Linden House Nursery

INSPECTION DETAILS

Inspection Date 23/02/2005 Inspector Name Julie Youngman (TCCI)

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SETTING DETAILS

Day Care Type Full Day Care Setting Name Linden House Nursery Setting Address 83 West Street Dunstable Bedfordshire LU6 1SE

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ORGANISATION DETAILS

Name Dora Marie De-Leonardis Address 83 West Street Dunstable Bedfordshire LU6 1SE

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ORGANISATION DETAILS

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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ABOUT THE INSPECTION

The purpose of this inspection is to assure government, parents and the public that the nursery education for funded three and four year old children is of an acceptable quality. Inspection of nursery education also identifies strengths and weaknesses so that providers can improve the quality of educational provision and help children to achieve the early learning goals (elgs) by the end of the Foundation Stage. This inspection report must be made available to all parents. If the setting has been inspected previously, an action plan will have been drawn up to tackle issues identified. This inspection, therefore, must also assess what progress has been made in the implementation of this plan.

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Information about the setting

Linden House is a privately owned day care provision, offering care for children between the ages of 2 years and 5 years. It is open from 7.30 a.m. until 6.30 p.m., children attend either part or full time, it does not offer overnight care. The owner is qualified and works with the children, employing an administrator to oversee the day to day running of the provision. At present they employ mainly qualified personnel and include a teacher on their staff list. The nursery is situated in the centre of the Dunstable, and is registered to care for 30 children. The nursery has funding for 3 and 4 year old children.

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Information about the setting

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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How effective is the nursery education?

The provision for nursery education at Linden House Nursery is acceptable and of generally good quality overall. Children are making very good progress in personal, social and emotional development, knowledge and understanding of the world and creative development and generally good progress towards the early learning goals in all other areas of learning. The quality of teaching has some weaknesses. Staff have good relationships with children and demonstrate an adequate understanding of the foundation stage and children's development needs. Children behave well, benefiting from the good variety and range of free play activities provided. Lack of detailed planning means that not all aspects of the stepping stones are covered effectively over time, making the tracking of children's progress difficult. Whole group activities do not effectively meet the learning needs of the different aged children's understanding. The

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How effective is the nursery education?

manageable record keeping and assessment system is based on evaluative, dated observations, linked appropriately to the stepping stones. The setting has a very good variety and range of equipment, promoting children's learning. Leadership and management of the setting is generally good. Staff discuss and review their practice, assessing activities and topics regularly. They share in the development of the resources and provision. The owner is committed to the improvement of care and education for all children, alongside further training for staff. There is insufficient information provided to parents about the six areas of learning in the Foundation Stage and the educational programme overall. The partnership with parents and carers is very good. Daily conversations, newsletters and work taken home keep them well informed. Regular newsletters inform them about the provision and outline topics. Parents are offered an open

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How effective is the nursery education?

evening once a year. A final report and assessment records are given to parents on transfer to main stream school.

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What is being done well?

• very good relationships between children and staff • daily provision for free play activities • language development and support in good conversations about children's own experiences • opportunities for learning to count and use numbers in free play • topics and resources from the natural world including opportunities for children to observe chicks hatching, butterflies and worms •• range, variety and quality of resources

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What is being done well?

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 • flexible sessions, liaison with the receiving school and extended care support for working parents • provision of foreign and other artefacts from parent's holidays, extending very well the multicultural resources

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What needs to be improved?

• planning to include focussed stepping stones in all six areas of learning • short group activities to meet the needs of children at different ages and stages of development and understanding, especially in literacy and mathematics • information for parents about the Foundation Stage, six areas of learning, educational programme and general planning each week

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What has improved since the last inspection?

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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PERSONAL, SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Very good relationships support children's all-round development and learning. Children are encouraged to be independent, taking turns and sharing free play activities and resources. They behave well, understand routines and accept rules set for their safety. Festivals are planned effectively, supported by many interesting, multicultural artefacts supplied by parents.

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COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERACY

Judgement: Generally Good Good conversations and interactions support children's language development. They express their thoughts and ideas and are helped to learn new words. They enjoy stories, concentrate well and join in enthusiastically with pop-up books. Opportunities are missed for children to learn about the names and sounds of letters of the alphabet and to write independently.

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MATHEMATICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good Children are beginning to count, using their fingers for reinforcement. They are beginning to recognise numbers in free play activities, using telephones and tills appropriately. They are learning about shapes, position and quantity in craft work. Opportunities are missed for children to begin to calculate, combine numbers and solve simple problems in practical free play activities.

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

Judgement: Very Good Many good topics include natural materials and opportunities to observe chicks hatching, butterflies and worms. A variety of good quality resources provide opportunities for children to design, build and construct. Everyday technology is used effectively in role play and children have weekly access to the computer, learning appropriate mouse and keyboard skills. Festivals and fund raising help children learn about other people.

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PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good Children have opportunities for physical exploration in daily activities. They enjoy climbing, balancing and sliding on small equipment, demonstrating an awareness of space and each other. They use balls, hoops and bean bags and move in different ways. Healthy issues are given appropriate emphasis and children understand about bodily changes. A good range of toys, construction games and malleable materials are available, helping children to learn to use tools with care and control.

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PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good All aspects of art and craft are covered in 2 and 3 dimensional work through topic linked activities. Children recognise and name colours well, learning about texture, space and form. They enjoy music sessions, clapping in time and using instruments enthusiastically. They enjoy singing favourite songs, moving imaginatively. They express their ideas creatively in role play and dressing up activities, exploring all their senses.

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Children's spiritual, moral, social, and cultural development is fostered

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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OUTCOME OF THE INSPECTION

The provision is acceptable and is of good quality overall. Children are making generally good progress towards the early learning goals. The next inspection will take place in three to four years time.

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WHAT THE SETTING NEEDS TO DO NEXT: THE KEY ISSUES

• develop planning to include some focussed stepping stones from all six areas of learning •• provide short group work, appropriate to the different ages and stages of understanding of children, especially covering all aspects of literacy and mathematics • provide information for parents about the Foundation Stage, stepping stones in the six areas of learning and the weekly educational programme

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WHAT THE SETTING NEEDS TO DO NEXT: THE KEY ISSUES

The provider must draw up an action plan within 40 working days of receipt of this report showing how the key issues detailed above will be addressed. The action plan must be made available to all parents and to the Local Authority if required. An evaluation of the action taken will form part of the next inspection of funded nursery education.

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WHAT THE SETTING NEEDS TO DO NEXT: THE KEY ISSUES

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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