Puffins Nursery

INSPECTION DETAILS

Inspection Date 12/01/2005 Inspector Name Janet Armstrong

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SETTING DETAILS

Day Care Type Full Day Care Setting Name Puffins of Exeter Child Care Centre Setting Address 13 Mont le Grand Exeter EX1 2PD

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ORGANISATION DETAILS

Name Puffins of Exeter Ltd Address Puffins of Exeter Child Care Centres 13 Mont le Grand Exeter Devon EX1 2PD

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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

Puffins of Exeter Ltd has been established for approximately 15 years and is situated in a residential area of Heavitree, near to the city centre of Exeter. The nursery is privately owned and one of eight nurseries in the Puffins of Exeter group, managed by two partners from head office. They are registered to provide care for 40 children up to the age of five years. The nursery is open Monday to Friday from 08.00 until 18.30, 51 weeks of the year. They serve the local community and places are offered to children who come from a range of different backgrounds. They cater for children with special educational needs. They are in receipt of the government funding for three and four year-olds. There are currently 49 children on the register, of whom 14 are funded. The nursery occupies a large semi-detached, Georgian, four-storey house where the children are cared for in three groups, each with its own dedicated staff team.

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Information about the setting

Children under the age of three years are accommodated on the ground floor, while those aged three and above have separate facilities and their own entrance on the lower level. Kitchen facilities provide the nursery with daily cooked meals. Management and administrative staff work on the first floor. Included in the registration is an enclosed back garden. The nursery employs a team of 11 staff, of these eight hold a relevant child care qualification and three are working towards a recognised certificate in child care and education. Support is sought from the Early Years Partnership.

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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?

Puffins of Exeter Ltd provide high quality nursery education and children are making very good progress in all areas of learning. Quality of teaching is very good. Staff have a strong understanding of the early learning goals and schema system and support children's individual learning very well. They use planning systems effectively to support all children on an individual basis linking the schemas key scale points to the areas of learning. Staff support children through a good balance of self-chosen and adult-led activities in a range of situations, such as large and small groups and on a 1:1 basis. They make effective use of questioning to develop and challenge the children's understanding. They exploit all opportunities to develop children's mathematical skills, imaginative play and independence, encouraging and supporting them to make their own choices and develop ideas in their chosen activities. Staff work well together as a team. They are

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How effective is the nursery education?

positive role models and manage children's behaviour in a consistent and fair manner. Children with special educational needs are supported well within the nursery. Thorough assessment systems effectively record children's progress and development through the six areas of learning and are used to guide planning. Leadership and management is very good. A clear, strong management structure supports and develops staff effectiveness very well. There are considerable systems in place that continuously monitor the quality and impact of the nursery education provided and the partnership they have with parents to support children's learning throughout the nursery. Partnership with parents is very good. There are effective systems in place for communicating with parents about the nursery and their children's progress. Parents have daily access to their children's key workers and their written observations and

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How effective is the nursery education?

planning that detail progress, achievements and activities enjoyed.

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What is being done well?

• Children have high levels of independence. They are able to take care of some of their own needs, such as pouring their own drinks, using toilet and hand washing facilities unsupervised and putting on coats and doing up zips for out door play. They have free access to resources to enable them to make their own play choices and select activities of interest to them. • Children enjoy books and stories in a range of situations throughout the sessions. They understand elements of stories and are able to recognise what will happen next and use this to retell and act out familiar stories, such as the three little pigs and what happened next. • Children are developing good mathematical skills to solve simple number problems in a range of situations through daily activities and routines. They

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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 recognise that if they have three marbles in the pot and then add another they will have four, and that if they have four speckled frogs and one is taken away that leaves them with three. • Children become engrossed and lose themselves in imaginative role play as they act out familiar characters from a story to recreate what they remember. For example, they are supported by a good range of props to help them go to the moon. • Thorough planning systems are used effectively and meet the learning needs of individual children very well. Staff make good use of the 'celebration of achievement' folders to plan and provide an excellent range of opportunities to support and develop children's interests. • Staff have an excellent understanding of children's individual needs and take full advantage of all opportunities to support and promote their progress.

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What needs to be improved?

• the organisation of lunch times to support children's social skills whilst waiting for their meal.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

Very good progress has been made in addressing the two key issues raised at the last inspection. At that inspection the provider agreed to develop written plans to show a balance of activities across the six areas of learning to enable staff to monitor cover over a term and to consolidate the new assessment system to ensure that records of children's achievements reflect their current skills. The schemas planning system and 'celebration of achievement' folders have been developed further since the last inspection and staff use these well to effectively plan for each child on an individual basis and ensure there are no gaps in the children's learning. The 'possible line of direction' system identifies the next steps for individual children to support and promote their learning through a range of activities and interests showing balance across the curriculum. Staff use these and the 'celebration of achievement' folders to ensure any identified gaps in the children's learning are

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What has improved since the last inspection?

addressed. Staff also provide children with opportunities on a daily basis to access all areas of the curriculum. Written observations of children's achievements and progress are recorded daily, made available to parents and transferred in to the individual folders on a monthly basis. This means that all children are supported and developing well through all areas in the curriculum.

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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 independent and confident learners and initiate their own activities with enthusiasm. They have formed positive relationships with staff and each other and seek out others to share ideas and develop their play. They have good self-esteem and are well-behaved, expressing their needs and showing consideration to others. Their social skills are developing in large group situations as they begin to sit quietly and listen to others, although this is not always promoted at lunch times.

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COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERACY

Judgement: Very Good Children use their language well to communicate and negotiate with others. They share their thoughts and recent events clearly in large group situations. They distinguish initial sounds of the alphabet and think of words that start with the same sound. Children enjoy books and understand that print carries meaning. They are developing good mark making skills as they start to draw recognisable objects and form letters to write their own names and simple words for the rhyming tree.

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MATHEMATICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Children have good number skills and use them throughout the session to recognise written numerals and solve simple number problems. They correctly identify how many there are in total if one is added or taken away from what they have. This is reinforced through puzzles, familiar counting rhymes, simple dice games and practical situations. Children learn shape, space and size, compare and sort toys into groups and identify taller/shorter than through regular access to resources and activities.

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

Judgement: Very Good Children show a natural curiosity and explore and investigate using the resources available to them, such as holding prisms to their eyes and exploring the effects as they try to walk, avoiding obstacles around the room. Children use modern day technology with developing skill to complete simple tasks on the computer and some share their skill and knowledge, supporting others. Children learn about the natural world, their own and other cultures through a good range of topics and discussions.

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

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

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PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Children use the indoor and outside space well. They move with confidence and co-ordination to avoid furniture and others at play. They show good spatial awareness as they find sufficient space to initiate games without disturbing others. Children have daily opportunities to go for local walks or use equipment in the back garden to develop their large and small muscles. They have regular access to one-handed tools to develop their fine-manipulative skills and hand-eye co-ordination.

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CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Children explore texture, colour, shape and form through the many opportunities available to them, such as painting, water and sand play, gloop and sensory play. They have free access to creative resources to initiate their own art and design and construct vehicles and rockets using recycled materials. They use musical instruments independently to explore the differences in sound. Children use their imagination well to act out familiar situations that are supported by a good range of props.

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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 high quality. Children are making very 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

There are no significant weaknesses to report, but considerations should be given to improving the following: • There are no significant weaknesses to report, but consideration should be given to improving the following: • the organisation of lunch times to support children's social skills whilst waiting for their meal.

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WHAT THE SETTING NEEDS TO DO NEXT

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

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

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