Rhymetime Kettering

Rhymetime Nursery Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY361913 Inspection date 09/11/2010 Inspector Parm Sansoyer

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Setting address Millbrook Infant School, Churchill Way, KETTERING, Northamptonshire, NN15 5BZ Telephone number 01536 511184 Email michelle.avenue@btinternet.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

Rhymetime Day Nursery was registered in 2007. The nursery is one of the day nurseries owned by Avenue Nurseries Ltd. It operates from a mobile, situated within the grounds of Millbrook Infants School in Kettering, Northamptonshire. A maximum of 64 children aged from birth to under eight years may attend the nursery at any one time. The nursery is opens 8am to 6pm all year around, except for bank holidays. Before and after school and holiday care are also available. All children share access to a secure outdoor play area. There is wheelchair and pram access to the front of the building, and to the outside area.

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Description of the setting

There are currently 58 children on roll. Of these, 21 children receive funding for nursery education. Children attend from the local area. The setting is registered by Ofsted on the Early Years Register and the voluntary and compulsory parts of the Childcare Register. The setting is able to cater for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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Description of the setting

The pre-school employs 11 members of staff, all of whom hold appropriate early years qualifications. The pre-school receives support from the local authority.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Overall the quality of the provision is satisfactory.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Children are welcomed into a warm and inviting space. They are secure in an environment, which reflects the children's backgrounds and some sections of the wider community. Children make steady progress in their learning and development and enjoy their time at the setting. Systems to ensure children's learning is fully extended in all areas of learning are developing. There are appropriate procedures in place to secure the children's welfare and safety. Partnerships with parents/carers, other settings and agencies are satisfactory. Continued evaluation of the provision for the children's welfare, learning and development is in the early stages. Consequently, the setting is able to improve in the future.

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further?

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

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further?

 plan more effectively for the differing learning needs within the group, paying particular attention to extending the learning of the more able children  increase the range of resources and accessibility to these to help support and extend children's development in all areas of learning  review the monitoring of the educational programme to ensure all areas of learning are consistently covered and that the learning intention of activities is clear  develop further the systems for continued self-evaluation to support quality This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 improvement.

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the early years provision

Staff have an appropriate understanding of the safeguarding policy and the procedure to follow, if they are concerned about the children's welfare and safety. Clear and well written policies and procedures are in place in relation to safeguarding children and there is a relevant designated member of staff with overall responsibility. Appropriate recruitment and vetting procedures and effective arrangements in relation to when visitors attend, ensures adults having contact with children are suitable to do so. All the required records, policies and procedures are in place and staff are made aware of them at induction. Children are kept safe because staff supervise the children well and follow appropriate health and safety procedures. Written risk assessments of the environment indoors, outdoors and for any outings undertaken are maintained to help minimise risk to children.

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the early years provision

Staff are becoming familiar with the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. They are beginning to plan a varied range of activities and use a reasonable range of teaching methods, which helps children make steady progress in their learning and development. Children mostly enjoy their experiences and time at the nursery, although, some groups of children, such as the more able children across the nursery, are not always sufficiently challenged. This is especially evident in the baby room because staff do not sufficiently plan for the differing developmental needs within the room. Many of the activities throughout the nursery are interesting and inviting. However, the learning intention of these activities is not always clear and therefore, learning opportunities are not always fully extended.

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the early years provision

The rooms are generally well organised with the children's needs in mind, which allows some children to have the freedom to explore and make choices. Resources are adequate to support children's learning. However, they are not always made freely available and staff do not daily fully exploit their use. For example, the role- play areas do not incorporate sufficient resources to fully extend children's play and learning and the sand and water for children under three years is not made freely available throughout the day. This inconsistency of available resources results in planned goals in learning and development not being achieved consistently enough in some areas of learning. For example, promoting children's progress in problem solving, reasoning and numeracy is weaker than other areas of learning. An assigned key person, who is responsible for each child, means staff are able to build on children's interests and meet their care needs well. Staff make

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the early years provision

regular observations of what the children are doing and are beginning to use this information to guide their planning, to help plan more effectively for the children's next steps and interests. There are appropriate systems in place to support children with learning difficulties and disabilities and those who speak English as an additional language.

