Smartstarts Day Nursery

Smartstarts Day Nursery Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY341501 Inspection date 22/09/2010 Inspector Amanda Allen

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Setting address Little Ilford Centre, Church Road, London, E12 6HA

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Telephone number 02084 782 700 Email info@smartstarts.co.uk 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. You may copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as

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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

Smartstarts Day Nursery was registered in 2006. It operates from the Little Ilford Centre, in a residential area, close to local shops, park and transport in Manor Park in the London borough of Newham. The nursery takes children from the local community and surrounding areas. Children have access to an enclosed outdoor play area. It is open each weekday from 7.30am to 6.00pm Monday to Friday all year round . The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and both parts of the childcare register. A maximum of 70 children may attend the nursery at any one time. There are currently 95 children on roll and of these, 82 are in the early years age range. Children attend for a variety of sessions and the nursery welcomes children with special educational needs, and those who speak English as an additional language.

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Description of the setting

There are 17 members of staff all qualified to NVQ Level 3 or above. One member of staff has achieved Early Years Professional Status and two members of staff are currently working towards completing their BA in Early Years and childcare.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Overall the quality of the provision is outstanding.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Children thrive in the environment as they are cared for by attentive, experienced staff. A strong management team and extremely well established systems for communicating with parents and carers underpin excellent continuity of care for all children. The setting delivers the Early Years Foundation Stage with exemption. Children's individual needs are met to a high standard as staff are proactive in ensuring they have an excellent knowledge of the individual needs of the children in their care. The management team take effective steps to ensure they continually improve outcomes for children. Monitoring and evaluation of the quality of provision enables staff to implement appropriate improvements, and excellent account is taken of recommendations made through inspection. Evaluation and reflective practice ensure the setting builds on the staff's professional development and that of the service it provides. Partnerships with outside agencies is a key

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

strength which ensures children's needs are fully met.

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further?

To further improve the high quality early years provision the registered person should consider: This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006  further develop outdoor provision to ensure there is a focus to support children's development in the outdoor environment

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the early years provision

Safeguarding children is paramount to the nursery. Children are kept safe and secure due to the vigilance of the staff and the robust risk assessments in place. All staff have a thorough knowledge and understanding of child protection issues and the steps to follow if they have any concerns. A comprehensive fire evacuation plan is in place for all areas of the nursery and all staff have fully enhanced Criminal Record Bureau checks which are updated every three years and the reference numbers kept on file in the office. CCTV is in place throughout the nursery and a visual intercom system in each room, so that all staff can see who is coming into the building. Students are never left alone with children and are regularly supervised by their mentor which is usually a staff member to ensure the safety of the children. Training on safeguarding is continually renewed during both in house and off site sessions.

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the early years provision

Extremely comprehensive policies and procedures demonstrate the setting's sensitive and mature attitude, both to protecting children and helping them understand how to keep themselves safe. The management team consistently seek parents' views and permissions concerning a range of safeguarding issues, ensuring that their policies meet not only legal requirements but reflect the needs and wishes of parents. As a result, parents and carers fully understand the steps that the setting will take to protect their children.

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the early years provision

The provider has established a strong management team which ensures that the setting is run effectively and meets children's needs. Staff are all aware of their roles and responsibilities and this enables them to work effectively to achieve the outcomes for children. Self-evaluation systems are in place and demonstrate the provider's excellent awareness of the setting's strengths and weaknesses. The management team seek input from the staff, children and parents into the evaluative process so that they can maintain continuous improvements. In particular, to work on improving the outdoor area to ensure there is a focus to support children's continual development in the outdoor environment.

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the early years provision

The staff liaise closely with parents from the start through clear settling procedures and by asking them to provide information about their children's routines, likes, dislikes and interests. Parents are constantly encouraged to be involved in their children's learning as they are informed daily about activities their children have undertaken and have unlimited access to observations and assessments of their children's progress. Partnerships with both parents and other settings are extremely strong and a key strength of the provision. Families are included in meaningful ways to ensure excellent support for children's needs, particularly around Special Educational Needs (SEN), culture and language.

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the early years provision

Extremely positive steps have been taken to ensure that children can move on This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 successfully to new settings, as strong links are in place with the local schools and their key persons are involved heavily in their transitions. These steps contribute to great continuity of care for all children. All children are well supported to be able to join in all the activities. Plenty of pictorial images, warm staff and activities that are adapted for all individuals, encouraging all children to have a voice and give them access to take part in all activities on offer so that everyone is valued and included.

