Kids Planet Austhorpe

Sunbeams Private Day Nursery

Inspection report for early years provision

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Sunbeams Private Day Nursery

Unique Reference Number 512730 Inspection date 01 March 2006 Inspector Duncan Gill

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Sunbeams Private Day Nursery

Setting Address Austhorpe Lane, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS15 8TP

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Sunbeams Private Day Nursery

Telephone number 0113 2640779 E-mail sunbeams@ukonline.co.uk Registered person Sunbeams Ltd Type of inspection Integrated Type of care Full day care

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Sunbeams Private 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 good.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

Sunbeams Nursery opened in 2001. It operates from four rooms in a purpose built building in a residential suburb of Leeds. The setting is registered to care for 62 children and there are currently 99 children on roll, of these 29 are in receipt of 3 to 4-year old nursery education funding. The nursery is open from 07.45 to 18.00 five days a week throughout the year, except bank holidays and between Christmas and New Year.

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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 19 members of staff working with the children and 13 have early years qualifications to level 2 or 3. One member of staff is working towards a recognised early years qualification.

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is good. Children begin to develop a good understanding about the importance of healthy practices through effective staff explanations, activities and topics, for example, older children know to wash their hands after toileting to get rid of germs and that vegetables make you strong. They are adequately encouraged to practice good routines of personal hygiene as staff encourage children to wash their hands after messy play and toileting, however, they are not reminded to wash their hands before eating. Children are kept effectively safe from the spread of infection as staff fully implement comprehensive hygiene procedures to ensure they are cared for in a very clean environment, for example, cleaning toys, food handling and nappy changing procedures. Children are well cared for in the event of illness or an accident as staff have attended first aid training and follow detailed procedures on health, illness,

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Helping children to be healthy

medication and accidents. Young children's health is promoted and their individual needs are well met with regards to eating and sleeping. Children develop a very positive approach to physical exercise and enjoy daily access to outdoor play using a good range of equipment, such as bikes, slides and a climbing frame to develop their balancing and climbing skills. Older children consistently show a good awareness of the effects of exercise on their body and the importance of healthy practices and have had a visitor in the setting to give them yoga sessions. They move with control, confidence and develop a good awareness of space. They competently operate equipment in a variety of ways, for example, pushing, pulling, peddling and confidently use a range of tools including scissors, pencils, rolling pins and paint brushes. Children are offered healthy and nutritious food during the day. Older children develop an excellent understanding about healthy eating, through age appropriate

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Helping children to be healthy

staff explanations, themes and activities such as food tasting. Children are offered regular drinks and snacks throughout the day and older children can freely choose when to access their snack. Children's individual dietary needs are well met and staff follow detailed procedures to ensure food is safely prepared, including attending food hygiene training, food temperature checks and fully implementing a detailed policy on food.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is satisfactory. Children are cared for in a clean, bright and well maintained environment, which has good evidence of their play and activity. It is well organised so that children can move

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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 around freely and safely to independently select from a good range of well maintained toys, furniture and equipment, such as role play, dressing up, construction, imaginative play and a wide selection of baby toys. Children are very interested in the resources available and toys and equipment are stimulating, fun, interesting and provide good age appropriate challenges. Risk of accidental injuries to children are minimised through a range of safety measures in place, use of thorough risk assessments, a detailed health and safety policy and monitoring accidents to see if anything can be done to reduce the risk of harm to children. Children benefit from a suitable range of safety measures, for example, monitoring access to the provision, yearly checks to electrical equipment

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

and fire extinguishers, however, not all electrical sockets are covered and this poses a risk to children. Children develop a satisfactory understanding about safety in the setting. Staff provide age appropriate staff explanations, such as requests to pick toys up from the floor to prevent someone tripping over and question children to encourage them to think about the reasons behind safety boundaries, for example, walking in the corridor. Children have visitors to the setting, including the fire brigade but they are not regularly involved in practicing the emergency escape plan. Children are well protected from possible abuse or neglect. Staff have attended training and have a good understanding of the signs and symptoms of abuse and the procedure to follow with any concerns, to ensure children's welfare is the first priority.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is good. All children enjoy a wide range of interesting activities, which fully involve them and develop their imagination, language, mathematical thinking and creative development, for example role play, construction, arts and crafts. Their independence is well promoted. Older children choose when to have snack, pour their own drinks at snack time and wash their hands independently after messy play and toileting. All children move around the setting confidently, freely accessing toys and equipment. Children are keen to communicate and build strong relationships with other children, playing well together and showing concern for each others feelings. They are very happy at the setting and enjoy their time there. Children thrive from strong relationships with staff, who are very interested in them, asking questions to make them think and responding giving praise and encouragement. Young children and

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

babies all round development is fostered and staff are beginning to successfully implement the Birth to three matters framework. They develop their self confidence and early communication skills well through quality interactions with staff, who talk actions through with young children and respond to the noises they make. They begin to explore the world around them through a wide range of experiences including music, sensory activities, arts and crafts. Children's development is effectively monitored through regular, detailed observations and assessment records, which are kept on each child. Nursery Education: The quality of teaching and learning is good. Staff have a good knowledge and understanding of the foundation stage curriculum. They have

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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 attended appropriate training and effectively use this to provide a broad range of experiences to further children's development in all areas. Detailed assessment records for each child clearly show children's approach to learning and their achievements, although, they do not show planning for children's individual next steps in learning. Children's interest in learning is stimulated in a well organised room, where resources are freely accessible, attractively set out and effectively used to provide good age appropriate challenges. Children are challenged to think and use their imagination, with the help of staff, who effectively use open questions and age appropriate explanations. Children have a strong exploratory impulse, they are excited and motivated to learn and show a positive approach to new experiences. They build strong relationships

