Waterside Early Care and Education Centre

Waterside Early Care and Education Centre Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY368368 Inspection date 17/01/2011 Inspector Margaret Moffat

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Setting address Waterside Early Care & Education Centre, 600 Thames Valley Park Drive, READING, RG6 1PT Telephone number 0118 926 6277 Email 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

Waterside Early Care and Education Centre was registered in 2008. It is one of a number of nurseries owned by Bright Horizons Family Solutions Ltd. It is situated on Thames Valley Business Park on the outskirts of Reading. The nursery provides various age grouped classrooms which all have access to their own secure garden areas. The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and the compulsory part of the Childcare Register. They are registered to provide care for 120 children under eight years of age. The nursery opens all year round, with the exception of Bank Holidays and is open from 8.00am to 6.00pm Monday to Friday.

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Description of the setting

There are currently 138 children on roll aged from six months to over four years. The nursery is in receipt of funding. The nursery supports a number of children who have English as an additional language.

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Description of the setting

The nursery employees 19 childcare staff. Of these 17 hold appropriate childcare qualifications. The nursery also employs a chef and a domestic assistant.

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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

Children are happy, confident and feel safe in their environment. They are progressing well in all areas of learning and development as staff have a good understanding of how children learn. The nursery promotes an inclusive environment and provides a warm and friendly welcome for all the children and their families. The commitment to improving the outcomes for children is evident in the self-evaluation; action taken to address previous issues raised and develop the areas for improvement. However the nursery are in breach of a regulation with regard to documentation.

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further?

To meet the specific requirements of the EYFS, the registered person must:

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further?

 maintain records of daily attendance accurately at all times (Documentation) 17/01/2011

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further?

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

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further?

 implement the second key person system to contribute to the continuity of care and learning of all children  improve hygiene practices to prevent the risk of cross infection with particular regard to toilet facilities This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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the early years provision

Staff have a good understanding of their responsibility in safeguarding children. They are fully aware of the procedures to follow if they have any concerns about the children in their care. The staff team have recently attended training on child protection which ensures their knowledge is up to date. There are clear recruitment and vetting procedures to ensure children are cared for by suitable and qualified staff. Staff deployment is good and there are suitable contingency plans in place to cover staff absences and vacancies within the nursery. There are robust security systems in place and visitors to the setting are monitored. All relevant documentation and policies and procedures are in place to support the safety and welfare of the children. Risk assessment records are in place and daily check lists for the individual rooms and outdoors ensures children remain safe in their environment. However, in some rooms, the attendance records are not

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the early years provision

maintained accurately as the actual number of children in the room is not the same as the number recorded. This is a breach of regulation.

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the early years provision

The management team have a proactive attitude towards ongoing improvement and they seek the views of staff and parents when completing their self-evaluation. They have effectively met the recommendations from the last inspection and have recently updated their risk assessment records to reflect changes that were needed and to add new risks. The manager shows a good awareness of the strengths and areas of improvement for the nursery and includes reflective practice as part of staff training to help promote the outcomes for children.

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the early years provision

Children are supported well by staff and have access to a good range of age appropriate toys and resources to meet their differing needs. A strong emphasis is placed on developing children's awareness and understanding of equality and diversity. Colourful posters display positive images and words of welcome in several languages are displayed within the setting. Photographs of the children at various activities linked to particular areas of learning are displayed throughout the nursery and their art work, helping them to feel valued and provide a sense of belonging.

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the early years provision

Partnerships with parents are good. They benefit from the supportive and caring staff team who keep them fully involved with regard to their children's care and learning. Parents can access their children's development files at any time and also have opportunities to share information or have discussions with staff on a daily basis and more formally at review meetings. Weekly newsletters provide parents with information regarding the nursery, the activities each room will be working on and ideas on how they can support the children at home with regard to particular activities. They have opportunities to meet with staff and other parents and become involved with the nursery at monthly meetings. Parents are positive about the care their children receive and comment on how the staff are very good with the children and aware of their particular needs and also how they can discuss areas they would like to see developed, which staff then address. There are

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the early years provision

This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 effective systems in place to liaise with external agencies and other providers to ensure children receive the support they need.

