British School of Bucharest

INSPECTION DETAILS

Inspection Date 13/10/2003 Inspector Name Jan Leo

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SETTING DETAILS

Day Care Type Full Day Care Setting Name The Town Nursery Setting Address 24 London Road Chipping Norton Oxfordshire OX7 5AX

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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

The Town Nursery is registered for 57 children under the age of five years and operates in the Old Convent next to the Catholic primary school near the centre of the town of Chipping Norton in North West Oxfordshire. The nursery is open from Monday to Friday from 8.00 am - 6.00 pm and it is privately run. There are 21 members of staff of whom about half are fully qualified and several others are partway qualified in childcare. The staff work on different sessions within the nursery with a maximum of 15 present at any one time. There are 118 children on the register of whom 50 are funded three and four year olds. Up to nine babies under one year are accepted. No overnight care is offered.

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How good is the Day Care?

The nursery provides good quality care for children. It is staffed by well-qualified and experienced staff who are fully supported by management in their personal development. Colourful displays of children's work are used to create a welcoming environment and space is used creatively to allow play in both large and small groups. Most aspects of health and safety are well met but some specific areas need attention. Children learn how to keep themselves safe and are very independent. The staff promote healthy eating and use meals and snacks to further children's understanding of the world around them. Staff skilfully support children with special needs and help their parents through difficult times. The staff help children learn in a very flexible environment. All play is child-led and children enjoy learning. The staff follow ideas through with children and join in with play to increase its value. Staff and children interact enthusiastically. Children are

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How good is the Day Care?

sociable and behave well. The nursery has a good relationship with parents and staff are very approachable. Staff provide regular opportunities for information to be shared with parents both formally at planned events, and informally on a daily basis. All the relevant

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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 paperwork is in place but some needs amending to fully comply with regulations.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

Not applicable. The last inspection was a transitional one.

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What is being done well?

• The staff are put through a rigorous recruitment process to ensure suitability before being appointed. Ongoing training is encouraged. • Children are given daily opportunities to join together with the entire nursery for social development and integration. • Children's work is valued and attractively displayed to provide further stimulation during play. • Children cultivate areas of the garden and the produce is used for meals, snacks and cooking sessions to continue learning across all activities. • Children are allowed to choose what to do and can negotiate to be excused from group activities if they have something else they wish to work on. • Staff undertake relevant training and improve their skills in order to fully provide for children with special needs. • Staff act as good role models, value children, and treat them with respect to help promote good behaviour.

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An aspect of outstanding practice:

All play is child led. Planning is flexible to allow staff to pursue unexpected ideas and opportunities at a pace to suit those involved.

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What needs to be improved?

• privacy for children using the potty in Nursery 1; • safety regarding method of fixing the temporary barrier in the field, unsupervised standing water in the low sink in the toddler room, and access to unknown visitors to Nursery 2; • quantity of liquid available to children throughout the day; • documentation, to ensure children's hours of attendance are clear, policies and records are dated, the child protection statement includes contact details, and the late collection policy is amended to indicate the procedure to follow if the emergency contacts are unavailable.

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Outcome of the 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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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 7 improve care arrangements to provide for the physical and emotional needs of children individually. 6 continue to review safety precautions to protect children from hazards both inside and outside the nursery. 14 ensure records and policies are dated and conform to regulatory requirements.

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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?

The Town nursery provides a caring, friendly environment where children make very good progress towards the early learning goals. The ethos of the group is that all play should be directed by the children, and staff skilfully steer and guide activities to incorporate all areas of learning. Staff help children to absorb and understand at a pace that suits them individually. Staff build excellent relationships with the children and the quality of teaching is very good. Staff plan and provide a range of activities to interest and inspire children initially, and they provide adequate resources to carry ideas forward as far as children want to take them. Staff use their knowledge of the children to ensure that each individual is given appropriate support to develop their skills and understanding. Staff effectively link themes across the entire curriculum and there are very few missed opportunities to develop ideas.

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How effective is the nursery education?

Leadership and management of the setting is very good. The staff are encouraged to attend training in order update their skills and keep abreast of current thinking. They are well qualified and experienced, and willingly contribute to the successful day to day organisation of the group. There is an effective management structure and staff roles are clearly defined to ensure good team work. The partnership with parents and carers is generally good. Parents and carers say staff are very approachable and willingly share information on children's progress at both formal and informal meetings. Parents and carers receive reasonable information about the group but some could be made more easily available to them.

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What is being done well?

• Children are very confident, independent and sociable. They develop trusting relationships and relate well to adults and other children. • Staff allow children to direct play and maximise incidental learning opportunities to suit the children involved. They use their knowledge of the children and observations to plan 'next steps' for each child. • Staff use skilful questioning to extend children's thinking and understanding. • Children have regular opportunities to join with the remainder of the nursery for outdoor play and social development. • Staff value children's work and do not hamper creativity by inappropriate intervention. • Staff are very committed to improvement and work well as a team. Management is very supportive and roles are clearly defined.

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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

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What needs to be improved?

• a few specific areas of the curriculum, to include more work on feelings and sharing, calculating and subtraction. • adult preparation for activities, to ensure no learning opportunities are missed.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

The staff are more pro-active in encouraging writing and have incorporated mathematical techniques into most activities without compromising on their belief that children should direct and learn from play, at a pace that suits them. All children work in a small group with a member of staff, at some time during each week.

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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: Very Good Children's progress in personal, social and emotional development is very good. They build strong bonds with staff and other children, and are confident and sociable. Staff have high expectations of conduct and behaviour is very good. Children are independent and can successfully negotiate with both adults and their peers. All children are enthusiastic and motivated.

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COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERACY

Judgement: Generally Good Progress in communication, language and literacy is generally good. Children have good listening skills and are making steady progress with writing. All children have a good understanding of the variety and purpose of written and spoken language and many are familiar with other methods of communication.

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MATHEMATICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good Children's progress in mathematical development is generally good. Children use mathematics in a variety of ways to develop all areas of the curriculum. Staff make mathematics fun and help children understand the meaning of numbers by using familiar contexts. Lack of preparation in cookery for three year olds resulted in some missed opportunities to develop subtraction, comparisons and calculation.

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

Judgement: Very Good Children's knowledge and understanding of the world is very good. Staff seize every opportunity to extend children's interest to the maximum and skilfully incorporate incidental experiences along the way. Four year olds have a well-developed sense of time and place and all children have self-awareness and a keen interest in the local environment.

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PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Children's progress in physical development is very good. They have regular opportunities to participate in active play with their peer groups and with all the other nursery children, including the babies. They are able to move around safely and confidently and can use a range of both large and small equipment without the need for adult assistance. Staff provide active play both inside and outdoors and children are learning to adapt their activities accordingly.

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PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

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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CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Creative development is very good. Children's work is not unduly influenced by staff and it is valued highly. Children label and describe their work which is used to create colourful and interesting wall displays for further inspiration. Children are given regular opportunities to use and appreciate a variety of media and they do so confidently and creatively.

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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 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: • focus on some of the narrower aspects of the curriculum to extend children's ability as widely as possible. • ensure staff are well prepared for every activity to avoid missed opportunities. 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 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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