Wishing Well Day Nursery

Wishing Well Day Nursery

Inspection report for early years provision

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Wishing Well Day Nursery

Unique Reference Number 253398 Inspection date 06 December 2005 Inspector Ros Church

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Wishing Well Day Nursery

Setting Address 2 Oakfields Road, West Bridgford, Nottingham, NG2 5DN

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Wishing Well Day Nursery

Telephone number 0115 9142233 E-mail wishing.well@easinet.co.uk Registered person Wishing Well Day Nurseries Ltd Type of inspection Integrated Type of care Full day care

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Wishing Well Day Nursery

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 good. 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 satisfactory.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

Wishing Well Day Nursery opened in 1998. It operates from a converted building in the Lady Bay area of West Bridgford, Nottingham. There are separate group rooms for the different age/abilities of children. There is also an enclosed outdoor play area, a soft play room, two indoor play areas, toilets and changing facilities, and a kitchen. The nursery serves the local area. The nursery opens Monday to Friday from 08.00 to 18.00, excluding bank holidays

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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 and one weeks closure at Christmas. The out of school club operates from 08:00 to 09:00 and 15:30 to 18:00 during term time and from 08:00 to 18:00 during school holidays. Children attend a variety of sessions each week. A maximum of 92 children may attend at any one time. There are currently 145 children aged from 6 weeks to 10 years on roll; of these, 46 receive funding for nursery education. The nursery supports children with special educational needs, and children who speak English as an additional language. There are 22 staff who work with the children. Of these, 16 of the staff including the manager hold appropriate early years qualifications. There are three staff currently working towards a recognised early years qualification. The nursery receives support from the Nottinghamshire Local Authority.

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is good. Children are cared for in clean and well-maintained premises. Their good health is promoted by staff who effectively follow the provision's health and hygiene procedures. For example, staff wear disposable aprons and gloves whilst changing nappies, and there are clear procedures for dealing with sick or injured children, so helping to minimise risks of cross-infection. Children learn the importance and value of personal hygiene through well-established routines, such as washing their hands after toileting, and before meals and snacks. Older children are able to carry out these routines with minimal adult support. Children are developing an awareness of healthy eating. They enjoy a good range of healthy and nutritious meals and snacks, these are provided on a four weekly rota to ensure children have a varied diet. Mealtimes are social occasions when children sit within their own group rooms and enjoy each other's company. Babies and children

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Helping children to be healthy

have their individual routines and dietary needs met because staff work well with parents. Older children help themselves to drinks as they require, whilst younger children are offered them regularly to ensure they are not thirsty. Children enjoy physical exercise and have good opportunities within both the indoor and outdoor areas. They are encouraged to develop their large physical skills through a broad range of activities and apparatus provided. Children use a good range of different sized climbing equipment which takes account of various abilities. Pre-school children enjoy activities such as running, jumping and skipping games, and learn to pedal and steer the wheeled toys. Children learn to use small tools such as pencils, scissors and brushes, helping them to develop their small muscle skills.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is good. Children are cared for in a welcoming, safe and secure indoor and outdoor environment. They move around safely in the spacious and well organised rooms.

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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 Babies and children have good access to a broad range of safe and developmentally appropriate play materials, which are organised to allow them to be independent and make choices. Children's art work is displayed around the nursery, which makes the environment attractive and helps children to have a sense of belonging. Children are kept safe within the nursery. Staff maintain good supervision, they identify and minimize hazards by carrying out regular risk assessments on equipment and areas used by the children. Effective procedures are in place to ensure the premises are secure and to monitor children's arrival and collection times. Children learn to take responsibility for keeping themselves safe through daily routines and staff skilfully explaining safe practices. For example, staff reminding children not to

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

climb on chairs, or to pick up items dropped on the floor to prevent other children from falling and hurting themselves. Children are well protected because staff have a good understanding of their role in the child protection procedures and know what to do in the event of any concerns.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is good. Children are happy in the nursery, they are interested and engaged in their play and enjoy their time at the setting. They participate in a good range of activities that stimulate their learning. Babies and young children are able to explore various materials because these are easily accessible to them. Activities in the baby rooms are diverse and cater for babies and toddlers continually changing needs. Babies form strong bonds with the staff who care for them, which increases their sense of well-being. They are able to rest according to their individual needs, which provides consistency with their home routines. Staff are sensitive to the individual needs of children, such as supporting them to settle into nursery at their own pace, and carefully planning transitions when moving up to their next age group. Staff are developing their awareness of the 'Birth to three matters' framework and are

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

beginning to apply this in practice to support children's development. Nursery Education. The quality of teaching and learning is satisfactory. Children make sound progress towards the early learning goals as staff have a generally good knowledge of the Foundation Stage and understand the different ways children learn. Children happily join in activities encouraged by staff who lead by example. Planning links to the stepping stones provides children with a broad and balanced range of activities across the six areas of learning. Staff generally support children's learning well, and encourage them to think and ask questions. However, assessments and evaluations of children's learning are not used effectively, to enable staff to plan activities which provide individual challenge and build on what children already know and can do. Children are confident within the group and show positive attitudes towards learning.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Their independence is developing well as they select activities and resources, and help themselves to drinks of water as they require. Children take turns at being 'helpers' within the group, where they have a special responsibility such as setting out the table for meal times. They enjoy good relationships with staff and each other, and

