The Green Umbrella Day Nursery

The Green Umbrella Day Nursery

Inspection report for early years provision

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The Green Umbrella Day Nursery

Unique Reference Number EY301877 Inspection date 14 December 2005 Inspector Carol Cox

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The Green Umbrella Day Nursery

Setting Address 114a Milton Road, Weston-super-Mare, Avon, BS23 2UW

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E-mail

Registered person Karen Lynn O'Callaghan 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 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?

The Green Umbrella Nursery was first registered in 1997 and opened under this registration with a new owner in 2005. It operates from 7 rooms in a converted, detached house. It is situated in Weston-Super-Mare, North Somerset. A maximum of 45 children may attend the nursery at any one time. The nursery is open each weekday from 08:00 to 18:00 for 51 weeks of the year. All children share access to large and secure grounds.

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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 There are currently 95 children aged from 5 months to 4 years on roll. Of these, 19 receive funding for nursery education. Children come from the local area and attend for a variety of sessions. The nursery currently supports children with special educational needs. It also supports children who speak English as an additional language. The nursery employs 12 staff. Of the staff 11,including the manager, have appropriate early years qualifications at level 3. One member of staff is working towards a level 3 qualification. The setting receives support from the Local Authority.

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is good. Children thrive in a healthy environment where they have opportunities to enjoy regular exercise and outside play in the large gardens. They skilfully use a range of tools and play equipment to develop large and small muscle control, for example, younger children practice climbing on, sliding off and wriggling through their play caterpillar tunnel. Older children demonstrate burgeoning racquet skills when playing with members of staff in an impromptu game of tennis. Babies are encouraged to move freely around their large playroom, where they shuffle to reach toys and show off their ability to roll around. Children's health is well protected through effective hygiene practices. Staff clean all areas used by children daily and use antibacterial sprays on tables before children eat. Adults encourage children to learn good self-care skills and older children confidently use the toilet and wash their hands without prompting. Staff in the baby

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Helping children to be healthy

unit are diligent in their hygiene practice when changing babies' nappies. Although great care is taken to ensure the environment is clean and welcoming for all children, the temperature in the baby room is too cold at times. Children enjoy nutritious snacks and meals and learn about food and healthy eating through routine activities. However they do not become involved with preparing food as part of their routines. Older children help themselves to drinks through the morning and enjoy a range of nutritious snacks and meals which are freshly prepared by the cook. Babies enjoy fruit for snacks and show great pleasure when feeding themselves finger foods. Parents provide food and bottles for younger babies and staff follow rigorous procedures to ensure all food is safely prepared. Most staff have completed food hygiene certificates. Staff in the baby unit ensure that babies' sleep routines are consistent with home through close liaison with parents. Key workers

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Helping children to be healthy

share daily home books with parents to exchange useful information and plan to meet the health and well-being needs of each child. Children are well protected from the spread of infection through sensible exclusion policies which are shared with parents. There is a well-written policy in place to ensure the safe administration of medication and good procedures in place to attend to children if they become ill. Most staff have appropriate first aid qualifications to ensure children receive proper treatment should they have an accident.

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Helping children to be healthy

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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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is good. The nursery offers a bright and safe place for babies and young children to explore and play. Children's freedom to move is enhanced by careful and regular checks made by staff both inside and out. Children are kept safe from harm because the premises are secured, all visitors are recorded and children are never left with people who have not been police checked. The outside play areas are safe, for example, the pond area has been fenced to allow children to enjoy watching fish and wildlife, free from danger. Staff members ensure that the well-organised range of toys and resources are regularly checked for safety and cleanliness. This means that children and babies can make choices about which toys they play with and staff and parents are secure in the knowledge that children will be free from harm. Children learn to keep themselves and others safe, for example, while playing outside a member of staff

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

carefully explains to children why only five of them are allowed in the caterpillar tunnel at any one time. Children are effectively protected from abuse because staff members have a clear knowledge of how to recognise signs and symptoms of different forms of abuse and the clear procedure to follow should they have any concerns. Staff understand the importance of following procedures in line with local guidance and make sure they share any records made about children with their parents.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is satisfactory. Babies and children make generally good progress in all areas. They thrive in an environment where they are offered an exciting array of activities to choose from. In the baby unit babies and toddlers move freely, choose toys and extend their physical skills. Staff use their developing knowledge of the Birth to three matters framework to promote and support learning through child-initiated play. In the baby unit staff have begun to record the learning and development of each child in learning diaries which document each child's progress through well-written observations and photographs; these are shared with parents regularly. Adults interact well with children, which means they are happy and confident and turn to them for help if they are upset. Older children benefit from well organised and resourced activities which help them learn through play. However, at times, activities

