Bright Horizons Sidcup Day Nursery and Preschool

Asquith Nursery/Creche - Sidcup

Inspection report for early years provision

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Asquith Nursery/Creche - Sidcup

Unique Reference Number EY282665 Inspection date 31 January 2006 Inspector Beverly Hallett

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Asquith Nursery/Creche - Sidcup

Setting Address C/o David Lloyd Leisure Club, Baugh Road, Sidcup, Kent, DA14 5ED Telephone number 0208 309 4922

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E-mail

Registered person Asquith Court Nurseries Limited Type of inspection Integrated Type of care Full day care, Crèche

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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?

Asquith Nursery Sidcup was registered as part of the Asquith Court Ltd group in 2005. It operates from the David Lloyd Fitness centre in Sidcup, in the London borough of Bexley. All children share access to a secure enclosed outdoor play area. A maximum of 36 children may attend the nursery at any one time. The nursery is open each weekday from 07:30 to 18:30 . It is closed for 5 days over Christmas and all Bank holidays. In addition a crèche facility is offered for 13 children each weekday

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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 20 children at weekends. There are currently 36 children aged from 3 months to under 5 years on roll. Of these 9 child receive funding for nursery education. Children mainly come from local community. The nursery employs 12 staff. Of these, 7 including the manager, hold appropriate early years qualifications and 2 staff are working towards a qualification.

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is good. Children learn about the importance of good personal hygiene through suitably organised activities and routines. Children line up at the door and staff take them to wash their hands after using the toilet and before eating meals and snacks. Staff talk to children about why hand washing is important, encouraging their awareness of personal hygiene. Effective procedures, such as, staff consistently wearing disposable gloves and cleaning the changing mat with an anti-bacterial spray sustain good levels of hygiene and help prevent the spread of infection. Children are efficiently protected from infection through the implementation of company written policies and procedures. Children's individual health needs are efficiently met as detailed written information is taken and shared with relevant staff during the admission period. This is also displayed in the rooms for staff to refer to throughout

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Helping children to be healthy

the child's time at the setting, ensuring consistent care. Children enjoy a good range of energetic physical activities, inside and out, that contribute to a healthy lifestyle. Indoors, children competently explore a well thought out environment which offers opportunities to balance, roll, climb and view their world from a variety of different heights and viewpoints. Children take part in music and movement activities and have ample space in which to move around and use large equipment such as soft blocks. Staff supervise children appropriately, although at some times of the day, for example, staff lunch periods, limited staff numbers mean that staff struggle to give children quality one to one time when feeding or if children are distressed. Children are developing some knowledge around healthy eating as they enjoy suitably prepared meals, which follow some healthy eating guidelines and include fresh fruit as dessert. However, this is not always balanced and is not continued at

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Helping children to be healthy

snack times where only biscuits are available for children to eat. Younger children are offered drinks throughout the day mirroring their home routines. Older children can help themselves to water throughout the day from the water table placed in the room, supporting their awareness of their own bodies needs. Special dietary requirements are complied with which ensures children remain healthy. Staff are beginning to follow the Birth to three matters framework and this supports children's overall development. Children have established good relationships with the

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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 staff who interact in a gentle and supportive manner. This enables children to feel happy within their surroundings and maximises their learning opportunities. Children freely go to staff for cuddles and reassurance, developing healthy dependence to support their emotional wellbeing. Children are able to rest and be active according to their individual needs within the main play room and have longer rests after lunch on individual beds.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is good. Children confidently explore a very welcoming environment with good space to offer a good range of activities. Equipment is set out for children to access throughout the day, with some items stored at children's level enabling some independence and choice. Toys and resources are of good quality and are carefully selected to ensure they are suitable for children and provide interesting choices for them. Children's safety is ensured as staff are vigilant in their supervision of children and can call for support should they need it. Children are encouraged to develop good independence yet be aware of their own safety through sensitive interaction and supervision from staff. There are very effective procedures and security equipment in place to ensure the safe arrival and departure of children. Policies and procedures to protect children are thorough and well written, and staff are knowledgeable and confident in their role in protecting children in case of child

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is satisfactory. Children and babies enjoy their time at the nursery and are consistently and appropriately stimulated by the activities they are offered. Children are interested and involved in their play and staff further capture and extend their interest through good interaction; asking questions and encouraging them to develop further knowledge within each activity. Children participate in a fairly well balanced range of activities that include quiet and active play, some of which are adult initiated. This balance of free choice and adult planned activities helps children under three to become autonomous learners and make good progress in all areas of learning. Staff have a basic knowledge of the Birth to three matters framework and use this to plan suitable activities for younger children and babies. Babies and young children are becoming skilful communicators as staff use good interaction skills to encourage

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

and converse with them at all times during the day. Children are becoming competent learners as they confidently explore their indoor and outdoor environment, make marks using paint, crayons and chalks and share songs and stories with caring and familiar adults. The quality of teaching and learning is satisfactory.

