Busy Bees Day Nursery at Warton

INSPECTION DETAILS

Inspection Date 18/11/2004 Inspector Name Susan, Helen Spencer

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SETTING DETAILS

Day Care Type Full Day Care Setting Name BAE Systems Workplace Nursery Setting Address Rake Lane Warton Preston Lancashire PR4 1AS

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ORGANISATION DETAILS

Name Ashton House Ltd Address The Rom Building Eastern Avenue Lichfield Staffordshire WS13 6RN

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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

British Aerospace [BAE] Systems Workplace Mursery was first establiched in 1990 and r-registered in July 2002 under Busy Bees. The nursery is located at the BAE site in Warton, in Fylde area. The children's parents are all employees of British Aerospace systems. The nursery is open from Monday to Friday from 07.30 to 18.00 hrs. Currently there are 13 funded children on roll. There are nine staff working at the nursery, five of whom hold a relevant childcare qualification.

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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?

The provision of education at BAE Workplace Nursery is of good quality where children make generally good progress overall towards the early learning goals. They make very good progress in mathematics but there are some significant areas of weaknesses in physical development. The quality of teaching is generally good. Staffs' knowledge and understanding of the early learning goals is generally good. They regularly attend courses available and plan a programme of activities but not all aspects of the early learning goals are given sufficient emphasis. Staff are very involved in the children's play and question them effectively. Some activities lack challenge as a result of weaknesses in assessment. Staff manage the children well and have high expectations of their behaviour. Leadership and management of the setting is generally good. The current manager has made many positive steps in improving the current provision for the children.

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How effective is the nursery education?

She is working hard to build a consistent and happy staff to ensure continuity of progress for the children. The staff are now working well as a team. However, weaknesses still exist in the educational programme that have not been addressed. Partnership with parents has significant weaknesses. Staff endeavour to develop good relations with parents and talk to them about their children at the beginning and end of every session. However, weaknesses in assessment means that parents do not know their child's progress towards the early learning goals. Parents report that they do not feel involved in their child's learning as planning is inaccessible to them.

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What is being done well?

• The programmes of learning for the development of the children's personal, social and emotional development, knowledge and understanding of the world and creative development. • Staff manage the children well and set high standards for their behaviour. • The current manager has made many improvements to the provision at the setting which has had a positive impact on the children's progress towards the early learning goals

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What needs to be improved?

• the assessment of the children's attainment to ensure that their progress towards the early learning goals is monitored and used to inform future plans • the partnership with parents to ensure that they are aware of their child's progress towards the early learning goals

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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 • the children's communication, language and literacy to ensure that they are given adequate opportunities to choose books • the children's physical skills to ensure that they are given the opportunity to pedal, balance, climb, throw and catch in the programme of activiites

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What has improved since the last inspection?

The provision has made very good progress with the one key issue raised at the last inspection. This was to increase the staff's knowledge of the existing Code of Practice for special needs. This has been tackled with determination by considerable in-service training, which has since been transferred also to the New Code of Practice.

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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: Generally Good The children are keen and motivated to learn. They concentrate well when taking part in activities and are forming good relationships with each other. The children are developing a good level of personal independence, trying to put on their own coats and toileting themselves. Behaviour is good overall, although not all children listen when activities are being explained. The children are beginning to understand that people have different cultures and beliefs.

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COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERACY

Judgement: Generally Good The children use imaginative vocabulary in their role play, taking on the roles of others. They express their feelings well when working with puppet dolls. The children's writing skills are developing when they use the writing table and when taking orders in the role play café. They are not beginning to understand that print in books carries meaning, or showing an understanding of the elements of stories, however, and do not use books to locate information.

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MATHEMATICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good The children know a good range of number rhymes and songs that are used to support their learning well. They use their knowledge of numbers in their play, setting the appropriate number of knives and forks for children playing in the role play house. The children are confident when combining numbers practically, using the language of more than and less than appropriately when talking about the number of children in the group. They are able to recognise and recreate simple patterns with ease.

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

Judgement: Generally Good The children enjoy exploring and investigating using all their senses when working with shaving foam with their hands and with other implements. They are able to develop a sense of time and place when talking about their own lives and when playing with the small world toys. However, they are not independent in their designing and making skills as they follow staff direction to produce the end product. They are beginning to know about their own cultures and beliefs and those of others.

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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: Significant Weaknesses The children move well around the room, negotiating space successfully when outside. They are beginning to know the importance of washing their hands before snack and use a variety of tools when working with dough, cutting with ease. However, the children are not learning to pedal effectively to enable them to move vehicles along successfully and balancing, climbing, throwing and catching skills are limited.

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CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good The children know a wide range of songs and rhymes which they sing with enthusiasm. They enjoy working with shaving foam, responding with all their senses, imagining that their fingers are people in the snow. The children enjoy using a wide range of materials to create interesting art work, although craft activities are over directed by staff and the children are not using their own imagination to create stimulating displays.

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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

• improve the procedures for the assessment of the children's attainment and progress to ensure that their development towards the early learning goals is monitored and used to inform future plans • improve partnership with parents and involve parents in assessments made of their child's attainment and progress towards the early learning goals • improve the development of the children's communication, language and literacy skills to ensure that they are given adequate book opportuntities • improve the development of the children's physical skills by providing them with opportunities to pedal, balance, climb, throw and catch

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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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