Abberley House Nursery

Abberley House Nursery Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY337964 Inspection date 28/02/2011 Inspector Rachel Wyatt

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Setting address Abberley House, Droitwich Road, Claines, Worcester, Worcestershire, WR3 7SW Telephone number 01905 455713 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

Abberley House Nursery is one of two nurseries run by the provider. It opened in 2007 and operates from the ground floor of a property standing in its own grounds, located in Claines on the outskirts of Worcester city. Children have access to secure outdoor play areas, including the nursery's wooded area. The nursery is open each weekday from 8am to 4.30pm during term time and runs a three week play scheme for three to eight-year-olds during the summer holidays.

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Description of the setting

The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register. A maximum of 20 children may attend the nursery at any one time. There are currently 35 children aged from two to under five years on roll, some in part-time places. The nursery supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children who speak English as an additional language.

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Description of the setting

There are eight members of staff, including the provider, who work with the children. Of these, seven hold appropriate early years qualifications to at least Level 3. One member of staff is working towards a Level 3 qualification. The nursery also employs office staff and a cleaner. The nursery provides funded early education.

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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 at the nursery and progress very well because the provider and staff fully recognise the uniqueness of every child and ensure that their views, ideas and interests are reflected in the daily selection of activities and resources. Highly effective partnerships with parents and others and robust procedures ensure children's needs are fully understood and carefully met and that their protection is assured. The provider and her team are enthusiastic and motivated about providing high quality day care. Their thorough evaluation and monitoring leads to an accurate analysis of areas to develop and they are successful in planning for and securing improvements.

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further?

To further improve the high quality early years provision the registered person should consider:

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further?

 improving the recording of risk assessments so it is clear when they are reviewed. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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the early years provision

Children are fully safeguarded. The nursery has rigorous safeguarding procedures, which the provider, who has designated responsibility for safeguarding and the staff understand and follow. Effective staff induction and training ensures that all adults working with children have an up-to-date knowledge of how to protect children from harm. They know how to take prompt, appropriate action if they have any concerns about a child's welfare or if an allegation is made against anyone working at the nursery. Safeguarding procedures and all other policies, including the complaints policy, are all readily available for parents to refer to. This includes displaying and featuring a 'policy of the week'. Children's welfare is further supported as robust staff recruitment and vetting procedures ensure adults are suitable and have the relevant knowledge, skills and experience to work with children. The nursery also obtains all required agreements and information about

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the early years provision

children and their families before a child starts, so staff know who may have legal contact with a child, who has parental responsibility for them and who can collect them.

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the early years provision

Children and their families really benefit from the strong leadership and management of the nursery. The provider and her enthusiastic staff are an effective and highly motivated team. Everyone understands their roles and responsibilities so routines are well-managed and sessions are challenging and fun. The team have high aspirations for quality through ongoing improvement and their strong commitment to equality and diversity. Thorough evaluation, including seeking and responding to parents' and children's ideas and consistent monitoring ensures the provider and staff know the nursery's strengths and areas to develop and accurately plan for improvements. For example, reorganising the team's roles and the format of assessment and planning has enhanced staff's confidence in these areas. This in turn has contributed to children's high achievement in response to the rewarding curriculum adults have planned and which focusses on

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the early years provision

key skills linked to children's individual learning priorities. All those involved in the nursery promote inclusive practice. Children's individual needs, interests and learning styles are at the heart of the nursery's work and staff confidently adapt their approaches and resources to cater for each child. In particular, excellent partnership working means every child has high levels of support at an early stage. The nursery also has well-established links with other providers to ensure consistency and continuity for children who attend more than one setting and to provide smooth transitions when they move on, for instance to school. Children thrive because of the nursery's very positive relationships with parents and carers. From the outset, families are warmly welcomed into the nursery and are well informed about how it operates. Parents are very much encouraged to be involved in their children's learning. They come into nursery to talk about their jobs and to

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the early years provision

see what their children have been doing. They also attend special events and outings and follow up activities at home. Parents' views are encouraged about their children's care and progress, including contributing to their child's early years profile record. They receive regular feedback about their child's activities, routines and achievements. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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and outcomes for children

Children thoroughly enjoy being at nursery. It is an inviting and vibrant place and the provider and staff are welcoming, enthusiastic and support children very well. As a result, children are keen to learn and relish the many worthwhile opportunities to express their ideas, to try something new and to explore their surroundings. Thorough assessment procedures mean the provider and staff have a very good understanding of children's starting points and ongoing learning and development needs. There are clear links between assessments and planning which is tailored to meet each child's needs and to promote key skills, ensuring every child makes very good progress in all aspects of their learning and development. Children's ideas are reflected in the rewarding activities and resources that are provided. They are consistently encouraged to discuss and record, via their drawings and photographs, what they like doing at nursery and

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and outcomes for children

what they want to include in future sessions. Provision for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and for children who speak English as an additional language is exemplary. The provider and staff work sensitively with parents and have well-established relationships with other professionals. They are proactive about assessing children's individual needs, agreeing achievable targets for each child and ensuring they have carefully tailored support. This enables each child to fully participate in all the nursery has to offer.

