Kings College, The British School of Latvia

Yorkies Day Care Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number 146745 Inspection date 22/09/2010 Inspector Gillian Walley

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Setting address York Road Nursery School, York Road, Hitchin, Hertfordshire, SG5 1XA Telephone number 01462 632333 Email yorkiesdaycare@hotmail.com Type of setting Childcare on non-domestic premises to achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children's social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, work-based learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for looked after children, safeguarding and child protection. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk.

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You may copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as you give details of the source and date of publication and do not alter the information in any way.

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T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Introduction

This inspection was carried out by Ofsted under Sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 on the quality and standards of the registered early years provision. ‘Early years provision’ refers to provision regulated by Ofsted for children from birth to 31 August following their fifth birthday (the early years age group). The registered person must ensure that this provision complies with the statutory framework for children’s learning, development and welfare, known as the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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Introduction

The provider must provide a copy of this report to all parents with children at the setting where reasonably practicable. The provider must provide a copy of the report to any other person who asks for one, but may charge a fee for this service (The Childcare (Inspection) Regulations 2008 regulations 9 and 10).

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Introduction

The setting also makes provision for children older than the early years age group which is registered on the voluntary and/or compulsory part(s) of the Childcare Register. This report does not include an evaluation of that provision, but a comment about compliance with the requirements of the Childcare Register is included in Annex B.

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Introduction

Please see our website for more information about each childcare provider. We publish inspection reports, conditions of registration and details of complaints we receive where we or the provider take action to meet the requirements of registration. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Description of the setting

Yorkies Day Care registered in March 2000. It operates from York Road Nursery School, which is situated in the town of Hitchin, and is run by a voluntary management committee. Yorkies Day Care operates a breakfast club, day care and holiday care. This provision serves the local community.

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Description of the setting

There are currently 53 children aged from three to seven years on roll. Children attend a variety of the sessions that are available. The setting is able to support children who have special educational needs and / or disabilities and those who are learning English as a additional language.

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Description of the setting

This day care facility operates a breakfast club which runs from 8am to 9am and an afternoon session from 12 noon to 6pm, in term time only. The setting offers a holiday club, which operates from 8am to 6pm outside of term time, offering care for children aged from three to six years eleven months.

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Description of the setting

Six members of staff work with the children, all of whom hold early years qualifications. The manager holds a National Nursery Examination Board qualification and is working towards a foundation degree in early years. The setting is registered by Ofsted on the Early Years Register, and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare register. The setting works very closely with the adjoining nursery school.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Overall the quality of the provision is good.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

All children, including those who are learning English as an additional language and those who have special educational needs and / or disabilities, make outstanding progress at Yorkies Day Care because the new manager and her staff provide an extensive range of challenging activities for them. The staff review the provision very frequently and they are constantly identifying what they might improve. They work very closely with school staff to provide a seamless experience for the children. The staff update their skills by attending training courses and they apply their new skills very well by driving improvements and supporting the children effectively. Consequently, the setting has a good capacity to improve. However, the setting does not keep detailed records of the daily checks of the premises.

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further?

To further improve the early years provision the registered person should:

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further?

 review and improve risk assessments so that they cover anything a child may come into contact with. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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the early years provision

The children are safeguarded well because most procedures are rigorous and reviewed regularly, however detailed records of the daily checks staff carry out on the premises do not show in detail how they cover everything with which a child may come into contact with. The manager organises regular fire drills so that children and staff know what to do in an emergency. If a child needs medicine, or has an accident, the manager informs parents at collection time, and all staff have first aid qualifications. All staff are appropriately vetted, attend very good induction programmes and are well trained to ensure that children are safe. Visitors sign in, doors are always locked and the outdoor play area is securely fenced.

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the early years provision

The new manager and her team are highly qualified and work well together. They have made significant improvements since the last inspection. For example, the children can now help themselves to drinking water at any time and procedures have been reviewed to ensure that the children are generally safe and secure. The staff extend their knowledge through a broad range of training courses, for example in behaviour management and food hygiene. The staff meet frequently with the school staff who work with the children in the mornings to plan how the activities the children have chosen can develop their understanding in all areas of learning, and how they can provide the widest range of opportunities for the children. This ensures that they make outstanding progress. The staff observe children's development and they use these assessments very well to decide how to move children on to the next stage in their learning. The staff track children's

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the early years provision

progress closely and know what stages the children have reached and how their progress compares in different areas of their learning. The staff can analyse the progress of different groups of children and they identify areas where some do not make such good progress. They use this information very well as a way of evaluating what they provide for the children and they adapt the provision where they feel it can be improved.

