Brooklands Childcare Ltd

Brooklands Childcare

Inspection report for early years provision

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Brooklands Childcare

Unique Reference Number EY295923 Inspection date 15 December 2005 Inspector Lynne Naylor

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Brooklands Childcare

Setting Address 14 First Avenue, Hindley, Wigan, Lancashire, WN2 3EB

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E-mail

Registered person Brooklands Childcare Ltd 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 satisfactory. 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 good.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

Brooklands Childcare registered, to the current organisation, in 2004 and operates from a single storey building in Hindley, Wigan. The nursery was founded in 1991. A maximum of 89 children may attend at any one time. The nursery is open each weekday, all year, from 07.30 to 18.00. Children use the outdoor area at the side of the building. There are currently 113 children aged from 2 to under 5 years on roll. Of these, 77

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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 children receive funding for nursery education. There are currently no children with special educational needs. Seventeen staff are employed to work with the children. Thirteen of the staff, including the manager, hold appropriate early years qualifications.

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is satisfactory. Children independently see to their own toileting needs. They are visually monitored, sometimes accompanied for safety by an adult, to ensure they safely wash their hands. Daily routines such as washing hands, prior to baking and eating, teach children about keeping healthy and personal hygiene. They talk about germs and understand why they wash their hands after visiting the toilet. A local dentist is involved in teaching children about good care of teeth. He visits to show children how to keep their teeth healthy and brush them correctly. Satisfactory nappy changing practices and the implementation of useful recording systems for accidents and medicine administrations also contribute to keeping children healthy. Well organised snack times enable children to freely and independently access healthy snacks and drinks. Due to a good cafeteria system, children identify their own

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Helping children to be healthy

needs and pour drinks of milk or water from small, easy to handle, jugs. They confidently help themselves to bread sticks and raisins and sit on own or together in two's when ready for their snacks. They place a picture on the board to identify they have had a snack. Mealtimes are a pleasant social occasion, with children sitting in small groups with staff, conversing appropriately. They eat healthy snacks such as bread rolls with pizza toppings, scones, fruit and meals such as vegetable risotto, made on the premises from fresh ingredients. Children effectively learn about healthy eating through topic work and the nursery's healthy eating policy. Children receive mixed messages about the importance of hygiene. After lunch, they enjoy helping to wipe down the tables and chairs, however, slack housekeeping means they play in a building that is not effectively cleaned.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children show developing skills in dressing and undressing. They are supported well to change in to and out of dressing-up clothes and outdoor clothes. Children have very good opportunities to develop their physical motor skills. For example, they manipulate dough well using their hands and a range of implements. They also thread a range of items and use construction sets very well. Outdoors, children's health benefits from regular vigorous exercise in the fresh air. They ride vehicles around the garden negotiating pathways and avoiding obstacles. Adults extend activities well to promote children's physical development, for example, children develop balancing skills as they are helped to walk across the pathway of crates they have constructed.

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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 satisfactory. Indoors, children move freely and safely between rooms. Clear induction systems ensure new staff are aware of the procedures required to protect children and keep them safe. However, some hazards, such as the low level window in the computer room and tree branches in the garden, are not clear in the written risk assessment, which makes formal monitoring difficult. Children are kept safe through staff's vigilance and generally good monitoring of their whereabouts. There are times, however, when staff are not always deployed well in monitoring children's interactions, which leads to occasions where children negatively interact with each other. Children independently select toys from a range of safe equipment. Toys and equipment, which are regularly checked for safety, meet the needs of the children who attend. Children are aware of safety rules. Occasionally, they are gently

