Angels by Day Ltd

INSPECTION DETAILS

Inspection Date 19/05/2004 Inspector Name Alison Putnar

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SETTING DETAILS

Day Care Type Full Day Care Setting Name Angels By Day Nursery Setting Address Hillside House, Derby Road Lenton Nottingham Nottinghamshire NG7 2DZ

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REGISTERED PROVIDER 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

Angels by Day Nursery became registered in 1997. It operates from a 2 storey building in the Lenton area of Nottingham, a short bus ride from the City Centre and the ring road. Children are cared for in 4 rooms, one of which is sub-divided into 2 smaller rooms. The younger children are based on the ground floor, with the 2 older groups of children on the first floor. There is a large enclosed garden with fixed equipment for physical play. The Nursery serves commuters travelling into the City of Nottingham as well as the local community and surrounding areas. Car parking facilities are provided. The Nursery is registered to provide 80 places for children aged from birth to under 8 years. It accesses nursery education grant funding for 3 and 4-year-olds. There are 32 funded 3-year-olds and 15 funded 4-year-olds on roll. These children are cared for in 2 areas, the pre-school room 'Lion's Den' accommodates children aged 3 to 5

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Information about the setting

years and the 'Giraffe's' room accommodates children aged 2 and 3 years. The nursery supports children with special educational needs and those who are at an early stage of learning English. Learning throughout the nursery incorporates the Montessori education philosophy. The Nursery is open from 07:30 to 18:30, Monday to Friday for 51 weeks of the year, closing only for Bank Holidays and for the week between Christmas and New Year. Children attend for a variety of sessions each week. There is a team of 30 staff working with the children, including 2 managers, 24 of the staff hold relevant childcare qualification and 5 are working towards this. In addition, staff attend a wide variety of courses relevant to their work. The setting receives support from the Nottingham City Early Years Development and Childcare Partnership. It has achieved an 'Investors in People' award and is a member of the National Day Nursery Association.

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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?

Angels by Day Nursery provides good-quality education overall, which enables children to make generally good progress towards the early learning goals. Provision for their personal social and emotional, physical and mathematical development is particularly well planned and they make very good progress in these areas. The quality of teaching is generally good overall. Senior practitioners are particularly skilled in expanding children's learning through their own interaction. Some staff lack these skills and confidence. A good level of individual support is given to children and those with special educational needs are effectively encouraged. Staff plan a range of practical activities that engage children's interest, ensuring they are active. Time and resources are well organised particularly in the older children's room. There are systems in place to assess children's progress, however, these are not

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How effective is the nursery education?

consistent for all funded children, and are not as well used for the younger children to identify their next steps in learning. The leadership and management of the setting are generally good. There are good systems for all staff to contribute to plans of activities and managers effectively monitor this. Staff development is encouraged. However, opportunities for some staff to further develop their knowledge of the foundation stage and teaching skills have not yet been provided. A commitment for on-going improvement in the education provision is clear; resources are regularly updated and extended and advice from relevant professionals is sought and acted upon. The partnership with parents is generally good. Useful information is provided about aspects of the teaching methods both verbally and in writing. Parents are offered regular opportunities to discuss their children's progress and systems to enable

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How effective is the nursery education?

parents to contribute to development records are being extended. Opportunities for parents to be involved in their children's learning are provided.

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What is being done well?

• Children's personal, social and emotional development is excellent, they are confident, happy and respect each other and the nursery environment. • Effective use of the outdoor area leads to children making very good progress in physical development, and recently extended plans for activities outdoors promotes opportunities for learning across all six areas. • Senior practitioners working with the older children are skilled at seizing opportunities to extend children's thoughts, ideas and learning. Through maintaining dialogue, asking questions and encouraging them to think, they ensure that children are continually challenged and making progress. • Time is organised well in the pre-school 'Lion's Den' to provide children with sufficient time to explore planned activities of their choice, these are well

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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 presented and appropriate for the age and developmental stage of the children.

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What needs to be improved?

• systems of recording children's developmental progress, and staff's use of these records to identify younger children's next steps in learning • some staff's knowledge of the stepping stones towards the early learning goals; and their skills and confidence in extending children's learning through their own involvement, interaction and use of language.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

Very good progress has been made since the last inspection. New resources, including books, dolls and jigsaws, have been purchased, which are regularly incorporated into planned activities to encourage children to explore a range of feelings and emotions. Senior staff seize opportunities to encourage children to talk about their feelings and consider the feelings of others through general daily routines. For example, when forming a line children are encouraged to take it in turns to be first, considering how they feel if people push in. In addition during story time good opportunities are taken to link elements in the story to experiences that the children have had. For example, older children were able to share instances of when they had felt proud.

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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's confidence and self-esteem is well fostered by staff who are sensitive and know them well. They have excellent personal independence skills, encouraged through the daily routines. They choose between activities, and older children select their own resources. Many children take care of their own needs, such as dressing themselves and competently managing at meal times. Children behave well, they are encouraged to share and take turns, be polite and considerate to others.

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COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERACY

Judgement: Generally Good Younger children are keen to communicate through gesture or simple talk, while older ones use a widening range of vocabulary to describe real and imagined events. Many listen well to stories enthusiastically told by staff. Older children are encouraged to notice print displayed around the room. Good opportunities are provided for children to develop pencil control, but activities, such as role play, are not always extended to include opportunities to view text and write for different purposes.

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MATHEMATICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Children are developing a solid understanding of counting and number recognition. They use a range of well planned practical activities and routine tasks to consolidate what they know. For example, working out the date and laying the table. Mathematical learning is extended well into outdoor activities, for example, children select number cards when pretending to be in a horse race. They compare concepts of shape and size as they use an excellent range of resources and Montessori equipment.

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

Judgement: Generally Good Children are keen to investigate objects and a range of malleable materials. They form towers and more elaborate creations with construction sets. Older children select a range of tools and resources to join and assemble materials. Many access the computer, using the mouse to perform simple programmes. Good opportunities are created for all children to talk about events in their own lives and learn about the lives of others. They learn about features of the natural world through planned topics.

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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: Very Good Outdoors, children are set challenges to develop their large physical skills. They balance, climb and swing; manoeuvring tricycles and wheeled toys with safety and control. They develop spatial awareness as they crawl in and out of willow structures. Children's fine motor skills are well developed as they access a wide range of resources including threading beads, blocks and writing implements. Daily routines and topics are used to encourage children's knowledge of healthy practises.

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CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good Children regularly experience craft materials, using their own ideas to freely explore and create pictures and models. They enthusiastically take part in musical activities, exploring a diverse range of instruments, music and singing. Older children draw on their experiences and use their imagination taking on roles of real and fictional characters. Indoor role-play resources are varied, although at times available resources for the younger 3-year-olds are not well presented.

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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

• review the systems of recording children's development to ensure they show progress towards the early learning goals and are consistent for all funded 3 and 4 year olds. • provide increased opportunities for less experienced staff to develop their knowledge of the early learning goals and their confidence in further extending younger children's learning through their own involvement and interaction.

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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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