Chestnut Tree Day Nursery

The Chestnut Tree Day Nursery 2004 Ltd

Inspection report for early years provision

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The Chestnut Tree Day Nursery 2004 Ltd

EY300179 Unique Reference Number 12 September 2006 Inspection date Judith Harris / Sarah Morfett Inspector

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The Chestnut Tree Day Nursery 2004 Ltd

6a Nuxley Road, Belvedere, Kent, DA17 5JF Setting Address

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The Chestnut Tree Day Nursery 2004 Ltd

01322 463626 Telephone number The Chestnut Tree @ belvedere1.freeserve.co.uk E-mail Chatterbox House Day Nursery Ltd Registered person Integrated Type of inspection Full day care Type of care

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The Chestnut Tree Day Nursery 2004 Ltd

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

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The key inspection judgements and what they mean

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?

The Chestnut Tree Day Nursery has been registered since January 2005. It is a privately owned nursery that is part of a group. It operates from a self contained building in the Nuxley Village in Kent. A maximum of 46 children may attend the nursery at any one time. The nursery is open each weekday from 07:30 to 18:00 all year round. All children have access to the outdoor play area.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

There are currently 52 children aged from six months to under five years on roll. Of these, 16 children receive funding for early education. The nursery supports children with special needs and children who speak English as an additional language attending.

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WHAT SORT OF SETTING IS IT?

The nursery employs 14 members of staff. Of these, nine hold appropriate early years qualifications.

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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

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Helping children to be healthy

The provision is good. The nursery have a very good range of health and hygiene policies and procedures which are effectively used and follow environmental health guidelines in all areas. There are well maintained medication records and good policies for the exclusion of sick children. The effectively used routines clearly support the children to develop a basic understanding of good hygiene. The children have hand washing routines; the older children can visit the toilet independently and know about washing hands; although staff give them gentle reminders. Before they sit for snack or lunch all the children go to the bathroom and staff supervise hand washing to ensure all hands are clean. The nursery is very clean and hygiene is very effectively maintained; staff use anti-bacterial solution to wipe tables and there are good nappy changing routines used by staff.

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Helping children to be healthy

Children are provided with healthy, nutritious snacks, meals and drinks. Drinking water is available in all group rooms for children while they play. Snack is available throughout the session and children are able to go to the table when they are ready. Meals are all freshly cooked on site and menus are displayed for parents. Children are offered a good range of balanced meals and alternatives are offered for children with dietary restrictions. Children’s records show information about any dietary restrictions and this information is very effectively shared.

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Helping children to be healthy

There is an outdoor area for physical play where children can run and play on ride-on and with push-along toys. Children have planned sessions in the garden and each group goes at a different time. The outdoor area is changed daily and the toddlers and pre-school have different equipment suitable to their ages. The babies go out for daily walks to the local park and have a good amount of clear floor space to practise physical skills. The physical play opportunities clearly support the children to develop good skills

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The provision is good. The nursery is clean and very well maintained with well organised play space; there are three good sized group rooms. The toddler and pre-school rooms are set up with areas for different types of play. Children also have access to a quiet area used for small group work and music sessions. Pre-school children have access to a creative and messy play area and a large role play area. The babies have their own room with a nappy changing area adjacent, the room is of a good size and has space for cots, a book corner and lots of clear floor space for play. Children from all groups move around safely in all areas. Pre-school children can go to use the toilet safely and independently. The outdoor play area is at the back of the building and children are always accompanied to and from it. There is a back gate from the outdoor area which is kept bolted at all times. The front entrance has an area where there are displays for parents.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

Entrance is gained by ringing a bell which is answered by staff who ask for ID and ask all visitors to sign in.

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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 Children have a very good variety of toys and equipment that they have free independent access to. Staff have effective systems to check that toys and equipment are clean and safe. All toys and equipment provided are clean and very well maintained. Very good levels of supervision ensure that children are safe and allow staff to check that children are making appropriate choices from resources. Children move around in their rooms with good levels of independence. The babies have toys at their level so that they can make choices about what to play with and they are closely monitored by the staff to ensure their safety.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

There is a good level of safety in the nursery. Daily risk assessments are carried out in each room and a tick list has to be completed to show staff have checked each area. The outdoor area is checked before it is used and risk assessments are done for any new toys or pieces of equipment. There are good policies for assessing risks with a particular annex for babies. Staff talk to children about being careful when moving around, the children know that they must not run inside and must be careful of each other. The level of supervision is very good and allows children to gain good levels of independence. Younger children have a higher levels of supervision and are more closely monitored.

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Protecting children from harm or neglect and helping them stay safe

The child protection policy is comprehensive and the procedure has been recently reviewed and updated in line with the local child protection team guidelines. All staff are given a copy of the policy and procedure to ensure staff understand their roles.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The provision is good. Children are provided with a very wide range of well planned activities and experiences that clearly support their learning and development. The activities for children under three are planned using the Birth to three matters framework. For babies the planning is very flexible and depends on the day and the children's needs. For toddlers activities are planned to meet their needs and to challenge and extend them. There is a daily routine which allows children time and space to explore and investigate through the activities provided. Children have warm close relationships with the adults and they are happy and at home in the comfortable environment. Adults engage well with the children who are excited and animated. Adults sit with the children at play and constantly and consistently support and extend children's learning and development. There is a very good balance of child led and adult directed activities.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