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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 are able to work in both small and larger groups. Children's language is developing well, many are confident communicators, they enjoy talking about their experiences with staff and one another. Children enjoy listening to stories, and sharing these with others. They know how to use books and take care of them. Children have good opportunities to recognise and write their own names through routine activities, such as finding their names at the meal table. They learn to write for different purposes, such as during role play activities. Children are developing confidence with numbers, many 4-year-olds can recognise numbers up to nine. They consolidate their mathematical skills during the daily routines. For example, at snack time they count out how many cups are needed for

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

the numbers of children within the group. Children develop their confidence in using the computer, as this is available when they require and as adults are on hand to offer support. Older children are developing the skills of using the mouse to complete simple programmes. Children learn to design and make their own models using construction toys, and create their own art work, however, they are not always given a choice of creative materials when activities take place within different rooms. Children use a range of musical instruments and learn about how sounds can be changed to accompany songs.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is good. Children behave well and learn to work harmoniously together. The staff use positive, sensitive strategies for managing behaviour and are good role models. This helps children learn to understand behaviour boundaries, and builds their self-esteem and confidence. Children learn to work well together by sharing and taking turns with activities and equipment. Older children learn to show care and concern for one another, for example, offering others their help when using equipment such as the computer, or pouring out drinks for one another. Children become aware of their own and other cultures through participating in a variety of activities which are linked to festivals such as Christmas, Chinese New Year and Diwali. They use a good range of resources, including books and stories that promote positive images of culture, ethnicity, gender and disability. Effective systems are in place to support children with

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Helping children make a positive contribution

identified special needs. The provision fosters children's spiritual, moral, social and cultural development. Children are cared for by staff who work with parents to meet individual needs and ensure they are fully included in the provision. Staff have regular meetings with the parents to ensure children's individual care needs and routines are being met. Parents of younger children and babies are provided with daily diaries to keep them informed of their child's care and the activities they have been involved in during the day. Parents are kept well informed about staffing, routines and activities through written information including newsletters and informal discussions. Policies and procedures are in place, but are not always easily accessible. The partnership with parents and carers of children who receive nursery education is satisfactory. Parents have access to an outline of areas of learning within the foundation stage, so

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Helping children make a positive contribution

providing some guidance on the focus of their children's activities. Although parents

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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 are able to see children's records on request there are currently few systematic arrangements for staff and parents to share information on children's progress or ideas on ways to support planned learning at home.

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Organisation

The organisation is satisfactory. Children are contented in the relaxed environment and develop settled relationships and interest in their activities. They are grouped in rooms according to their age and ability, where space is used well to allow children to play, eat and rest safely depending on their needs. Additional play rooms are available to enable staff to provide extra activities to meet children's developing needs. The managers and staff work well together, they have a high regard and value all children and therefore consistently promote their well-being. The effective deployment of staff and their clear understanding of their individual roles ensure that children are actively supervised and well supported. Although all the required policies and procedures are in place, the complaints procedure is not in line with recent current guidance and accident records do not always include all the required information. Staff are committed to

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Organisation

training and attend relevant courses to update their practice. The setting is in the process of developing a staff appraisal system. Leadership and management of the nursery education is satisfactory. All staff within the pre-school rooms are involved in the planning process. Some systems for monitoring are in place, however, they are not yet fully effective in identifying all the strengths and weaknesses of the nursery education. Overall, the nursery meets the needs of the range of children for whom it provides.

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Improvements since the last inspection

Since the last inspection, staff have had training in behaviour management and child protection and understand the policies, this helps to ensure children's well-being and safety. Opportunities have been provided for children to learn to form letters correctly and attempt writing for a variety of purposes, such as during role play. Staff are now deployed appropriately to provide effective support for children throughout the day so they do not become restless and lose concentration. Staff use their time effectively and sit with children during activities.

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Complaints since the last inspection

Since 1 April 2004 there has been one complaint relating to National Standard 2: Organisation, about deployment of staff. National standard 6: Safety, in relation particularly to support posts. National Standard 7: Health, dealing with an accident. National Standard 12: Working in partnership with parents and carers, communication with parents. National Standards 13: Child Protection, the staff's knowledge and reporting of incidents in accordance with Area Child Protection procedures. National Standard 14: Documentation, notification to Ofsted of a significant event. This was investigated by an unannounced visit. No breaches of national standards were identified, however, two recommendations for improving

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Complaints since the last inspection

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 practice were agreed. These recommendations have been addressed, and the registered person continues to be qualified for registration. 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

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 good. 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 satisfactory.

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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 all policies are updated with reference to the complaints procedure, and that they are more readily available to parents • ensure all records for the safe and efficient management of the provision are in place, with reference to sufficient detail being recorded in accident records.

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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 the use of assessments and evaluation of children's progress to more effectively inform planning, to increase the challenge and build on what children already know and can do • develop arrangements for staff and parents to share information on children's progress and ideas on ways to support planned learning at home.

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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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