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and outcomes for children

Children and parents arrive at the nursery and receive a warm welcome from staff as they enter the nursery. This gives a sense of belonging. Toys and activities are readily available for the children in each of the rooms and they seek out what they would like to play with. Staff have a good understanding of the Early Years Foundation Stage and ensure each of the areas of learning are covered within the planning, taking account of children's' interest and development needs. Children's records show their progression from their staring points as initially discussed with parents towards the early learning goals. Ongoing observations help staff determine what stage the children are at in their development and identify the next steps children need to take to move forward. Staff know the children well and each chid is allocated a key person to support them in the nursery. A 'buddy' back up system is in place; however this is not always effective as some staff are not

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and outcomes for children

fully aware of the children they are linked to.

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and outcomes for children

Babies have their individual needs met by staff who are caring and follow their individual routines. They are able to move around and explore their environment safely and with support. For example when learning to crawl or walk staff ensure there are no obstacles in the way and place objects out of their reach for them to move towards. They hold their hands as they try to walk and ensure children have sufficient equipment to pull themselves up. Children have access to a range of resources showing positive images of the wider world such as musical instruments, books, puzzles, dressing up clothes and dolls of different nationalities. They also have opportunities to participate in activities linked to other cultures and events. They learn how to care for animals as they have fish and guinea pigs in the nursery and children help to feed them and have opportunities to take them home at the weekends. Children show excitement as they bring back the pets and share

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and outcomes for children

the experience with staff. They talk about the pets having a good time and not liking the treat they had bought them and how they enjoyed having them. Children choose books for pleasure and sit down and hold these correctly and pretend to read them as they look at the pictures. Younger children confidently approach staff to read to them. They sit on their knees or cuddle up by the side of them and listen to the story. Staff ask them questions to develop their thinking and conversational skills. Children have access to sorting and matching activities which helps identify different shapes, sizes and colours. For example as they complete peg puzzles together taking turns and looking carefully to match the shape to that on the board. Older children can recognise and name numbers and can count confidently. Staff introduce children to mathematical language such bigger and smaller as they compare numbers. Children have many opportunities to participate

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and outcomes for children

in creative activities. Young children enjoy using pegs attached to string to make paintings. They fill containers in the water tray and pour the water through the wheel watching it turn. Children have access to information technology and photographs show children using the computer to make pictures and play games. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 However the area where the computer is located does not actively promote usage as it is tucked out of the way and is not always switched on and this has been highlighted by the management team as an area for improvement.

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and outcomes for children

Children are beginning to learn about healthy lifestyles and become independent in their self help skills. Examples of these include finding tissues to wipe their noses and put them in the bin, washing hands after messy play activities and before snacks. There are appropriate nappy changing procedures in place and staff wear gloves and aprons when changing the children. Although the setting is generally clean this does not always apply to the toilet area where paper towels are on the floor, sinks are covered in paint and equipment used in toilet training is not always cleaned to prevent the risk of cross infection. Children develop a good understanding of healthy eating through the meals and snacks provided by the nursery. Meals are prepared to meet the dietary needs of the children who attend. Children develop independent skills as they serve themselves, pour their own drinks and learn how to feed themselves. Children have free flow access to play

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and outcomes for children

outdoors and even on wet days staff allow the children to go out splash in the puddles, play on the equipment and sit and ride toys to ensure they have opportunities to develop their physical skills. Children understand about keeping themselves safe. Their knowledge of personal safety is encouraged by gentle reminders from staff not to climb on the tables and chairs and regular fire drill practices. Children behave well and benefit from the praise and encouragement they receive from staff. They show kindness to one another and encourage other children to join in their games. 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 2 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 2 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 2 The extent to which children feel safe 2 The extent to which children adopt healthy lifestyles 3 The extent to which children make a positive contribution 2 The extent to which children develop skills for the future 2

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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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