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and outcomes for children

Children develop very good skills for the future. They are eager to join in activities and soon settle. They concentrate and persevere well. Children are resourceful and competently make decisions becuase their choices, independence and creative thinking is consistently and successfully fostered. For example, they help to plan activities; they can choose which toys or activities they are going to play with, they are encouraged to make choices during snack and meal times and they become increasingly independent in seeing to their personal care and hygiene. Children look after their possessions and relish helping with a range of tasks such as taking charge of the outdoor trolley, serving snacks, setting the table for lunch, putting out toys for outside play sessions and assisting with tidying up.

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and outcomes for children

Children get on well. They share and take turns, make friends and play harmoniously. Their efforts and achievements are praised and celebrated. Adults confidently manage more challenging behaviour, setting clear boundaries and successfully encouraging those children to agree their own targets and to record where they have done well. Children show respect for each other's differing abilities and backgrounds. They help each other at activities and enjoy sharing news about their lives and families. Topics, activities, discussions and resources are used well to promote children's awareness of the wider community and diversity. They contribute to a range of fundraising events, join in activities such as picnics and plays with other local settings and help to care for the environment by gardening, feeding the birds and recycling. Children develop positive attitudes towards the lives and customs of others. For example, festivals are celebrated

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and outcomes for children

through fun activities. During Chinese New Year children talk about the year of the rabbit, producing their own delightful drawings and paintings and they dance using This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 the colourful dragon they have made.

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and outcomes for children

Children are articulate speakers, recalling and describing events, talking about what they are doing or making and socialising with each other. They are confident to speak out in a larger group, for instance telling everyone about what happened when the nursery's toy owl came to stay at their home. Children adeptly recognise their own names and some other words. They often make marks, label their work and many children form recognisable letters. They enjoy and listen attentively to rhymes and stories. Children competently use numbers for counting and comparing. For example, during outside play they match the correct numbers of stones to laminated numbers. They enjoy problem solving and accurately recognise items according to shape, size and colour. Children relish seeing how things work and fix together. They creatively use a wide range of recycled and natural materials to build obstacle courses, balancing beams and an array of

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and outcomes for children

structures and models. They often photograph and draw what they have made. Children skilfully use a computer mouse and follow simple computer programmes to support their learning. The nursery's excellent outdoor provision has a significant impact on all aspects of children's welfare and learning. They love exploring and investigating, using binoculars and magnifying glasses to scrutinise natural features. Children garden and relish time spent on the 'digging' hill.

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and outcomes for children

Children's welfare is promoted very well. Their care, health, dietary and cultural needs are fully understood and effectively met at the nursery. Children have prompt appropriate treatment from first aid trained staff if they have an accident, become unwell or need medication. Clear records are kept of accidents and medication and the details shared with parents. Children develop a sound awareness of the importance of leading a healthy lifestyle. They adopt good hygiene practices and make healthy choices about what to eat and drink. Children grow and eat fruit and vegetables from the nursery garden. They talk about the benefits of exercise, are very active and confidently balance, climb and move in different ways. For example, children balance on structures they have made or walk along lengths of tree trunks. Children feel emotionally very secure at nursery and have positive, affectionate relationships with staff. Children behave in ways

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and outcomes for children

that are safe for themselves and others, including handling tools and equipment correctly. Through different activities, visits from the police and taking part in regular practise evacuation drills, children learn about road safety, how to manage different situations relating to their personal welfare and know what to do in an emergency. They are well supervised but also taught how to manage more challenging situations and equipment. Robust written risk assessments and daily checks are conducted, with prompt action taken to manage and eliminate risks. Clear records are kept of these checks and of any changes made to improve safety, including developing revised risk assessments and procedures. However, it is not clear from the original risk assessment of the premises and equipment when and how this has been updated to fully demonstrate how the provider meets timescale requirements. 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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