The Little Ripley Day Nursery

INSPECTION DETAILS

Inspection Date 13/09/2004 Inspector Name Shirley Delaney

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SETTING DETAILS

Day Care Type Full Day Care Setting Name Little Ripley Day Nursery Setting Address 268 Kingsbury Road Erdington Birmingham West Midlands B24 8RB

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REGISTERED PROVIDER DETAILS

Name Little Ripley Day Nurseries Ltd 5065153

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ORGANISATION DETAILS

Name Little Ripley Day Nurseries Ltd Address 243 Marsh Hill Erdington Birmingham B23 7HY

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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

Little Ripley Day Nursery opened in 1994 and it operates from a detached Victorian house located in the Erdington area of Birmingham. Children have access to play rooms located on the ground and first floor. There is an enclosed outside play area with a separate patio and grassed area. The nursery is part of a chain of nurseries located in North Birmingham. There are currently 39 children from 0 to 5 years on roll. This includes 13 funded 3 year olds and 3 funded 4 year olds. Children attend for a variety of sessions. The setting currently supports children who speak English as an additional language and will support children with special needs. The Nursery opens five days a week all year round. Sessions are from 07.00 - 18.00. There are 12 full-time staff and one student who work with the children. All staff except one have early years qualifications to NVQ level 2 or 3. There is one member of staff currently working towards a recognised early years qualification. The setting

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Information about the setting

receives support of a teacher mentor from 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?

Little Ripley Nursery provides children with a generally good standard of nursery education in a bright environment. Children are making very good progress towards the early learning goals in personal social and emotional development, communication language and literacy, and mathematical development, with generally good progress in all other areas. The quality of teaching is generally good. Planning clearly sets out what children are expected to learn and makes good provision for children at different stages of development. There is a good system for gathering information about children's attainments and these are used effectively to inform discussion with parents about children's progress. Staff have a generally good knowledge of the early learning goals and ask lots of questions to encourage children to think and talk about what they know and extend their knowledge. However opportunities for children to use a

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How effective is the nursery education?

range of materials to construct and create of their own design are not made readily accessible for children's independent choice. Children are well behaved, staff manage children using a positive approach. The leadership and management of the nursery is generally good. There is a staff appraisal system in place however staff training needs are not always identified. Commitment to improvement is demonstrated by the recent reorganisation of the nursery rooms, which has made provision to allow 3-4 year old children to have more time during the day uninterrupted by younger children in the nursery. Partnership with parents is very good. Parents appreciate the level of communication between themselves and the staff within the unit. They are able to find out about the educational programme through notices and displays. They take an active role in assisting children in their completion of homework and are provided

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How effective is the nursery education?

with information about their child's progress through quarterly parent's progress sheets and six-monthly assessment records.

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What is being done well?

• There is a very good approach to developing children's skills and understanding of early literacy. Children are encouraged to develop an interest in books, and develop skills and confidence with pencils and other writing tools. Children are encouraged to develop a understanding of linking sounds to letters. • Good use is made of planned and spontaneous events to introduce and reinforce number, calculation and other aspects of mathematics. Children develop a high level of skill in counting and older children recognise numbers 1-10 within and out of sequence. • Children's personal, social, emotional development is very good. Three and

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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 four year olds show care and concern. Children are well behaved have consideration for other children's needs and include other children in their play. • Staff make parents feel welcome, they keep parents well informed about the educational programme and share information regarding their child's progress on a regular basis.

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What needs to be improved?

• the range of activities available to develop and enhance children's creativity and opportunities for children to access a range of creative materials, freely and independently • staff's accessibility to relevant training, to assist in providing children with a more varied range experiences, adapt the learning environment to provide children's with increased independence and choice and for staff to use a wider range of teaching strategies to assist children's development.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

The nursery has made generally good progress since the last inspection. Provision has been made to increase the range resources and toys and make them more readily accessible to children. Children have increased opportunities to make choices and select some activities independently, toys have been made accessible on low level shelving and in marked containers stored at children's level. Changes have been made to planning and it is differentiated to meet the needs of children who work more quickly. There has been some increase in children's opportunities to access wider range of creative materials. However children do not have access freely and independently to a range of activities that will develop and enhance their creatively, and enable them to make free choices in constructing and creating of their own design.

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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 work well independently. They select from a range of toys and activities and settle quickly to tasks demonstrating that they are keen to learn. The children concentrate well during planned activities, they relate well to one another and include other children in their play. Older children are self confident and express their opinions. Children are well behaved, they are generally aware of boundaries and acceptable behaviour.

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COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERACY

Judgement: Very Good Children engage easily in conversation with each other and adults in the group. Group discussion time works well and older children use complex sentences. They handle books appropriately, listen, enjoy and respond well to familiar stories. Older children recall and tell stories to younger children with confidence and good use of expression. Children have good skills with mark making tools and are confident writers. They are encouraged to write their own names and practise emergent writing.

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MATHEMATICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Children count confidently within group activities and independently. Staff provide a range of activities both planned and spontaneous, to encourage the children to extend their learning in number recognition, shape and counting. Children count reliably above 10 and older children recognise numbers 1 - 10 in and out of sequence. Children are beginning to use mathematical language such as big, little, more and less. They have opportunities to solve simple number problems.

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

Judgement: Generally Good Children learn about features of the natural world, they have opportunities to learn about at their own and others cultures. Children discuss their families and talk about past present and future events. They have access to IT and programmable equipment. Staff promote learning opportunities within the provision, outdoors and in the local community. However the opportunities for children to build and construct using a range of materials is limited.

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PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good Children move with control and coordination both inside and in the outdoor play area. They demonstrate an awareness of space and others and negotiate obstacles well. Older children are developing a good awareness of a healthy lifestyle. Children develop finer manipulative skills using a wide variety of small equipment, such a scissors and spatulas. However their access to malleable materials is restricted.

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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 Children sing and join in actions rhymes they are confident and will sing independently or within a large group. They have opportunities to take part in role play, acting out roles imaginatively. Children have opportunities to create within planned activities related to themes, but do not have sufficient opportunities to choose from a range of materials and resources to enable them to explore colour, texture and shape, and choose freely from a creative resources.

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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

• increase the range of activities that enhance children's creativity and the opportunities for children to access a range of creative materials, freely and independently to build, construct and mould of their own design • improve staff's accessibility to relevant training, to assist in providing children with a more varied range of experiences, adapt the learning environment to provide children with increased independence and choice and for staff to use a wider range of teaching strategies to assist children's development.

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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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