The Rocking Horse Childcare Centre

INSPECTION DETAILS

Inspection Date 25/03/2004 Inspector Name Anne Walker

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SETTING DETAILS

Day Care Type Full Day Care Setting Name Rocking Horse Day Nursery Setting Address Rocking Horse Day Nursery 229 Cinderhill Road Nottingham NG6 8SE

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REGISTERED PROVIDER DETAILS

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000; and 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 of the quality and standard of day care in accordance with the National Standards for Under Eights Day Care and Childminding; and 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

Rocking Horse Day Nursery opened in 1988. It operates from the ground floor of a converted house in the Bulwell area of Nottingham. The nursery consists of 4 rooms and an enclosed outdoor area, with a separate outdoor area for under 2's. Places at the nursery are available to the general public and they have a wide catchment area.

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Information about the setting

The nursery is registered to provide 25 places for children under 8 years. There are currently 55 children on roll, this includes 9 funded three-year-olds and 1 funded four-year-old. Children attend for a variety of sessions each week. The facility currently supports children with special needs. There are no children attending for whom English is an additional language. There is a limited out of school service offered only to families who previously used the nursery, and those with siblings currently attending. This service depends on available spaces. They currently take and collect children from Hempshill Hall and Old Basford school. The nursery opens Monday to Friday all year round, closing only for bank holidays. They open from 08:00 to 18:00. There are nine staff who work with the children. Five staff hold a relevant childcare qualification, and the remaining four are working towards qualifications. The setting

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Information about the setting

receives support from the Early Years Development and Childcare Partnership.

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How good is the Day Care?

Rocking Horse Day Nursery provides good care for children. The building is well maintained and offers a comfortable environment for children in which to play, rest and have their meals. The proprietor has a clear programme of investment to maintain the building. Recent improvements to the outdoor play area provides a space that is usable all year round. The setting has comprehensive policies and procedures. There are good systems in place to ensure that staff understand and

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How good is the Day Care?

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000; and Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 are kept informed of any changes. Staff demonstrate their knowledge of policies and procedures by using them effectively to underpin their day to day practice with the children. Staff are deployed effectively throughout the nursery and supervise the children well in order to promote their safety. Through their practice they demonstrate a good understanding of maintaining a safe environment, for example, mopping spills and closing gates. Staff maintain good hygiene standards when changing nappies and by wiping noses and changing children's clothes as needed. Children learn about good hygiene through daily routines. The staff and children have positive relationships. Children are keen to engage with the adults who offer clear expectations and boundaries which help children feel

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How good is the Day Care?

secure. The individual needs of children with regard to diet, medical or disability are effectively addressed and all children are able to partake fully in the nursery day. Staff plan a wide and stimulating range of activities that make good use of the excellent resources. At times the differing developmental needs of the two to three-year-olds are not fully considered, as staff strive to deliver the curriculum for the older children. The partnership with parents is very good. There is a wealth of information that parents receive when their child starts at the nursery. This continues with regular newsletters, daily information for under 2's and parents are involved so individual needs are met.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

At the last inspection the nursery agreed to ensure that the baby change area was kept clean. Good strategies are in place to ensure that the area is clean at all times and provides a hygienic environment for changing children. All the equipment is in good order. Cleaning materials for wiping down mats and surfaces following each use are readily available to staff and are used. A cleaning routine is displayed in the changing area for staff's awareness. A cleaning checklist is signed by staff to show that the area has been cleaned and the manager makes regular observations to ensure the area is clean and staff are maintaining a hygienic environment.

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What is being done well?

• The nursery has a very good range of play materials and resources that offer children positive images of the wider world. These reflect non-stereotypical roles, racial, cultural and religious diversity and disability. Through their effective use, the nursery ensures that all children feel valued and included, and children are helped to appreciate each other's similarities and differences. • Provision for babies and children under 2 is very good. Staff work effectively with parents to maintain children's individual routines for eating and sleeping. There are good systems for settling children at the nursery, so that parents are reassured and confident to leave them when the time arises.

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What is being done well?

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000; and Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 • Staff manage children's behaviour effectively. They work consistently as a team to manage behaviour in a positive manner and adapt strategies appropriately according to children's maturity. They treat children respectfully and are good role models. • The setting has a commitment to working in partnership with parents. They have an extensive range of written documentation that is given to parents throughout the child's time at nursery. These are informative documents. Daily information is shared verbally with all parents and in writing for children under 2-years-old. The individual needs of children are effectively met and staff attend meetings and training alongside parents to address children's specific needs.

