Downside First School

INSPECTION DETAILS

Inspection Date 16/09/2003 Inspector Name Josephine Geoghegan

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SETTING DETAILS

Day Care Type Full Day Care Setting Name Catherine House Day Nursery School Setting Address 71 Tressillian Road Brockley London SE4 1YA

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ORGANISATION DETAILS

Name Buds Ltd Address 71 Tressillian Road Brockley London SE4 1YA

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ORGANISATION 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

Catherine House Day Nursery School, which opened in August 1998, is a privately owned nursery and part of a group of similar establishments. It operates from a large, double-fronted, three storey Victorian house, with gardens. It is located in a residential area within the Borough of Lewisham. The nursery is open Monday to Friday, from 7.30 to 18.30 hours It caters for children from the age of three months to five years. The local community that it serves is very cosmopolitan and the children on roll represent the diversity of the local population. The parents of most of the children are employed in London. The nursery staff are suitably qualified and experienced. The nursery has places for the equivalent of 70 full-time children each day. Currently there are 80 children on roll over the course of the week. There are currently eight funded three-year-olds and one funded four-year-old that attend the nursery. There are also two children

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Information about the setting

aged three years that have special educational needs. There are two children, under three years of age, that speak English as an additional language. At least two members of staff work with the preschool children. The nursery receives support from Lewisham Early Years Development and Child Care Partnership (EYDCP), Lewisham Early Years Advice Support Network (LEARN) and the organisation's area managers.

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How good is the Day Care?

Catherine House day nursery school provides good quality childcare. Children are making good progress towards the Early Learning Goals. Children are based in one of five small group rooms according to their age. An effective operational plan is in place and thorough registration procedures show when children, staff and visitors are present. A high ratio of staff hold qualifications to level 3 or above and many other staff are working towards qualifications. The nursery environment is warm, welcoming and well organised. The outside play area is also divided into allocated room areas. Each group room has a wide range of age appropriate toys and resources that promote learning in all areas. Furniture and equipment are sufficient,

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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 although confirmation is required regarding the suitability of the prams. The nursery has a strong emphasis on safety, CCTV cameras are installed in all areas of the nursery and many gates are used to prevent children gaining unsupervised access to other areas. A comprehensive range of health and safety policies are implemented by staff including regular health and safety reviews and risk assessments, however some general safety improvements are needed and the complaints procedure and child protection policies need updating. Effective procedures are in place relating to accidents, incidents and medication, although some hygiene procedures could be improved. A wide variety of activities are available, both inside and out, including free play,

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How good is the Day Care?

focused group activities and regular local outings. Staff support children's learning and use assessment to aid planning. Behaviour management is consistent, children are cooperative and well behaved. Staff support children who use English as an additional language or who have special educational needs and work closely with parents and professionals. Partnership with parents is good. Information of daily events, topic themes and children's individual progress are shared.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

At the last inspection the group was asked to improve documentation by establishing a behaviour incident book, devise an outings policy, update the complaints procedure, devise a written sick children policy, ensure written parental permission is gained prior to medication being administered and devise a policy for un-collected children. The group was also asked to provide a range of resources that reflect cultural diversity, improve staff's understanding of implementing the equal opportunities policy and provide evidence that gas and electrical appliances conform to safety standards. The group has made good progress since the last inspection and met all actions by updating the documentation as required, obtaining more resources that reflect cultural diversity such as dolls, books and resources to aid the celebration of festivals. The group has improved staff's awareness of the equal opportunities policy

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What has improved since the last inspection?

through discussion at team meetings and staff induction. The group has a contract with a professional company to ensure gas and electrical appliances are safe.

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What is being done well?

• Partnership with parents is good. Information about the setting and staff, policies, daily information sheets, theme plans and samples of children's art work are displayed. Home books are used to record babies individual daily information. The operational plan and suggestion/complaints forms are available in the hall. Parents are encouraged to settle their child into the nursery and attend open evenings to discuss their child's progress with the key carer.

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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 • The organisation of the day is good. The staff daily planner ensures staff are appropriately deployed, aware of their responsibilities for the day and correct ratios maintained. The daily timetable for each group room enables children to engage in inside/outside play and regular local outings, with younger children being transported in 'the wagon'. • Management of behaviour is good, as a result children are well behaved and respond cooperatively to the daily routine. • The range of activities and resources available is good. children are able to enjoy a balance of activities that promote learning in all areas. A variety of age appropriate toys, equipment and resources are available in each group room.

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What needs to be improved?

• documentation relating to the complaints procedure, to ensure the phone number of OFSTED as the regulator is available • documentation relating to the child protection policy, to clarify the procedures of making a child protection referral to social services and notifying OFSTED about any allegations of serious harm or abuse against a child while the child is in your care • procedures of good hygiene practise, by encouraging all staff members to use disposable gloves while changing children's nappies and to seek advice from the environmental health officer regarding the collection of clinical waste • safety, to ensure prams with harnesses and mattresses conform to BS EN standards and obtain advice on sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) regarding babies sleeping arrangements • ensure fire extinguishers remain correctly located and the pathway fire escape route to the side of the premises remains clear

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What needs to be improved?

• ensure tools are inaccessible to children while using the outside toilet and ensure all electric plug sockets are covered.

