. New systems of planning, making observations and recording children's development

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 against the stepping stones have been introduced this term, which are effective although, these are not being used to formally record individual children's next steps of learning. The environment is stimulating, with four themed rooms being used to extend the different areas of learning such as creative play and role play. These areas are very well resourced with a very wide variety of activities, which the children can freely access. The children's movements between the rooms is restricted in accordance with the daily plans and number of staff working with them. The themes are interesting, such as space and celebrations, and stimulate the children to carry out challenging activities. Children have very good relations with the staff and each other. They frequently work with each other at activities, for example building constructions and playing sorting

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

games. They are eager to talk with the staff sharing news and thoughts. Younger children settle well and are becoming confident in the routines. Children enjoy listening and taking part in stories, anticipating what will happen. They are also becoming familiar with using books for a source of reference. There are many opportunities for children to mark make, they are beginning to write their own names and to recognise letters. Children are gaining a good understanding of numbers; they practise mathematics in everyday play and confidently count to 10. They are leaning about shapes, volume, weight and simple calculations as they play in the numeracy room. Children experience a wide range of media through stimulating activities such as preparing potato cakes and planting seeds in the compost. They have daily opportunities to experiment with water, sand, and paint. Imaginative play is extremely well resourced

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

with various settings provided. The children develop their gross motor skills inside and outdoors; they balance on the large blocks, they dig in the garden and they are take part in dance lessons and P.E. activities.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is good. Children participate fully in activities; they have access to a wide range of interesting and stimulating resources and activities. They learn to respect one another's views and are introduced to different cultures, beliefs and traditions, for example, Eid, Divali and Christmas. They are learning to care for others through taking part in different sponsored activities and sharing the harvest festival contributions with others in the community. They access a very good range of equipment, which promotes positive images of diversity in a wider world. The setting is developing arrangements to care for children with special education needs, although none currently attend. Children are generally very well behaved; they are learning to be polite, to take turns and to share. Most staff use positive strategies to support children while they learn these skills. This positive approach fosters children's spiritual, moral, social and cultural

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Helping children make a positive contribution

development. Partnership with parents and carers is very good. Children benefit from parents' involvement in their learning. Parents' are provided with good quality information

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Helping children make a positive contribution

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 about the Foundation Stage and Birth to three matters. Staff share information with parents on a daily basis about their child's needs and interests and the activities they have enjoyed through daily diaries and notice boards. Newsletters are also used to keep parents informed and to involve them in their child's learning at home. Systems are being developed further to ensure parents are fully involved with their child's progress, such as through reports and parent evenings.

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Organisation

The organisation is satisfactory. The organisation of the nursery is satisfactory. Recruitment and vetting procedures ensure that children are well protected, however sufficient staffing levels are not always maintained. Policies and procedures are in place and are effective in keeping the children healthy, and safeguarding their welfare. The appraisal system ensures that staff are given the relevant training to continually improve and develop their skills and practice and the team meetings are used to ensure that all staff work in a consistent way and are familiar with any changes to the policies. All staff are committed to improvement. Leadership and management of the nursery education provision is good. The children receive effective support especially when working in the smaller key groups. They are making very good progress. The proprietor and manager work with the staff to monitor the nursery education. Staff evaluate the activities to ensure that the areas

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Organisation

of learning have been achieved. The setting meets the needs of the range of children for whom it provides.

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Improvements since the last inspection

The last Children Act inspection recommended that the nursery should carry out fire evacuations regularly and ensure that staff carry out training with regard to the code of practice (2002). The nursery have developed a comprehensive fire evacuation procedure which they practise regularly; at least every six weeks to ensure the children's safety. Two staff are presently attending training on special needs and the code of practice, so that they can inform all remaining staff to ensure that any children with special needs will receive all necessary support.

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Complaints since the last inspection

Ofsted have not received any complaints regarding the nursery. The provider is required to keep a record of complaints made by parents, which they can see on request. The complaints record may contain complaints other than those made to Ofsted.

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 On the basis of the evidence collected on this inspection:

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

The quality and standards of the care are satisfactory. The registered person meets the National Standards for under 8s day care and childminding.

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THE QUALITY AND STANDARDS OF THE CARE AND NURSERY EDUCATION

The quality and standards of the nursery education are good.

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The quality and standards of the care

To improve the quality and standards of care further the registered person should take account of the following recommendation(s): • ensure that staffing ratios are maintained at all times • assess the health and safety risks to children in relation to the sleeping arrangements and take action to minimise these • develop staffs awareness and understanding of effective ways to manage children's behaviour, taking into account their age and stage of development • provide comfortable chairs for adults to sit in when feeding and comforting children • request written permission from parents for seeking emergency medical advice and treatment

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The quality and standards of the nursery education

To improve the quality and standards of nursery education further the registered person should take account of the following recommendation(s): • develop assessments made of children to include the next steps of learning

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The quality and standards of the nursery education

procedures set out in the leaflet Building better childcare: Compliments and concerns about inspectors' judgements which is available from Ofsted's website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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The quality and standards of the nursery education

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000

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