Platform One Nursery Ltd

INSPECTION DETAILS

Inspection Date 14/01/2005 Inspector Name Pauline Nazarkardeh

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SETTING DETAILS

Day Care Type Full Day Care Setting Name Platform One Nursery Limited Setting Address Grange Park Station Vera Avenue, Grange Park London N21 1RE

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REGISTERED PROVIDER DETAILS

Name Platform One Nursery Limited 04567526

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ORGANISATION DETAILS

Name Platform One Nursery Limited Address Grange Park Station Vera Avenue London N21 1RE

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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

Platform one Nursery opened in 2001. It operates from a converted station house situated in a residential area. The Nursery serves the local community and parents from other areas. There are currently 20 children on roll in receipt of nursery funding. There are 17 funded 3 year olds and 3 funded 4 year olds. Children attend for a variety of sessions. There are currently no children with special needs. The Nursery supports some children who speak English as an additional language. The group opens five days a week throughout the year. Sessions are from 08:00 - 18:00. Children attend for a variety of sessions within these hours. The nursery employs 7 full-time staff and 2 part time staff. There are 7 staff working with the children on a daily basis. Over half the staff have early years qualifications to NVQ level 2 or 3. The setting is a member of the Early Years Development and Childcare Partnership (EYDCP).

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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?

Platform One Nursery provides good quality nursery education where children are making generally good progress towards the early learning goals. The strengths of the curriculum are the areas of personal, social and emotional development, knowledge and understanding of the world and creative development, children make very good progress in these areas. The quality of teaching is generally good with some very good practice. Staff plan a range of interesting topics for children to explore and they extend these effectively for many areas of learning. They ask good questions to encourage children's thinking. Opportunities are provided to extend discussions by following children's answers and line of thinking. There is a system in place in order to assess and record children's progress,however, this system is not yet, well established or used by the staff. There are some inconsistencies in the record of observations and these

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How effective is the nursery education?

records are not used to plan the next steps in the children's learning.

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How effective is the nursery education?

Leadership and management is generally good. The manager leads a committed staff team who work very well together. They are keen to improve the quality of the provision and attend regular training to update their knowledge. The manager has identified the areas of weaknesses within the provision. Systems are beginning to be put in place in order to address these weaknesses effectively. The partnership with parents is very good. Parents are well informed of forthcoming events. They have opportunities to meet and talk both formally and informally with staff about their children's progress. Play plans, newsletters, and a notice board are available, informing parents of the foundation stage curriculum. Parents voice their satisfaction with the provision.

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What is being done well?

• Children are motivated to learn through a range of practical activities. • Relationships between staff, the children and parents are good. This helps children to feel secure and give them confidence. • The management of children's behaviour is very good. Children are clear about the boundaries and they respond well to staff intervention.

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What needs to be improved?

• observations, showing what children can and cannot do and to identifying the next stage of their learning. • opportunities provided for children to write for a purpose

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What needs to be improved?

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 • opportunities for more capable children to calculate and problem solve • equipment provided to develop children's gross motor skills.

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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 and settle quickly once they arrive at Nursery. They are able to concentrate for good periods of time and are well behaved, being taught to share and take turns fairly. Children are caring towards each other, and have good trusting relationships with the staff. They understand right from wrong and are familiar with daily routines. Children's independence is beginning to be developed.

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COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERACY

Judgement: Generally Good Children are confident communicators, who organise their speech well. They listen carefully and are able to recall information, such as the story line of their favourite book. They make good independent use of books and have excellent opportunities to have stories read to them in small groups. Opportunities provided to develop early writing skills in the form of mark making and writing for a purpose are insufficient.

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MATHEMATICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good Children develop their understanding of numbers and learn to count through a range of practical activities. Number songs, stories and rhymes are used to support and extend their knowledge and children use mathematical language. However there are too few opportunities provided to help more capable children to calculate and problem solve. Within practical activities children's mathematical knowledge is developing well, when sponge printing they name a range of 2D shapes.

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

Judgement: Very Good Children talk about themselves and remember past events in their lives. They learn about their own beliefs and about people living in the community. Children have opportunities to build with a wide range of construction equipment. They investigate mini beasts and understand how and why things happen. Children have access to computers, learning basic computer skills and there are many opportunities for them to explore with and learn about every day technology.

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PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good Good use is made of the outdoor area, children use a range of equipment which help develop their physical skills, more able children's large motor skills are less catered for. Children demonstrate a good awareness of space and they carefully move around the room without interrupting other children's play. They use small tools such as hammers, rolling pins, scissors, knives and forks with increasing 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 Children enjoy a varied range of art activities which effectively fosters their individual creativity. They engage in meaningful role play, especially enjoying the use of small world resources. They participate enthusiastically during singing sessions and enjoy listening to music independently. Musical instruments are accessible and children are offered opportunities to make their own music. Through the daily routines staff help children to explore 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 the system for observing children, to show what they can and cannot do and to identifying the next stage of their learning. • Provide more opportunities for children to develop their mark-making ant to write for a purpose. • Extend on the opportunities provided for more capable children to calculate and problem solve. • Increase the range of equipment provided to develop children's gross motor skills. • 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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