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and outcomes for children

Children clearly feel at home in the nursery. They achieve well in a warm and welcoming environment, effectively organised for them to learn through play. Children have free access to a wide range of stimulating and engaging resources that cover all areas of the Early Years Foundation Stage. Staff have an excellent awareness of individual children's needs and interests and this helps them to plan activities that hold their interest and stimulate their learning. Children's views are always taken into account in planning by giving children choices. Planning is flexible and adapted in line with children's ideas or if anything significant has happened to them, for example a house move, visit to the dentist or a new baby. This enables children to feel valued when their views and interests are implemented. Resources are based around real experiences and staff try to incorporate real equipment where possible, such as real food in the home corner

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and outcomes for children

so that the children can experience real situations.

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and outcomes for children

The setting has some fabulous resources to reflect diversity and they use these to help children learn to value diversity in others, unlearn discriminatory attitudes, and grow up making a positive contribution to society. Children are encouraged to understand and develop positive relationships with others who are different from themselves. They learn respect for diversity, acceptance of difference and about fairness, tolerance and respect for others. Staff are vigilant to ensure that every child is included and not disadvantaged as there are effective systems to promote equality of opportunity and anti-discriminatory practice, for example, information about the Nursery and policies are accessible in written and spoken form and where requested offered in different languages. Children learn about different cultures as they enjoy celebrating different festivals, dressing up and reading a variety of books from around the world.

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and outcomes for children

Staff are very skilled in their questioning techniques so that they consistently challenge children's thinking and allow them to express their own ideas and thoughts. This extends their learning and encourages their problem solving skills, for example, questions about what they are eating during meal times, healthy food discussions and where the food comes from. Children's speech and language skills are also monitored through the ECAT (every child a talker) key person at the nursery.

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and outcomes for children

Children clearly enjoy the free access they have to the resources. This builds the children's self-esteem and their confidence as they independently choose what activities they would like to take part in or play with. Children are extremely well This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 supported in the acquisition of useful skills in literacy and numeracy which help them develop a range of excellent skills for the future. For example, they talk about pictures in books, learn to recognize simple words, shapes and colours, and use numbers in different situations.

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and outcomes for children

Planning is carried out by all staff and is extremely effectively for each child's individual needs. Children have clear and defined starting points, which the key workers liaise with the parents to obtain, and are making excellent progress from these. Observations are detailed and have the next steps clearly outlined for them to successfully progress the children further with their development. Each child has a developmental learning journey which measures their progress at the nursery. Staff are comfortable working with the strong systems in place to use observations to plan for individual children's next steps in their learning. Observations are focused and evaluative and the next steps that they inform have a positive impact on children's learning. A broad spectrum of evidence is used to assess the progress the children are making, for example, written observations, photographic evidence as well as the children's art work. These assessments are linked to the six areas of

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and outcomes for children

learning, consequently, the staff are able to see what areas need to be worked on with the children. All activities that the children participate in are tailored for their specific age range and their abilities. As a result, children are making excellent progress in all areas of learning. During activities the staff support the children exceptionally well. As a result, the children are very keen to take part in the activities, such as listening to stories, singing songs and playing musical instruments, puzzles, play dough, kitchen and role play and arts and crafts. All staff are aware of children's likes and dislikes and ensure that children are kept stimulated and interested in the things around them every day. Children enjoy purposeful and exciting visits to the nursery from the police, the fire brigade and the dentist and most recently the optician has been booked to come in. The staff have also taken the children on trips to a local primary school to participate in

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and outcomes for children

sports days and Christmas plays and they also enjoy regular trips to the library, post office and green grocers. Children have daily access to physical activities, through meaningful games, where the children learn about turn taking and working together, such as musical action games, as well as the more physical activities such as ride-on toys.

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and outcomes for children

Children have a good understanding of healthy eating as they are encouraged to discuss the healthy foods on offer to them throughout the day. Contamination and infection are minimised because extremely effective procedures are in place. Children are taught about the importance of personal hygiene throughout their day at the nursery. Staff ensure the children wash their hands before and after meals and snacks. All children have extremely healthy and nutritious meals and snacks. The nursery work closely with the parents to ensure the meals meet the children's dietary requirements and weekly menus are displayed on the notice board. The children have open access to a fruit and vegetable stop cart, where they can choose pieces of fruit or vegetable to snack on should they feel peckish between meals. Fresh drinking water is available from small jugs in each room and the children pour this for themselves into the cups provided.

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and outcomes for children

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 1 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 1

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Stage

The extent to which children achieve and enjoy their learning 1 The extent to which children feel safe 1 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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