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the early years provision

The manager works extremely closely with the local authority to provide specialist support for children who need it so that they make very good progress. This is also reassuring for parents. She also has excellent links with the children's centre and the schools which the children will move on to so that the children settle easily. She works particularly closely with the adjoining nursery school and the day care uses the same premises so that the children adjust easily. The staff work extremely closely with parents and inform them about their children's progress and activities. Parents also receive useful information about local services and any support which they can call upon. Parents are welcome to come in to meet their child's key workers and each key worker completes an individual daily diary for each child. Parents can look at these or take home at the end of each day, and are extremely well informed of their children's progress and development. The

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the early years provision

manager uses questionnaires so that she can consider parents' suggestions when she is reviewing procedures. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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and outcomes for children

The children behave extremely well because the staff encourage them to succeed. The day care is very inclusive and the staff adapt activities very well so that children with special educational needs and / or disabilities are fully included in all activities. The children especially like playing outdoors in their highly equipped playground. They play extremely well together, share toys and take turns. They concentrate well, for example when solving puzzles or painting pictures. They develop very good social skills because they learn from their friends and staff. They learn to become extremely independent and take responsibility, for example for putting toys away after playing with them and finding their own drink bottles. They listen to stories with eager curiosity and learn nursery rhymes. They enjoy looking at books and retelling well known stories. The children make excellent progress in understanding numbers and being able to solve problems involving

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and outcomes for children

numbers. They learn to recognise and to write their names, and develop outstanding writing skills because they have motivating opportunities to write, for example about their visit to the wild life park. There are plenty of high quality resources which encourage boys, for example they can create adventures on their pirate ship. The adults question the children very well to encourage them to explain what they are learning and to challenge them further. They use every opportunity to talk to the children about numbers, sounds, colours and shapes.

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and outcomes for children

The children can choose what they want to play with and where they want to play because of the range of classrooms available. There are outstanding role play areas with many dressing up clothes which help children develop their imagination. The outdoor area is extremely well equipped and helps the children to learn about their environment and to develop proficient physical skills through climbing, balancing and riding vehicles. The children learn about living things by growing a range of vegetables and by looking after their guinea pigs, snails and stick insects. They experiment with water and compare the textures of natural objects such as cones and conkers. The children make excellent progress in developing creative skills such as collage and printing, and they are proud of their paintings of planets and spaceships which are displayed on the classroom walls. The children are also becoming very competent at using computers for interactive games.

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and outcomes for children

The children have an excellent understanding of the importance of healthy lifestyles because they talk about their healthy snacks and the vegetables they grow in the garden, and they cook healthy dishes such as fruit kebabs and pizzas. They can explain fully when they need to wash their hands and why they take exercise. They also learn about road safety when they play with the road mat and toy cars. The children are encouraged to appreciate equality and diversity because they have plenty of opportunities to learn about different cultures through talking about special celebrations, tasting foods and some creative activities. For example, at Diwali they made clay candle holders and tasted Indian sweets. The children at the setting are developing excellent attitudes towards their future learning. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Annex A: record of inspection judgements

The key inspection judgements and what they mean

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Annex A: record of inspection judgements

Grade 1 is Outstanding: this aspect of the provision is of exceptionally high quality Grade 2 is Good: this aspect of the provision is strong Grade 3 is Satisfactory: this aspect of the provision is sound Grade 4 is Inadequate: this aspect of the provision is not good enough

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children in the Early Years Foundation Stage?

The capacity of the provision to maintain continuous improvement

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Early Years Foundation Stage

The effectiveness of leadership and management in embedding ambition and driving improvement The effectiveness with which the setting deploys resources 1 The effectiveness with which the setting promotes equality and diversity The effectiveness of safeguarding 2 The effectiveness of the setting’s self-evaluation, including the steps taken to promote improvement The effectiveness of partnerships 1 The effectiveness of the setting’s engagement with parents and carers

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Stage

The quality of the provision in the Early Years Foundation Stage 2

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Stage

The extent to which children achieve and enjoy their learning 1 The extent to which children feel safe 2 The extent to which children adopt healthy lifestyles 1 The extent to which children make a positive contribution 1 The extent to which children develop skills for the future 1

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Stage

procedures set out in the guidance available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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Annex B: the Childcare Register

The provider confirms that the requirements of the compulsory part of the Childcare Register are: Met

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Annex B: the Childcare Register

The provider confirms that the requirements of the voluntary part of the Childcare Register are: Met

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