Little Willows Nursery

Little Willows Nursery Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY251433 Inspection date 02/02/2010 Inspector Gillian Walley

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Setting address Chapel Road, Flackwell Heath, High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, HP10 9AA Telephone number 01628 532 738 Email littlewillows@countrysidenurseries.co.uk 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

Children only attend this setting before and/or after the school day and/or during the school holidays. The judgements in this report reflect the quality of early years provision offered to children during those periods.

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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 Willows Day Nursery is one of seven nurseries owned by the Countryside Nursery Company. It opened in 1998 and is registered to provide care for 33 children under three years. The nursery is situated in the grounds of Carrington First School in Flackwell Heath. Most children who attend will progress on to the Willow Tree Nursery in the nearby Middle School. The Nursery is open from 07:45 until 18:00 for 51 weeks of the year. The children have access to two large rooms that are divided by low barriers to enable children to play safely with children of a similar age and ability. Meals are cooked on the premises and there is an enclosed outdoor play area. Ten part time and full time staff work with the children, and there is also a cook. Four staff have early years qualifications to level 3 and six staff have qualifications to level 2. Most staff have a current paediatric first aid certificate. The setting is registered for Early Years and Compulsory Childcare. It

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Description of the setting

works closely with the neighbouring Nursery which has provision for three and four year olds. It supports children who have special educational needs and children who are learning English as an additional language.

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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

Little Willows is an outstanding setting. All children make very good progress because of the high level of care the staff provide for them. The Nursery is inclusive and provides very good support for children who may find learning more difficult. The Manager and her staff monitor their procedures closely and evaluate the provision to identify steps they can take to make further improvements, for example in helping the children to understand that people may live in different ways and have different customs. The setting has an outstanding capacity to improve.

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further?

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

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further?

 to improve the provision further the registered provider should consider further developments to the outdoor area which would provide children with more opportunities for learning

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the early years provision

The newly appointed manager and her staff are a strong and very experienced team, and the manager and her deputy work very closely together. The Nursery has very good links with the other nurseries within the group which share the same policies, systems and procedures. All staff are extremely vigilant about the This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 children’s well-being, safety and security. Visitors sign in, doors are kept locked and gates are secure. There are safety gates to prevent children being near kitchen areas or going into corridors where they could come to harm. There are rigorous procedures for vetting new staff when they are appointed, and there are daily checks of all areas of the premises to ensure that there are no hazards which could cause accidents. Staff induction is particularly thorough so that all adults understand their responsibilities in keeping the children safe. If a child needs to be

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the early years provision

given medicine or a child has an accident two adults take responsibility and they keep good records to share with parents so that they are reassured that their children are very well looked after. When children are sleeping adults check them every ten minutes and keep records of these checks. Fire drills are practised regularly so that the children become familiar with leaving the building in an emergency. All adults can see information about children’s food allergies. The risk of spreading germs is minimised by using different cloths for cleaning different areas. The Nursery is very well organised and runs very smoothly day to day, and all policies and procedures are reviewed every 6 months. All staff update their skills regularly by attending training, for example in food hygiene and first aid, and there are very good routines for ensuring that the children avoid the risk of infection because everything is labelled with their names. The Nursery is kept scrupulously

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the early years provision

clean, for example toys are washed regularly, surfaces are wiped, adults remove shoes when walking in areas where babies may crawl, and each child has his or her own bedding for sleep times. Children have their own cups and they are supervised to wash their hands before eating. Each child has their own bag of personal belongings. The Nursery has improved in many ways since the last inspection report, for example the premises are better laid out so that the classrooms are enclosed, there is a separate room where babies can sleep, which is quiet and comfortable, and there are better ways of organising groups of children to take part in activities so that the children learn more effectively. There is closer attention to children’s personal hygiene, for example they have their own tooth mugs and brushes. Nursery staff work very closely with parents and provide them with detailed information about what the children have done each day. There are daily sheets so

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the early years provision

that parents know what their children have eaten, and they are given plenty of useful information about the Nursery’s routines. Staff make time at the start and end of sessions to talk to parents about their children’s day, and they also show them how they can observe their children’s progress and development at home, which helps the staff to plan new experiences for the children. The staff communicate with parents electronically, even sending them pictures of their children in the Nursery, and parents find this very comforting. There is a notice board giving parents very useful information about other support, for example about medical conditions and there are photos of the staff so that parents can recognise their child’s key worker. Parents receive frequent newsletters so that they are very well informed about what is going on. The Manager and her staff value parents’ feedback so they carry out regular surveys about their views and

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the early years provision

consider these when they are reviewing their practice. The staff encourage parents to take home their children’s Learning Journey files so that they know how they are developing. Parents appreciate being able to attend special events with the Nursery which children move on to such as a sports day and a carol service. The staff take great care to help the children settle in when they move to the next Nursery by taking them on visits and accompanying them during their first sessions This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 in the new setting until the children are completely settled in their new surroundings.

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and outcomes for children

All children make exceptionally good progress in their learning and development because the staff observe them closely and keep meticulous records. They use these records to plan precisely what learning opportunities each child needs and the plans show that the staff specify which children need to be challenged in each activity. They invite parents to contribute to the planning of activities by telling the staff about the children’s interests every 4 weeks, and they provide the children with a very varied range of experiences. There is high ratio of adults to work with the children and to take very good care of them, and the children behave very well because the adults have high expectations of them, they are good role models and the atmosphere is very calm. They treat each child as an individual and know them very well so that the children trust them, grow in confidence and enjoy their time in the Nursery. Each child follows the same routines they have at home, they have

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and outcomes for children

an album of family photos to look at when they want to and when they are old enough to move to the next room their key workers accompany them until they are completely settled. The children can choose from a very wide range of good quality toys to play with which stimulate their imagination, develop their senses and encourage them to investigate, for example there are puzzles and construction sets. The children enjoy early mark making and looking at books, and their pictures are displayed on the walls to give them high self-esteem. Letters, colours and numbers are displayed on the walls so that the children begin to learn to recognise them. When the children have their meals or snacks they sit quietly at tables and learn to good manners, and adults praise them for listening carefully, for behaving well, for sharing and playing well together. The children listen well to stories and enjoy joining in with actions and singing nursery rhymes. The adults

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and outcomes for children

encourage the children to develop new skills, for example in learning to climb steps, and to begin to be independent. They ask the children questions to encourage them to solve problems, for example which toy is larger and which one is smaller, and the children learn to count. Outdoors the children experience a good range of activities and they are taken for walks in the locality. However the Manager and her staff have identified that the area is currently not as well equipped and stimulating as they would like it to be and there is no permanent shade so the children cannot go outside in all weathers. 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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