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What needs to be improved?

• the planning and organisation of the nursery day so that it fully promotes the emotional, physical, social and intellectual development of children aged 2 to 3 years • the organisation of snack time so that children's social skills are appropriately fostered.

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CONDITIONS OF REGISTRATION

All registered persons must comply with all conditions of registration included on his/her certificate of registration. As a result of this inspection conditions of registration have been imposed / varied / removed and a new certificate of registration will be issued.

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by the time of the next inspection

Std Recommendation 3 Ensure that the planning and the organisation of the nursery day, fully promotes the emotional, physical, social and intellectual development of children aged 2 to 3 years.

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by the time of the next 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; and Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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How effective is the nursery education?

Rocking Horse Day Nursery offers good quality provision which helps children make generally good progress towards the early learning goals. They make very good progress in communication, language and literacy, knowledge and understanding of the world and physical development. The quality of teaching is generally good. Staff have a good knowledge of the early learning goals. There are effective systems to observe children and to use these observations when planning the next steps in learning. In this way they ensure that the curriculum is relevant and provides appropriate challenges. The organisation of the day, where children move to different areas, does not always allow children adequate time to fully explore the activities. At times it also hampers their sustained involvement at an activity of their choosing and does not encourage persistence or problem solving. Staff are good role models for children. They treat them respectfully

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How effective is the nursery education?

and have effective techniques for helping children share, take turns and get on with the other children in the nursery. Leadership and management is generally good. There is a clear management structure that provides good levels of support for staff. Managers undertake six monthly appraisals with staff, which offers opportunities for a planned progression and development of staff skills. They meet with the staff to oversee the curriculum planning and to cascade information. Managers within the Rocking Horse chain of nurseries meet regularly to disseminate information and share good practice. The partnership with parents is very good. A good range of materials informs parents about the curriculum. Parents are regularly given "All About Me" sheets which they complete in order to contribute to profiles of their child. Staff use these in their planning. Informal and formal opportunities exist for staff and parents to

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How effective is the nursery education?

exchange information about children. Parents receive written reports on their child's progress yearly.

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What is being done well?

• Children enjoy books and use them with care. They participate well during group story times responding to adult questions and suggesting outcomes in the story. When using books independently, they understand that they are read from front to back and turn pages to follow the story. Four-year-olds are beginning to use their phonic knowledge to link sounds together to read simple words. • Children have good fine motor control skills. They use a wide range of tools and materials such as pencils, rulers, brushes and construction materials effectively to achieve their planned outcome. • The nursery has an inclusive approach for children with special educational

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What is being done well?

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000; and Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 needs. There are clear systems to identify the needs of children with disabilities and to ensure that all staff understand the objectives for their development. Children with differing needs are able to fully participate in the learning environment. • The staff have a good knowledge of the early learning goals and use their knowledge to plan a wide range of activities that are stimulating, cover the six areas of learning and take account of children's individual stages of development.

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What needs to be improved?

• the organisation of the day so that children have increased time and opportunities to fully explore their ideas and make choices in their play and learning.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

The nursery has made very good progress since the last inspection. They have increased the challenges for children to improve their balancing and climbing skills by purchasing a set of balancing beams and information cards for their use. These are regularly incorporated into the planned curriculum for physical play. To ensure that they have the necessary skills to use the equipment effectively with the children, staff have attended a short training course run by the Early Years Development and Childcare Partnership. As well as developing their knowledge this has also provided further resources to use with the children. The nursery already provided parents with a yearly, written report, regarding their child's development in the six areas of learning. To this they have now added an "All About Me" sheet which goes home every three months. This enables parents to share what has been happening at home and observations they make of their child's

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What has improved since the last inspection?

development. Parents are encouraged to return these so that staff can use the information in their future planning for children's learning. The nursery has also developed "Activities at Home" sheets so that parents can consolidate and support children's learning.

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What has improved 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; and Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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PERSONAL, SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good The children have a positive approach to new experiences and show interest and excitement when taking part in activities. Older children do not regularly enough show high levels of involvement at tasks. Both three and four-year-olds are well behaved and show consideration for their peers and the adults. They have a good emerging interest and enjoyment in cultural differences and are eager participants in the French lessons. Children are developing a range of skills in self-care.

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COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERACY

Judgement: Very Good Children's language skills are developing well. They use speech to communicate ideas or share information, often remembering specific terms previously taught, such as the word "cocoon". Children recognise their names and know the sounds of initial letters. Older children use their phonic knowledge to link sounds together to read simple words. They enjoy books independently and as a group. Children are keen mark makers and older children form recognisable letters when writing their names.