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

are planned which are not appropriate for the ages and level of development of younger children. For example, two-year-old children are asked to recognise their name cards during registration and spend long periods waiting for the next activity. Nursery Education The quality of teaching and learning is satisfactory. The pre-school leader has a good knowledge of the foundation stage curriculum and plans activities to cover all areas

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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 of learning. However, other staff are less confident in their knowledge and consequently are not always able to effectively support children to extend their learning. For example, when preparing fruit for snack time a member of staff talks to children about the texture and colour of fruits but does not offer opportunities for them to feel, smell or taste the fruit. Children practice their writing and maths skills in meaningful activities, such as counting cups at snack time and writing labels for wall displays. Staff use the large garden to help children explore the natural world and children enjoy occasional outings to local parks or the library to learn about their community. Children use their imagination when playing with small world toys and in the role play corner which is well resourced and chosen by children.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Staff monitor children's learning through observations which are recorded; however these records are not used to track progress or to identify what children need to learn next. Consequently, children's individual learning needs are not always met and children are not appropriately challenged or supported in daily activities and child-initiated play.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is good. Children are happy and well-behaved. Staff talk to them about the need to consider others and explain how their behaviour may affect others. Children's good behaviour is enthusiastically rewarded through star-of-the-day charts and copious praise and encouragement. Children show good self esteem and are confident to ask for help when needed. Members of staff encourage children to learn about the lives and beliefs of others, through utilising resources showing positive images of a diversity of people and organising well-planned activities which enable the children to share in the customs and celebrations of different cultures. Partnerships with parents are good. Parents are fully involved in establishing routines for babies and enjoy the daily use of home books to describe their child's day. Key workers find this exchange of information vital in helping children settle and become

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Helping children make a positive contribution

happy. The use of regular parents evenings, newsletters and a notice board helps parents learn about the nursery and the activities their children enjoy. Parents of older children are encouraged to become involved in their children's learning through home activity sheets which give suggestions of activities which children can share with their parents to enhance learning in nursery. Key workers share regular verbal and written reports with parents to help illustrate how children are making progress. Parents are invited to open days to learn more about how their children learn. The spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of children is fostered. Children learn and think about the needs of others and value differences, such as realising that younger children may need extra help. They enjoy celebrating festivals from their own and other cultures.

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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

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Organisation

The organisation is satisfactory. Children enjoy a wide range of play opportunities because staff organise toys, resources and space well. Staff are well-qualified and deployed effectively to ensure children are safe at all times. Children and babies enjoy close relationships with staff who clearly enjoy being with them. The new owner and manager have revised policies and procedures to reflect changes in the nursery and there are systems in place to ensure all staff learn about them. Therefore, the setting meets the needs of the range of children for whom it provides. The leadership and management of the nursery is satisfactory. The owner and manager have developed clear systems to ensure all staff training needs are identified and a plan drawn up to meet them. Staff use the Birth to three matters framework effectively to plan for the needs of younger children. Some staff have a clear knowledge of how to use the foundation stage curriculum to promote learning

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Organisation

for older children. At present there is no system in place to monitor and evaluate the provision, for example to ensure that routines and activities help children make progress at all ages.

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Complaints since the last inspection

A complaint was made to Ofsted in August 2005 under National Standard 1 - that the person in charge had not had a suitable persons interview and the person in charge of the baby unit was not suitably qualified. A complaint was also made under National Standard 2- Organisation, that staff ratios were not being maintained. Ofsted made an unannounced visit to the nursery to discuss the allegations. Paperwork was checked and observations made of the daily running of the nursery. A recommendation was made to maintain a daily record of staff's attendance to include actual times of arrival and departure. No further action was taken. 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

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 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): • maintain an appropriate temperature in the baby unit • ensure that planned activities and organisation of the routine are appropriate to promote the learning and development of all children

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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): • devise a system to monitor and evaluate the quality of nursery education and care on offer • further develop staff's knowledge and understanding of how to promote children's learning • further develop the use of assessment records to clearly identify and plan for next steps in learning for all children

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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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