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

reminded, by staff, of rules such as picking up dropped toys, which encourages them to take responsibility for their own actions and the safety of others. Children effectively learn about road safety whilst on walking outings to the post office. Fire drills occur regularly so children are aware of evacuation procedures. Planned visits from fire fighters and police officers raise children's awareness of safety and stranger danger. Staff follow through the safety messages by thoughtfully introducing visitors and giving children permission to talk to them. Safe collection procedures ensure children leave with a known adult. Children are appropriately protected as basic procedures relating to child protection are known to staff.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is good. Children make good progress in all areas of their development. Independent access to a wide range of equipment and defined play areas means children are purposefully occupied and self-sufficient in selecting resources. Staff make best use of children's independent activities to extend their learning. Adults are particularly skilled at involving children in the activities and asking questions which challenge children or develop their ideas. Children relate well to each other and enjoy a good relationship with staff. They, generally, enter the nursery happily and confidently choose where and with whom they wish to play. Children play together imaginatively with small world equipment, such as cars in wet sand, and dinosaurs with greenery and plants. They move between role play areas, such as the kitchen, doll area, dressing up area and hairdressers, using their imagination and developing an understanding of the world.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The theme of role play areas regularly changes which maintains children's interest. Staff provide and deliver well, an interesting programme of themed, planned activities that cover various aspects of children's learning. This enables children to make links in their learning. These planned activities stretch children's imaginations 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 captures their interests. Nursery Education The quality of teaching and learning is good. Staff have a growing knowledge of the Curriculum Guidance for the Foundation Stage. Plans show what children are to learn, how staff are to be deployed and what resources are needed. Consequently, staff are sure of the purpose of each planned activity, their role and what children are to learn. Useful assessment systems are beginning to identify and record children's good progress through the stepping stones. Records give a clear picture of progress and are used to plan what children need to learn next. Therefore, activities are extending children's learning from their known starting point. Children show care and concern for others, living things and their environment. They are good listeners, confident speakers and enthusiastic singers. Children listen

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

attentively to group stories, joining in appropriately. They have a good sense of time and talk with interest about past experiences. Children have a healthy interest in books. They choose to sit in the comfortable book area and share books, turning the pages appropriately. Children see print used for a variety of purposes. For example, although there are few printed materials in the home role play, there are posters, labelled displays, printed instructions and displayed recipes, which children use when they make dough. Children's writing skills are developing well. Indoors and outdoors, they make their own notes on clip boards. They also enjoy using the writing area which is well resourced with items such as paper, felt pens, pencils and rubbers. Children explore the environment and frequently construct using a range of toys and materials. Links with people in the community and visits to places, such as the post

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

office, successfully teach children about the local community. Children’s attention is drawn to the use and importance of technology in our everyday lives. They are developing good mouse skills when using the computer. Children have opportunities to use their imagination in art and design. Good access to resources enables them to freely choose to create. Children enjoy opportunities to move imaginatively with and without music. They enjoy experiences which enable them to use all their senses, such as baking, food tasting or feeling tinned spaghetti on a tray. Children are familiar with different resources such as paint, crayons, glue and adhesive tapes, and use them for their own purposes. They have sufficient time and freedom to explore their own ideas and are given sensitive support when they meet problems that frustrate them. Many children can count up to 10 and sing number rhymes well, counting up and

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

back. They use early addition and subtraction during daily routine activities, such as working out how many chairs they need and how many more knives they need, to set the dinner table. Children see numerals as labels in the environment, for example, on charts, displays, recipes and the hairdresser's price list. They frequently refer to numbers during spontaneous play activities. Overall, children are making good

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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 progress towards the early learning goals.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is satisfactory. Children's spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is fostered. Children have a good sense of belonging. They cheerfully greet each other and are warmly welcomed by staff, who they find approachable and responsive to their needs. Children take responsibility for their behaviour and are generally well-behaved, polite, take turns and show concern for others. Children know and understand the rules and, in the main, effectively negotiate with each other. Staff prompt good manners, giving children praise for their achievements which helps boost their self-confidence and self-esteem. They adopt appropriate strategies for promoting positive behaviour. However, there are odd occasions when children's negative interactions, with each other, are not noticed and remain unchallenged. This hinders some children’s understanding of right and wrong. Staff provide resources and activities that positively represent the children who attend