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

with staff and other children and are keen to share experiences, talking about their family and life away from the nursery. Children can successfully differentiate between colours and develop their imagination well through a good range of role play opportunities. They use all their different senses and confidently explore different textures and sounds through food tasting, play dough, musical instruments, arts and crafts. Children successfully use size language in their play, for example, big and little. They competently count to five and beyond and more able children can recognise numbers up to nine. They show an interest in number problems and are given good opportunities to practice their calculation skills, through effective staff questioning at snack time and through number rhymes. Children can correctly identify a variety of shapes and show a good awareness of orientation, successfully completing jigsaws.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

They are confident communicators and clearly talk activities through, reflecting on what is happening. They enjoy books, accessing them independently and listening attentively to stories in small and large groups. They handle books carefully and begin to understand print carries meaning, for example, recognising their names. More able children can write their names, correctly forming letters and children confidently link sounds and letters. Children confidently operate simple equipment, through access to computer sessions and equipment, such as tape recorders, calculators and through role play. They show good interest in the world in which they live, begin to comment and ask questions about the outside world and confidently recall past experiences, talking enthusiastically about people familiar to them.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is good. Children are highly valued as individuals, treated with equal concern and their individual needs are effectively met. They develop a positive attitude to others and have good opportunities to learn about different countries, the wider world and community. Children celebrate different festivals, taste different foods from around the world, have visitors to the setting and can independently access the range of resources to promote equality of opportunity. Effective arrangements are in place to care for children with special educational needs. Staff have attended training on

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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 special needs and they fully implement an effective policy to ensure all children reach their full potential. Children's spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is fostered. Children behave very well. They consistently take turns, learn to share toys and show consideration for others. Children begin to understand right and wrong from clear and consistent boundaries set by staff, who fully implement the detailed behaviour policy. They provide age appropriate explanations and effectively question children to help them understand the consequences of their actions and the reasons behind behaviour boundaries. Good behaviour is well valued and children receive lots of praise and encouragement throughout the day. Partnership with parents and carers is good. Parents build strong and trusting

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Helping children make a positive contribution

relationships with staff and are kept fully informed about the nursery through detailed information about the setting and their child's development. This is done through regular newsletters, access to assessment records, notice boards, parents evenings and detailed daily written feedback for children, although policies are not freely accessible. Parents opinions are regularly sought and they have good opportunities to be involved in the running and development of the setting, through regular questionnaires and a monthly forum, open to all parents for them to meet and express their views. Children receiving nursery education benefit from effective partnership with parents. They are given effective information on the foundation stage curriculum and have good opportunities to be involved in their child's learning, through monthly newsletters with themes and ideas for parents to try at home. Parents can access their children's profiles at any time and have regular

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Helping children make a positive contribution

opportunities to discuss their child's development, including meeting staff at parents evenings.

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Organisation

The organisation is good. The setting is well organised and effective recruitment procedures are implemented to ensure all staff are suitable to work with children. Staff regularly attend and update training and have a good knowledge of childcare and education, which they use to provide stimulating opportunities for all children. Staff are well deployed, they consistently interact with children to give them effective support and encouragement which helps them feel secure and confident. Detailed documentation is in place, regularly reviewed and fully implemented by staff, to help keep children safe and healthy. For example, through detailed policies, routines, planning and the nursery has undertaken an accredited quality assurance scheme. Children benefit from a well structured day with clear and effective routines to ensure they enjoy their time at the nursery. Leadership and management is good. Staff have attended training and have a clear

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Organisation

understanding of the Foundation Stage curriculum to help children develop well in all areas. They use effective planning to provide a broad range of activities, with clear learning intentions for children, although, not all planning was available at the time of the inspection. Effective induction arrangements help staff fully understand their roles

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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 and responsibilities and ensure children benefit from their time at the nursery. Effective review and appraisal systems help staff identify their training needs and their professional development has a positive impact on the children. Detailed assessment records are regularly updated by key workers, who monitor children's achievement and development, although, these are not monitored to ensure planning for children's individual next steps are shown. Overall, children's needs are met.

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Improvements since the last inspection

At the last inspection the setting was asked to ensure a register is kept of children attending in each room and to develop strategies used to foster positive behaviour. They were also asked to develop opportunities for children to develop their independence, counting and calculation skills. Children's attendance is recorded in each room and staff give children lots of praise and encouragement throughout the day to re-enforce good behaviour and to help children build their self-esteem. Children have increased opportunities to be independent, through selecting equipment, activities and moving around their rooms freely. Older children choose when they would like their snack and are encouraged to be independent in putting on coats. Staff use practical activities such as snack time to develop children's calculation skills and children can count competently and begin to develop good calculation skills.

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Complaints since the last inspection

Since April 2004 there have been two complaints relating to National Standards 1: Suitable Person, regarding confidentiality and National Standard 2: Organisation, regarding staffing ratios. On both occasions an Ofsted inspector visited the nursery and found that the provider had taken appropriate action regarding confidentiality and staffing ratios were adequate. No further action was taken and the provider remains qualified for registration.

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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 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

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The quality and standards of the care

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000 take account of the following recommendation(s): • increase opportunities for children to practice good routines of personal hygiene • ensure all electrical sockets are safe or inaccessible and regularly practice the emergency escape plan.

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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 children's assessment records to show clear planning for their individual next steps in learning • ensure evidence of continuous planning for the Foundation Stage is available for inspection.

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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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