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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 Staff use broad topics and themes to plan learning activities to encourage children's development in all areas. Staff note children's skills and interests when involved in planned activities and during free play, ensuring that children's overall needs are met. However, there is currently no system in place to consistently evaluate children's individual learning needs, and those of the group as a whole, against the Foundation Stage curriculum. This makes it difficult for staff to assess if all children are receiving a balanced curriculum and to plan effectively for differentiation within activities. Children participate in all of the activities available with enthusiasm and enjoy good relationships with staff and each other. Children show an understanding of the needs of others, for instance, they help each other and take turns willingly. They show very

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

good independence both in accessing learning opportunities and using self help skills such as pouring drinks at snack times. However, similar opportunities to serve themselves and make choices about portion size is not offered at main meal times. Children communicate with adults and each other with confidence, they respond to questions, listen to stories and enjoy practising their writing skills. Staff read stories to the children, who are able to suggest and predict what happens next. Older children are beginning to recognise letters and words, and link sounds and letters at the beginning of familiar words. Children are developing their understanding of numbers during the opportunities that staff provide when they encourage counting, for example, through the equipment set out on displays. Staff also promote their understanding of addition and subtraction by questioning children during practical activities and using appropriate language such

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

as 'how many', 'more' and 'bigger'. Children are eager to use IT equipment, and take turns to have control of the mouse in group situations extremely well. Staff encourage children to understand time by discussing the days of the week, months and the date. Although there are opportunities for children to learn about nature through posters and plastic animals, activities to collect insects and leaves to look at the natural world in detail are missing. Children are offered a good range of resources to develop their physical skills and dexterity. They enthusiastically participate in outside play and use a good variety of equipment which encourages good awareness of space and develops understanding of various types of movement. However, large physical activity is not planned effectively to ensure children are able to use the range of equipment to its full potential. Children are developing good co-ordination by using paintbrushes, pencils

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

and puzzles, and frequently use self help skills such as pouring drinks and putting on coats for outdoor play to develop physical competence. Children explore a small range of resources such as paint, glue and collage materials in the art activities set out by staff each day. They benefit from the process involved in exploring and creating with these materials without pressure from staff to produce an end product. This supports creativity and feelings of competence in all of the children. Children are confident and adept in producing paintings and drawings.

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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

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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 are treated as individuals, staff know individual children well and use good interaction skills to ensure all children benefit from the activities offered. Children's efforts and achievements are valued, and their positive self image is promoted as staff use lots of praise and encouragement and display individual pieces of work throughout the nursery. However the provision of resources which offer positive images of a diverse society are minimal, and curriculum planning does not include these areas. Children are very well behaved and staff use good strategies to promote positive behaviour in all age groups. Partnership with parents and carers is good. Children settle well and their individual needs are well met as partnership with parents is good. Children experience consistent care due to effective communication

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Helping children make a positive contribution

systems between parents and staff, for example daily record sheets and notice boards which detail care and learning routines. Staff regularly share information about children's progress through parent evenings, children sometimes take reading books and other work home to complete, which reinforces what children are learning about within the nursery.

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Organisation

The organisation is satisfactory. The provision meets the needs of the range of children for whom it provides. Children are cared for by appropriately deployed, suitably qualified staff who have been appropriately vetted, due to effective recruitment procedures. Induction, training, policies and procedures work well in practice, ensuring the efficient and safe management of the nursery. Staff have a basic knowledge and understanding of child development and the Birth to three matters framework which enables them to meet children's individual needs appropriately. Leadership and management of the nursery education is satisfactory. There is a strong commitment to develop the provision and the management have clear aims for the future. Staff and management are competent within their roles and have a basic knowledge of the Foundation Stage and how to use it in practice to support children's development. Staff are supported in their work and ongoing

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Organisation

training is actively encouraged, promoting the professional development of all. Child to staff ratios are sufficiently met, however, at some times in the day the fact that the minimum staff required are on duty has a negative effect on the quality of children's care and interactions.

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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

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Complaints since the last inspection

There has been one complaint made to Ofsted since the provision was registered. The complaint concerned standard 2; that staff were not suitably trained to interact with children effectively to meet their needs. Although it was found that the setting was not in breach of regulations, a recommendation was made to improve practice by developing staff's knowledge and understanding around working with under threes. The setting remains 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): • develop mealtimes to ensure children are always offered a balanced diet which includes healthy choices • ensure staffing levels are always sufficient to provide children with appropriate levels of care and interaction

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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 planning for physical / outside times to maximise children's opportunities to develop large physical skills • develop the environment, toys, resources and curriculum planning to ensure

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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 children develop a positive self image and an awareness of diversity

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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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