Little Blossoms Nursery Ltd

Little Blossoms Nursery Ltd Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY101663 Inspection date 17/12/2009 Inspector Josephine Mary Hammick

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Setting address Upper Hook Road, Upton-upon-Severn, Worcester, Worcestershire, WR8 0SA Telephone number 01684 592743 Email Littleblossoms@btconnect.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 .

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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: 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

Little Blossoms Ltd is a privately owned nursery that was registered in 2001. It is located in a rural setting one mile from Upton-upon-Severn. It operates from a purpose-built single-storey building set back from the road with its own car park. It has two enclosed outdoor play areas. Children also go for walks in the owner's orchards and use the on-site forest school area. The nursery serves Upton and the surrounding area.

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Description of the setting

The nursery is open Monday to Friday from 8:00 am to 6:00 pm all year except for bank holidays and a week at Christmas. There are currently 110 children on roll. Of these, 36 children receive funding for nursery education. The nursery supports children with learning difficulties or disabilities and children for whom English is an additional language.

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Description of the setting

Thirty seven staff work with the children. The majority have appropriate qualifications to Level 2 or above and others are working towards qualifications. The nursery receives support from a mentor teacher from the local authority, and is a member of The National Day Nurseries Association and Pre-School Learning Alliance.

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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 happy, settled and enjoy their time in the busy and child-friendly environment. Their welfare is successfully promoted in safe, friendly and homely surroundings. Their learning and development are well supported in most areas as staff ensure that daily planned activities and spontaneous play are tailored towards each child's individual learning needs. This promotes inclusive practice as all children are able to participate at their own level. The effective partnership with parents and carers plays a key part in providing high-quality care and early education for individual children. There are robust systems in place for self- evaluation, these are fully developed to ensure the setting is able to make continuous improvements in all areas.

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further?

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

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further?

 develop systems further for ensuring that the premises and equipment are clean to ensure that the risk of cross infection is minimised during free-flow play  develop existing observation systems to ensure that the regular completion of developmental observations effectively monitors the pace of progress for every child. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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the early years provision

Children are safeguarded by a team of staff who have a good understanding of the issues surrounding child protection and recognise that this is their first priority. Children's welfare is promoted as the staff ensure that the setting remains safe, suitable and child-friendly. Robust risk assessments are carried out regularly and a daily safety check ensures any potential hazards to children are minimised. This includes times when children are taken on outings, ensuring all aspects of the event are carefully considered. However, some aspects of cleanliness in the play rooms are overlooked and this poses a risk of possible cross-infection during free- flow play sessions. The provider and staff are enthusiastic, dedicated and work well together as a strong and supportive team. Staff are provided with sufficient time for sharing information across the setting to further improve consistent practice. Staff have high regard for children's well-being and they attend relevant

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the early years provision

training to further develop their childcare practices. The effective policies and procedures work in practice to safeguard children and promote their well-being. Highly effective procedures are in place for the recruitment, vetting, induction and training of staff.

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the early years provision

Children are encouraged to play a full part in the life of the setting because staff understand, respect and value their unique needs. The key person system works well in practice and ensures that the children are cared for by familiar and trusted adults. Positive and caring relationships are developed, with staff working closely with parents and carers to ensure continuity of care is maintained when children move on to the next age group. Children are supported and given time to help them make a smooth transition, often moving with some of their friends, which supports their emotional well-being. Parents and carers are kept well informed of their children’s progress through daily verbal and three-monthly written communication systems. They say that they are very pleased with the care and early education their children receive, and look upon the setting as an extension of the family due to the provider’s and staff’s welcoming and inclusive practice. The

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the early years provision

provider and staff have developed a strong working relationship with the local schools, which assists children with making a smooth transition when they leave the setting. Initial contact has been made with the other settings children attend and further plans are in place to develop this to ensure there is a consistent approach to support individual children with their learning and development.

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the early years provision

Staff deployment is well organised to ensure children are fully supervised without inhibiting their ideas and imagination. Children easily access the broad range of good quality, interesting and stimulating resources, which enables them to instigate their own play. Equipment is stored in low-level units so that children are able to self-select and to help tidy away. The provider and staff have developed self-evaluation systems through regular reviews of the organisation. The setting is continually striving for continuous improvement in all areas. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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and outcomes for children

Children are motivated, enthusiastic and are progressing well towards the early learning goals. They lead and direct their own play, make choices and grow in confidence. For example, they instigate their own imaginative play and staff take the lead from children and provide further resources to extend their learning. Children spend the time socialising and chatting to their friends whilst they play at being fire fighters, or shopping for Christmas presents. As a result, children are developing their creative thinking and communication skills in a stimulating environment.

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and outcomes for children

Children's well-being is promoted effectively. All children relish playing out in the fresh air whatever the weather. They use the wide variety of outdoor equipment to develop their physical skills; for instance, they learn to run, jump and climb the various size- and age-appropriate apparatus. They care for the rabbit and take its care seriously by cleaning him out every day and making sure he has fresh food and drink. All children enjoy the strong commitment to outdoor play, which includes joining in weekly Forest School sessions. Children are well nourished as they receive good quality, freshly prepared meals and snacks, using free-range and local produce. Carefully planned menus ensure children are provided with a balanced diet, which also takes into consideration their likes, dislikes and any specific dietary needs. Older children are helped to serve their own meals, which encourages their independence and self help skills. Innovative strategies are used

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and outcomes for children

by the staff to promote children’s understanding of healthy eating through various activities and projects. For example, children plant and look after vegetables in the garden and learn how fruit is produced by visiting the provider's adjacent fruit farm on a regular basis. They harvest their produce once ripened, which is used as part of the ingredients in their meals and snacks. As a result, children are developing an awareness of leading a healthy lifestyle, and their knowledge and understanding of where some of their food comes from through interesting and exciting activities.

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and outcomes for children

Children have many opportunities to explore, investigate and extend their imagination and problem-solving skills. They eagerly join in with planned activities which support them with extending their learning. For example, they love to join in with the alphabet puzzle game initiated by a member of staff. The children take turns, share and cooperate with each other. Those who find this difficult are skilfully encouraged to respect the needs of others in a kind and supportive way. The younger children enjoy exploring their environment and using various materials and resources with different textures and which help to develop their curiosity and sense of touch. For example, they love to play in the winter wonderland grotto to develop their senses. Staff describe the different textures, such as furry, soft and bouncy, to assist children with further extending their descriptive language. Children participate in activities and events throughout the

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and outcomes for children

year which help them to gain an appreciation of the wider world.

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and outcomes for children

Children’s language and literacy skills are developed through fun and relaxed activities, such as joining in with some of their favourite songs and stories. Young children are supported with building up their vocabulary during everyday activities This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 and routines. For example, they love to sit in the cosy book corner, looking at the colourful illustrated pages whilst staff encourage them to point to the pictures and name the objects they see. Children are generally progressing well in their learning and development as they benefit from a stimulating range of activities which are planned to ensure individual children’s preferences and needs are catered for. Although there are effective systems in place for observing children and assessing their progress, these are not currently recorded regularly enough for all children to

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and outcomes for children

ensure that every child’s individual pace of progress is effectively monitored at all times. 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 2 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 2

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Stage

The extent to which children achieve and enjoy their learning 2 The extent to which children feel safe 2 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 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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