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Helping children make a positive contribution

as well as individuals from the wider community. Children gain awareness of their local environment and the diversity of the wider world through a satisfactory selection of resources that promote positive images of others. Children enjoy activities based on their own festivals and celebrations. They also learn to respect the views of others through discussion and planned age appropriate craft activities linked to the festivals of others, such as at Chinese New Year and Diwali. Overall, partnership with parents and carers is good. Parents are warmly welcomed and chat to staff when they drop off and collect their child. Written policies and procedures and regular newsletters provide parents with essential information about the provision. Parents are encouraged to share information about their child when they join the nursery and continue to share information through regular informal talks with staff. This effective communication between parent and staff helps to promote

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Helping children make a positive contribution

children's welfare and safety. Parents of children who receive nursery education are well informed about the curriculum and their child's progress. They are aware of routines, activity plans are displayed, and photographs of children enjoying activities are attractively presented on notice boards for parents to view. Notes on photographs clearly link them to the stepping stones to inform parents about the Foundation Stage of learning. Formal parent evenings are held annually. Parents also receive a written report of their child's progress every term, which includes the next steps for children's learning. Parents do not yet contribute to the formal assessment records. Staff communicate regularly with parents and outside agencies to ensure they are aware of children's individual needs. Children are well supported and included, which helps to promote their all-round development.

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Organisation

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 organisation is good. Children's work and photographs are attractively displayed which creates a warm, welcoming atmosphere. However, poor housekeeping and inefficient cleaning programmes severely affect the overall atmosphere. The building is adequately maintained, although some seats are missing from the children's toilets. There are comfortable areas in each room, where children relax and rest safely. Children aged 2 to 3 years and those aged 3 to 4 years are cared for in two separate units. Each unit has linked rooms which provide children with safe, separate areas for different activities. Within activities, children have good access to additional resources which aids their ability to extend their own play. The staff team, many of whom hold relevant early years qualifications, plan a good

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Organisation

quality activity programme to suit children of varying ages and to support their learning needs. Staff assume their respective roles well which serves to ensure children are appropriately cared for in the setting. There are good systems for recording and monitoring children's progress via the key worker system. Space and resources are in the main organised effectively, resulting in children being able to play and learn in a comfortable and relaxed environment. The required documentation is well organised, up-to-date and stored confidentially. This contributes to the smooth operation of the setting as a whole. Staff implement the setting's policies and procedures to good effect. There is a positive attitude towards developing the educational programme. Staff are keen to increase their knowledge of the Foundation Stage and Birth to three matters framework. Staff in the toddler unit are developing a useful planning system using the Birth to three matters

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Organisation

framework. This is having a positive effect on the range of resources offered to children to support their learning. The operational plan is being developed into a format that can be shared with parents and used to effectively manage the setting. Management and staff have a commitment to build on the quality of the provision and useful record keeping systems are in place which keep most information about children and their families confidential. Leadership and management is satisfactory. There are good induction and appraisal systems in place that support staff’s developmental needs. Training is made available to staff as appropriate with ‘in house’ opportunities being a regular feature. The manager has a clear awareness of the strengths and weaknesses of the setting. A prepared action plan is in place, and methodical progress is being made, to address the self-identified issues. There is a system in place to regularly monitor and evaluate

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Organisation

the strengths and weaknesses of teaching and children's learning. Children benefit from the setting's strong commitment to improving and developing the service. Regular team meetings are a good avenue for sharing information about children's varying needs, therefore, contributing to promoting their welfare. Overall, the provision meets the needs of the range of children for whom it provides.

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Improvements 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

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Complaints since the last inspection

There have been no complaints made to Ofsted since the last inspection. 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 satisfactory. 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 good.

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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): • review and improve cleaning schedules to ensure the nursery is clean and well maintained at all times • review the risk assessment and ensure the following safety issues are effectively addressed: low level windows in the computer room so children can not leave unsupervised and the gate and sharp tree branches in the garden.

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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): • monitor groups of children more effectively, during the times when staff and activities change, so inappropriate behaviour is consistently challenged so children learn agreed values, codes of behaviour and are helped to work harmoniously. (also applies to care)

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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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