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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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CONDITIONS OF REGISTRATION

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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by the time of the next inspection

Std Recommendation 5 ensure prams with harnesses and mattressess conform to BS EN standards and obtain advice on sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) regarding babies sleeping arrangements; take immediate action/advice to ensure children’s safety; 6 Improve safety by: ensuring the emergency escape route at the side of the premises remains constantly clear and fire extinguishers remain correctly located; Ensure electric sockets are covered and garden tools are inaccessible to the children; 7 further improve good hygiene practise by encouraging all staff members to use disposable gloves while changing nappies and seek advice from the Environmental health officer regarding the disposal of nappies/clinical waste; 12 update the complaints procedure to include the phone number of the regulator; 13 update documentation relating to the child protection policy, to clarify the procedures of making a child protection referral to social services and

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by the time of the next inspection

notifying OFSTED about any allegations of serious harm or abuse against a child while the child is in your care.

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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?

Catherine House offers good quality nursery education where children enjoy learning through a broad range of activities. The teaching helps children make generally good progress towards the early learning goals. The teaching is generally good and the staff show clear knowledge of how children learn and the early learning goals. They use their knowledge to plan and provide a broad-based curriculum that includes a generally good range of challenging and interesting practical activities and experiences. However, staff could do more to effectively use the lunch time session to help children extend their vocabulary. Varied planned activities are used to help children develop their mathematical skills. Staff do not make sufficient use of practical, everyday routines to help children's mathematical development. The integration and inclusion of children with special needs is very good and is built around working closely with parents and outside

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How effective is the nursery education?

agencies. Although there are no funded children currently attending with English as an additional language, there is a system in place to provide support. Staff show positive and skilful management of children's behaviour and have high expectations of behaviour. They use a wide variety of strategies to encourage good behaviour including plenty of praise, encouragement and acting as good role models of positive behaviour. The assessment of children's learning and is generally good and staff use their observations to complete each child's Assessment records. However, there is insufficient evaluation of what children learn in planned maths activities. Leadership and management are generally good and there is clear leadership and good management system. There is a strong commitment to ongoing staff development and improving the nursery education. The partnership with parents and carers is very good. They are provided with a wide range of information about the nursery and

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What is being done well?

• Children's personal, social and emotional development is very good. They are confident, independent, are interested to learn, demonstrate good self care skills. They form good relationships with staff and their peers. • Children are provided with a very good wide range of opportunities to develop their creative including through music, drama, dance, art, design, stories and songs. • The partnership with parents is strong and staff work very hard involve parents in the life of the nursery and care for children according to parents' wishes.

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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 • The leadership and management are effective and help support good teamwork and a commitment to constant development of the quality of service.

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What needs to be improved?

• The staff knowledge of how to use everyday activities and routines to help children develop their mathematical skills. • The evaluation of what children learned during planned maths activities and to what do next following the activity. • The use of lunch time to help extend children's vocabulary.

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What has improved since the last inspection?

The nursery has made developed practice since the last inspection. A range of strategies have been introduced to ensure that children can develop their understanding of the link between letter names and sounds, their shape and simple words. A multi-sensory approach has been introduced to help children to do this. Staff have also been provided with a list of practical, fun based activities that can help learn about letters. The staff are now using new snapshot observation record sheets to help them collect evidence of children's attainment and are also used to help write progress report sheets for parents. Parents are provided with written information about the early learning goals and opportunities such as parents' evenings are used to extend parents' understanding of the provision provided in the preschool.

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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 make very good progress in personal, social and emotional development. They confidently express their needs and ideas and relate well to each other and adults. They are independent and confident to try new activities which helps to promote their learning.

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COMMUNICATION, LANGUAGE AND LITERACY

Judgement: Generally Good Children are making generally good progress in communication language and literacy. They communicate well are confident speakers and engage easily in conversations with each other and adults. However, insufficient use is made of lunch time to extend their vocabulary. The children learn that print carries meaning, recognise simple words and know how to handle books. Children show confidence in writing and practise their writing skills of their own choice.

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MATHEMATICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Generally Good Children's progress in mathematical development is generally good. They learn to count, recognise numbers and shapes. They also learn about size and positional language. More use could be made of everyday activities and routines to help children develop their mathematical skills. Moreover, there is insufficient evaluation of what children learned during planned maths activities and to what do next following the activity.

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KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD

Judgement: Very Good Children's progress in knowledge and understanding of the world is very good. They have a range of opportunities to explore and learn about cultures, nature and technology. The children use technical equipment confidently. They design things using various materials such as clay, construction materials and playdough.

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PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

Judgement: Very Good Children's progress in physical development is very good. They move confidently and show competent balance, spatial awareness and coordination that is promoted though access to a diverse range of activities and equipment. They show confident and increasing control and skilful use of hand tool, objects, construction equipment and malleable materials.

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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 Children's progress in creative development is very good. They show free imaginative expression through a diverse range of activities such as: art and craft, music, dance, singing, role-play, stories and dance.

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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

• Broaden staff knowledge of how to use everyday activities and routines to help children develop their mathematical abilities. • Improve the evaluation of what children learned during planned maths activities and to what do next following the activity. • Develop the use of lunch time to help extend children's vocabulary. 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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