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the early years provision

Partnerships with parents and carers are developing. Sensitive settling-in arrangements help children, parents and staff to get to know each other. Parents This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 of new children complete documentation detailing their children's preferences and routines and are encouraged to spend time with their children when they begin the nursery to help them settle. A two-way sharing of information through the use of the daily 'communication book' keeps parents sufficiently updated about their children's progress and achievements. Links with the local school are established, which helps meet the care needs of the children who attend the after-school club. Links with other settings that the children may attend and other agencies involved with the children are developing.

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the early years provision

Since the last inspection the nursery has experienced a number of changes in relation to staff and to the person in charge. The current person in charge has focused her energies in re-establishing partnership with parents/carers to help gain their confidence, during the many recent changes the nursery has faced. Some progress has been made since the last inspection in relation to securing the children's safety when outdoors and promoting the children's self-help skills. However, little progress has been made in securing improvement in the quality of the early years provision in relation to the children's learning and development. Managers and leaders are motivated to seek improvements. They are now beginning to focus their efforts on the priorities, which have been accurately identified, after completing a recent self-evaluation of the provision. These plans are realistic and challenging and will help secure and maintain continuous

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and outcomes for children

Children's personal, social and emotional development is fostered well. Children are confident within their environment and enjoy the routine. They display an increasing independence in selecting and carrying out activities showing appropriate levels of involvement in their play. Staff know the children well and their families, which helps develop close and caring relationships. Older children increase their self-help skills as they busily wash their hands in the sinks provided in the room and as they put on their coats for outdoor play. They increase their language as they spontaneously interact with adults, who engage them appropriately in conversation and promote their language and communication skills. Daily circle time and general discussion during activities and play allows children the opportunity to chat freely about their interests and what they are doing. Children enjoy daily story and singing sessions and often show sustained

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and outcomes for children

levels of interest. Staff engage babies well through eye contact, facial expressions and changes to the tone of their voice. Children are beginning to use paints, crayons and chalk to make marks during their play.

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and outcomes for children

Children's knowledge and understanding of the world is developing. Babies begin to show curiosity and observe and manipulate objects and toys that capture their interest. For example, many of them enjoy the bottles filled with water and objects. Others show a fascination with the spaghetti from a tin on a tray, which they touch and are tempted to taste, and older children are busy spooning it into empty yogurt pots. Children begin to learn about everyday objects as they play 'sound lotto' identifying the sounds of familiar household objects. They have some This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 planned opportunities to learn about the natural world. For example, they take walks outdoors to collect leaves, look for insects and during the spring attempted to grow some daffodils. Children are introduced to some cultures through an adequate range of books, puzzles and visual aids.

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and outcomes for children

Children have regular opportunities to develop their creativity. They begin to explore texture as they roll, cut and shape dough and explore a variety of food, such as oats. They have regular opportunities to use a range of paints and arts and crafts activities to make their own creations. Basic role-play areas within some of the rooms offer children the opportunity to adopt roles and play together. However, they lack challenge and do not offer a broad enough range of experiences to promote areas of learning effectively. Children have access to a variety of construction toys and puzzles, which are used to increase the children's problem solving and reasoning skills. Children use games to match and sort and enjoy threading laces as they identify shape. However, opportunities for children to explore numbers, weight and simple scientific concepts through practical activities, such as using the sand and water, are not sufficiently planned.

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and outcomes for children

Appropriate behaviour is consistently reinforced in a positive and age appropriate manner and therefore, children are well behaved. Children are praised and their efforts are acknowledged as staff encourage them to learn how to keep themselves and others safe. The implementation of effective hygiene practices prevent the spread of infection and any infectious illnesses are monitored and recorded. Parents provide the children's packed lunch. The nursery provides a mid- morning and afternoon snack, which consists of some healthy options, such as fresh fruit and savoury snacks. Children increase their level of fitness as they use the outdoor area to test their physical skills. They develop skills that contribute to their future economic well-being through making satisfactory progress in their learning and development. 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 3 The effectiveness with which the setting promotes equality and diversity The effectiveness of safeguarding 3 The effectiveness of the setting’s self-evaluation, including the steps taken to promote improvement The effectiveness of partnerships 3 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 3

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Stage

The extent to which children achieve and enjoy their learning 3 The extent to which children feel safe 3 The extent to which children adopt healthy lifestyles 3 The extent to which children make a positive contribution 3 The extent to which children develop skills for the future 3

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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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