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MATHEMATICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good Four-year-old children can count and recognise numbers to ten; some can count beyond this. They are able to count out items from a larger, irregular arrangement of objects and are beginning to develop concepts of more and less. Children use mathematical language such as heavier and lighter or bigger and smaller to describe observations at the ice activity. They name simple shapes but older children do not yet comment on similarities and differences of the simple shapes they know.

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

Judgement: Very Good Children are developing an interest in investigating and use their senses to explore and talk about the changes they observe, for example at the ice activity they compared the weight of the ice balls, commented on the size as it melted, and the effect on the water in the tray. They do not always have the opportunity to do this to their individual satisfaction. The children have a good emerging understanding of the natural world, which they learn through activities such as growing plants.

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000; and Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Children move freely with pleasure and confidence when using a wide range of large equipment. They move their bodies in a range of ways to negotiate the equipment including, running, climbing, rolling and sliding. All children have good fine motor skills and use a range of tools effectively, such as pencils and scissors to achieve a planned outcome. They have an emerging understanding of healthy practices regarding eating and hygiene and can contribute to their own well being in these areas.

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CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good Children use the wide variety of media such as paints, collage materials and cornflour to express ideas. Older children choose colours, materials and shapes with a clear purpose and can talk about what they intend to do, however they do not always see ideas through to completion. Children take part in role play and use the props to support their play. Older children play cooperatively but it is for very short periods. Children enjoy singing and use their bodies and voices expressively.

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

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000; and 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

• consideration of the organisation of the day by managers and staff, so that children have increased time and opportunities to fully explore their ideas and make choices in their play and learning.

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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 Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000; and Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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STANDARD 1 - SUITABLE PERSON

Adults providing day care, looking after children or having unsupervised access to them are suitable to do so.

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STANDARD 2 - ORGANISATION

The registered person meets required adult: child ratios, ensures that training and qualifications requirements are met and organises space and resources to meet the children's needs effectively.

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STANDARD 3 - CARE, LEARNING AND PLAY

The registered person meets children's individual needs and promotes their welfare. They plan and provide activities and play opportunities to develop children's emotional, physical, social and intellectual capabilities.

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STANDARD 4 - PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT

The premises are safe, secure and suitable for their purpose. They provide adequate space in an appropriate location, are welcoming to children and offer access to the necessary facilities for a range of activities which promote their development.

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STANDARD 5 - EQUIPMENT

Furniture, equipment and toys are provided which are appropriate for their purpose and help to create an accessible and stimulating environment. They are of suitable design and condition, well maintained and conform to safety standards.

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STANDARD 6 - SAFETY

The registered person takes positive steps to promote safety within the setting and on outings and ensures proper precautions are taken to prevent accidents.

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STANDARD 7 - HEALTH

The registered person promotes the good health of children and takes positive steps to prevent the spread of infection and appropriate measures when they are ill.

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STANDARD 8 - FOOD AND DRINK

Children are provided with regular drinks and food in adequate quantities for their needs. Food and drink is properly prepared, nutritious and complies with dietary and religious requirements.

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STANDARD 9 - EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES

The registered person and staff actively promote equality of opportunity and anti-discriminatory practice for all children.

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NEEDS AND DISABILITIES)

The registered person is aware that some children may have special needs and is

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NEEDS AND DISABILITIES)

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000; and Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 proactive in ensuring that appropriate action can be taken when such a child is identified or admitted to the provision. Steps are taken to promote the welfare and development of the child within the setting in partnership with the parents and other relevant parties.

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STANDARD 11 - BEHAVIOUR

Adults caring for children in the provision are able to manage a wide range of children's behaviour in a way which promotes their welfare and development.

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STANDARD 12 - WORKING IN PARTNERSHIP WITH PARENTS AND CARERS

The registered person and staff work in partnership with parents and to meet the needs of the children, both individually and as a group. Information is shared.

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STANDARD 13 - CHILD PROTECTION

The registered person complies with local child protection procedures approved by the Area Child Protection Committee and ensures that all adults working and looking after children in the provision are able to put the procedures into practice.

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STANDARD 14 - DOCUMENTATION

Records, policies and procedures which are required for the efficient and safe management of the provision, or to promote the welfare, care and learning of children are maintained. Records about individual children are shared with the child's parent.

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STANDARD 14 - DOCUMENTATION

This inspection was carried out under the provisions of Part XA of the Children Act 1989, as inserted by the Care Standards Act 2000; and Section 122 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998

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