Tic-Toc Day Nursery

Tic-Toc Day Nursery Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY388255 Inspection date 11/03/2010 Inspector Linda Close

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Setting address 11-13 Chiswick High Road, Chiswick, London, W4 2ND

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Telephone number 0208 748 5888 Email vouchers.dynamite@fsmail.net 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 . 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: 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

Tic-Toc Day Nursery is run by Dynamite Educational Publishers Ltd. It opened in 2002 and was re-registered at its present location in 2009. It operates from a converted building in Chiswick, in the London borough of Hounslow. The setting is registered on the Early Years Register and the compulsory part of the Childcare Register. A maximum of 51 children may attend the nursery at any one time. It is open each weekday from 8am to 6pm for 51 weeks of the year, excluding Bank Holidays. Children have access to an enclosed, outdoor play area. A lift is available for access to the setting. There are currently 58 children on roll and all are in the early years age group. Several children are either learning to speak English as an additional language or hear other languages spoken at home. The nursery employs 12 members of staff, all of whom hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 3 or above. The provider has Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) and Early Years

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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 are safe and secure in the nursery and they thoroughly enjoy learning about the local area and places of interest in and around London. Conscientious, well informed staff successfully promote children's welfare. They help the children to make excellent progress towards the early learning goals given their age and starting points. Partnerships with outside agencies and children's parents are strong and this helps the staff to meet the unique needs of each child. The provider, the manager and the staff team work together effectively to evaluate their work with the children. They identify strengths and priorities for further development and they take active steps to secure the ongoing progress of the nursery as a whole.

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further?

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

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further?

 ensure that staff wash or wipe babies' hands before offering them finger food.

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the early years provision

Safeguarding the children is given a high priority in the nursery. All staff are vetted before employment and visitors to the setting are accompanied at all times after they sign in. Security at the nursery is a strength. Strangers cannot enter the premises unobserved and children cannot leave unnoticed. Staff are confident in their knowledge and understanding of child protection issues. Their knowledge is This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 gained through regular training and they are guided by senior staff who share the information that they themselves gain from courses aimed specifically at leaders. The manager has a hands-on approach to her work and she carefully monitors practice in all areas of the nursery to ensure that policies and procedures are followed and every child is included in all activities.

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the early years provision

Self-evaluation is a shared activity which demonstrates good team working because all members of staff are called upon to reflect on their work with the children and contribute their thoughts, observations and ideas. The manager and the provider share their ambitions for the nursery, and their expectations of the staff, with new practitioners at the time of their initial interview. Seniors ensure that staff are never asked to do any chores that they would not do themselves. They lead by example and share their enthusiasm at room meetings when they involve the whole staff in planning for future development. Professional development is strongly encouraged and staff secure places on worthwhile courses to ensure that they maintain their knowledge and understanding of their work and at the same time they can plan to make progress to positions of seniority. The nursery has secured a substantial local authority grant to develop the outdoor area

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the early years provision

for the children, which shows that this is a dynamic nursery which accurately evaluates itself and makes exciting plans for the future.

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the early years provision

The nursery environment is bright, light, clean and orderly. Staff decorate all rooms with notices, labels, numbers and attractive examples of children's artwork. Furniture, toys and resources both indoors and outside are plentiful, in good condition and suitable for the age of the children attending. Staff ratios are correct in all rooms and the manager works beside her staff from time to time to provide staff cover without having to bring in agency staff. Her work in the various rooms of the nursery also means that she has first hand knowledge of the activities and teaching standards provided for every age group.

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the early years provision

A wide range of valuable and enjoyable activities help children to gain understanding and respect for diversity. They welcome adult visitors who are from other countries, including Thailand, and they learn about other languages, customs and styles of dress. The nursery cook also contributes to children's learning by preparing food from Spain, Poland and the USA for special days. Children and staff are often involved in fundraising initiatives for many different charitable organisations. Photographs show them having fun raising money for Sports Relief, Jeans for Genes, Save the Children and many other charities. The letters and certificates on display demonstrate the breadth of these events, which are actively supported by parents and carers.

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the early years provision

The nursery has established a strong partnership with parents and carers. They report that they hold the staff in high esteem and they feel confident that when they leave their children at the nursery they are in good hands. Parents of the youngest children are particularly pleased with the way that the staff comfort and nurture their babies and they are happy with the way that their individual needs are met. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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and outcomes for children

In all rooms the children are very relaxed, busy, happy and well behaved, which shows that they feel comfortable and safe with the nursery staff. Babies are soothed and engaged by patient, kindly practitioners who consistently focus their full attention on the children. They chat to the babies and sing songs to them and the babies are smiling and contented. Children gain a sense of belonging and security through being cared for by a settled staff team and through following a regular but flexible daily routine. They like to know what will happen next and even the youngest children anticipate the regular events of the day, which include snack times and meal times. Children show a growing sense of independence. They self-register in the oldest group, take their finished art work to the drying rack in the room for rising three-year-olds, eagerly explore and select toys in the toddler room and help themselves to toys in the room for babies. Older children

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and outcomes for children

show that they are gaining an understanding that other children have needs and feelings. They suggest ways to make new children feel welcome and they are learning to take turns and share favourite resources, such as the computer.

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and outcomes for children

Staff show that they are skilful storytellers. They catch and maintain the children's attention when sharing books, which include 'The Loudest Roar' which children respond to with laughter and animal noises. A selection of good quality books is available in all rooms and children enjoy snuggling up with staff to share the stories and the pictures. Mark making is actively encouraged and children's first attempts at writing are displayed around the nursery. Children hold pencils and crayons with growing strength and they use them to make lines and swirls on paper. The construction activities and the use of scissors and paintbrushes is a worthwhile preparation for writing. Older children can already recognise their own names and the names of their friends and some can write their own names with appropriate use of upper and lower case letters. They are learning the sounds and names of the letters of the alphabet through games and discussions with staff.

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and outcomes for children

They show that they know that print carries meaning when they point to the sign over their Den which says 'No grown ups allowed'.

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and outcomes for children

Children of all ages are learning to adopt a healthy lifestyle. They have access to fresh drinking water throughout the day and their meals and snacks are carefully planned to provide a selection of fresh fruit and vegetables. The cook maintains a clean orderly kitchen and she uses fresh produce. She is trained in food hygiene and she follows a strict regime of checking and recording the temperature of the fridge and she checks the core temperatures of food before serving it to the children. The children enjoy their food and they eat well. All children wash their hands before and after meals and snacks, although the babies' hands are sometimes not wiped before they have finger foods.

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and outcomes for children

Children's physical development is actively promoted. They spend time in the outdoor area each day, which means that they have space to run about and play energetic games. Staff lead them in stretching, warm up and cool down activities and they show them how to use bats and balls correctly. Older children play 'follow my leader' and they eagerly suggest different ways of moving in the 'Beans' game, This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 which involves wobbling like a 'Jelly Bean', running like a 'Runner Bean' or jumping like a 'Jumping Bean'. Rugs and mats are provided so that those children who are not yet walking can enjoy play outside. Indoors the non-walking babies are very energetic and mobile. They crawl speedily around the room exploring their environment, looking out of the windows and pulling out low boxes to see what they can find.

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and outcomes for children

Staff actively promote activities that help children to develop skills for their future learning. In addition to early mark making and pre-reading activities they also learn how to solve problems as they play. They learn to count out loud when singing songs such as 'Zoom, Zoom, Zoom' and they are beginning to recognise numerals from the displays around their rooms. Children learn how to use battery operated toys and cameras and older children show a growing facility in using a modern computer. 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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