Bunnies on the Green Nursery

INSPECTION DETAILS

Inspection Date 29/03/2004 Inspector Name Dilwen Roberts

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SETTING DETAILS

Day Care Type Full Day Care Setting Name Bunnies on the Green Setting Address 60-62 Stockwell Road London SW9 9JQ

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REGISTERED PROVIDER 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

Bunnies on the Green is a privately owned day nursery and has been registered under the Children Act since 1992. The nursery operates from the United Reform Church and has use of two group rooms, kitchen, toilet and washing facilities, office, hall and outdoor play area. There are currently 20 children from 2 to 5 years on roll. This includes five funded 3-year-olds and six funded 4-year-olds. The setting currently supports a number of children who speak English as an additional language. There are no children with special educational needs. Three members of staff work with the children. The group adheres to Montessori principles of teaching. The operational hours are from 08.00 to 18.00, Monday to Friday, for 50 weeks of the year.

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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 Bunnies on the Green is of good quality overall. Children are making generally good progress towards the Early Learning Goals. They are making very good progress in their personal, social and emotional development. There are some significant weaknesses in the programme for knowledge and understanding of the world. The quality of teaching is generally good. Staff plan for a variety of activities covering the six areas of learning. Children work at individual tasks matched to their ability and storytimes are differentiated so that all children have an appropriate session. The staff's management of children and their behaviour is very good. They know the children well and are sensitive to the children's needs, for example, they give individual children the time and space they need. Staff miss opportunities to extend children's learning. Children's vocabulary is not extended and their mathematical

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How effective is the nursery education?

and literacy skills are not extended in practical, meaningful contexts. Staff observe children's learning and are starting to collate these observations. The leadership and management of the day nursery is generally good. The manager works with the children and is therefore able to model good practice, for example, by extending children's learning by joining in their play. She acts on advice and is aware of the strengths and weaknesses of the setting; however, there is not yet in place a rigorous system to monitor and evaluate the quality of teaching. The partnership with parents and carers is generally good. Parents are given good information about their child's progress and how they can help them at home. Children are given homework which the parents appreciate. There are parents' afternoons twice a year.The parents' prospectus gives a brief outline of the six areas of learning.

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What is being done well?

• Relationships in the nursery are very good. Children are very supportive and helpful towards their peers and the adults. They are particularly supportive towards the younger children, for example, they help them to put on their aprons. • Children are well behaved, confident and motivated to learn. • Children's phonic skills are very good. They are able to sound out letters in words. • There are good opportunities for children to count and recognise numbers above 10. They talk competently about the date. • There are some good opportunities for parents to be involved with their children's learning. They are given activities to do at home with their children.

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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 These activities reinforce the work in the nursery, particularly the phonic work.

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What needs to be improved?

• the provision of meaningful, purposeful learning experiences to enable children to use their numeracy and literacy skills to problem solve • the provision for developing designing and model making skills • interaction with the children by some staff, to enable children to develop their vocabulary and learning in practical situations.

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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 Children are confident. Their self esteem is built up by staff who are sensitive to their needs and know them well. The children are fully involved in their activities and persist in their tasks. They have good self help skills and also help each other. They are very supportive of each other, and are well behaved and polite.

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COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERACY

Judgement: Generally Good Children have good listening skills, pay attention to stories and join in with rhymes. They enjoy looking at books and are familiar with their use and organisation, for example, they turn pages in the correct way. They are able to sound out simple words. However they have less time to use these skills in meaningful contexts. Activities such as painting are not extended to include opportunities to write for different purposes.

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MATHEMATICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good Children benefit from individual support to help them count and work with numbers beyond 10. They use mathematical language in meaningful contexts. Their understanding of number, calculating, shape, space and measure is not reinforced by staff during the routines of the day or in other curricular areas.

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

Judgement: Significant Weaknesses Children use information communication technology competently. They are able to talk about past events. They are beginning to find out about the local environment. Plans show that a range of festivals and themes such as Black History Month are explored. However, children have too few opportunities to explore and investigate objects and materials, both indoors and out, and to select appropriate materials for model making.

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PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good Children are able to move safely in a small space, playing with wheeled toys and balls. They use a range of small equipment. The children have good fine motor control skills. There are not enough opportunities for challenging physical activities. The outside area is limiting.

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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: Generally Good Observations, plans and photographs show that children participate in a wide range of creative activities. They are able to sing songs from memory and have planned drama and music sessions. However, they have less time to explore different media independently.

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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

• improve some of the adults' interactions with the children, in order to encourage children's curiosity and to extend their vocabulary • provide activities and a learning environment that enables children to use their numeracy and literacy skills in a meaningful context • improve the organisation of resources for designing and model making, to allow children to independently select materials.

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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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