Children are happy, confident, well motivated learners, who have very good levels of personal independence. Children are well behaved and adults use good behaviour management strategies that are directly linked to the children's individual needs. Children have lots of opportunities to practice hand writing at different activities, and some are able to write their names. They have good access to books and there is a set story time each day. Children use a very good range of spoken language, to organise play and develop games. Children use a wide range of maths language; they talk about bigger and smaller and count with confidence. Children learn about patterns, shapes and sizes, lengths and weights. There is a very good balance of child led and adult directed activities, children have free access to a painting, printing and messy play area and good collage materials. A member of staff is a trained drama teacher who takes

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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 the children for drama sessions each week. Children have music sessions in the quiet room and use a wide range of imaginative skills to develop role play games. Children are excited and enthusiastic about the activities provided; they delight in playing with the dough and creating in the craft area.

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

The quality of teaching and learning is good. Planning uses long, medium and short term plans which are clearly linked to the early learning goals and relate to the themes. Staff demonstrate a good understanding of the Foundation Stage and plan effectively to ensure children progress through the stepping stones. The nursery have worked to develop their planning, observations and progress records. A next steps section is available on observations but they are not consistently used. The staff work very well with the children and there is lots of very good interaction that clearly supports the children’s learning and development. Adults engage eagerly with the children making very effective use of all planned and naturally occurring situations to challenge and extend the children. Children are provided with a wide range of activities and they are supported to develop good levels of independence. There is a calm relaxed atmosphere

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Helping children achieve well and enjoy what they do

at the nursery and staff are very flexible about the activities allowing children time and space to develop play and solve problems for themselves where possible.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The provision is good. Children take part in a good range of activities which clearly supports them to gain an understanding of the wider and natural world. There are lots of positive images displayed, displays in different languages and the children are being introduced to sign language. The planning shows that children have looked at some religious and cultural festivals and some resources are available but these are not extensive. The current theme is senses and children have been looking at the sight and touch and through this they have learnt about reading Braille. The children have a wide variety of visits to local and wider places of interest to extend their understanding of their own environment. Children are learning about the natural world, they have activities that allow them to look at growing things and they have planted flowers in the garden.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

The nursery have good systems to support children with special needs. They have a named Special Needs Co-ordinator (SENCO) who has taken part in training and works with support from the area SENCO. The systems includes the use of action and action plus and individual plans for each child.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Children are very well behaved. They are occupied and involved in their play; they organise games and play very co-operatively. Children are calm and settled; the nursery is a calm and comfortable environment where children have good levels of personal independence. Pre-school children are able to organise sharing and taking turns for themselves. The younger children are very well supported to use positive behaviour and encouraged to develop skills for self control. Staff use very good strategies for managing behaviour; younger children are distracted and re-directed and older children are spoken to calmly with lots of support. Staff clearly know each child very well and effectively use behaviour management strategies to meet children's individual needs. Children have lots of time and space to explore, investigate and develop their play.

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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 Partnership with parents is good; there is an effective notice board for parents which is regularly updated. There are displays for parents with information about the early learning goals and the Birth to three matters framework. There is display of information about the themes and events at nursery and a regular newsletter goes out to parents. The full range of policies and procedures are available for parents to view at any time. There is a key-worker system and parents have regular updates on children's progress.

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Helping children make a positive contribution

Spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is fostered

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Organisation

The organisation is good. Children play in a well organised indoor and outdoor play space. The nursery is laid out to maximise play opportunities and provide areas for different types of play. All required documentation is in place. The full range of policies and procedures are effectively used to support children and ensure individual needs are met. Children's records are in place and stored in a confidential manner. Medication and accident records are kept and effectively shared with parents. There is a daily register and parents sign children in and out recording the time, however this system is not consistently used.

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Organisation

Management and Leadership are good. The provider has a clear vision of how the nursery is developing. Good systems are in place to ensure planning and evaluation of activities are effective. There are good support and systems for staff development and staff take part in regular training, individual appraisals and staff meetings. Suitable recruitment and vetting procedures are used and staff have suitable early years qualifications and experience. This is a happy, confident team who are well supported and committed to the ongoing development of the provision. The support and development of the staff team ensures that policies and procedures are consistently and effectively applied and provides staff with tools to do their jobs and to effectively meet the needs of all the children.

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Organisation

The setting meets the needs of the range of children for whom it provides care and education.

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Improvements since the last inspection

The nursery have met all actions and recommendations set at the last inspection. They have re-organised the play space to provide free flow to all areas allowing children access to all activities. Planning for children under three is effectively carried out using the Birth to three matters framework and for the over three-year-olds using the Foundation Stage. Staff demonstrate a good understanding of how children learn through play. Hygiene in the nursery is of a high standard in all areas. Staff show a clear understanding of ensuring children are treated with equal concern and a good range of positive images are available. Partnership with parents is supported by a regular newsletter, and displays of information for parents. Records are effectively shared with parents. Child protection policy and procedure has been updated in line with local guidelines and ongoing training is available.

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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.

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Complaints 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 records 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 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): • extend the positive image resources and include a wider range of festival celebrations. • review the system for recording times of arrival and departure for 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): • review the use of "next steps" for children to inform the planning

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The quality and standards of the nursery education

set out in the leaflet Complaints about Ofsted Early Years: concerns or complaints about Ofsted's role in regulating and inspecting childcare and early education (HMI ref no 2599) 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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