Thrive Culcheth

Culcheth Day Nursery Limited Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY415857 Inspection date 15/03/2011 Inspector Sarah Rhodes

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Setting address Warrington Road, Culcheth, Warrington, Cheshire, WA3 5HH Telephone number 01925767615 Email culchethdaynursery@talktalk.net 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

Culcheth Day Nursery Limited opened in 1994 and changed ownership in 2001. It re-registered as a limited company in 2010. The nursery operates from six rooms in a purpose-built building. Children have access to large, enclosed outside play areas. The Nursery is in a residential area on the outskirts of Warrington, Cheshire. It is open each weekday from 7.30am to 5.30pm all year round and provides full daycare, sessional care and out of school care.

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Description of the setting

The Nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and both parts of the Childcare register. A maximum of 92 children may attend the nursery at any one time. There are currently 112 children aged from six months to under five years on roll. The group supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children with English as an additional language.

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Description of the setting

There are 22 members of staff, 21 of whom hold early year's qualifications.

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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

The nursery has a strong leadership team that supports staff to continually improve and develop the care they provide for children. Robust observation and assessment processes feed into contemporaneous activity planning. This ensures children get a well-balanced learning experience, whilst still using individual children's interests as a starting point. Strong partnerships with parents give parents confidence and clear information about their child's development. Links have been made with some Early Years Foundation Stage providers who provide care for children who attend the nursery and children have a range of opportunities to develop their independence. Children have access to an all- weather outside play space at specified times of the day.

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further?

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

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further?

 implement enhancements to the outside play space to develop children's exploration of nature and to enhance ease of access by children to support free flow between inside and outside  develop links with all other Early Years Foundation Stage providers who provide care for the children to gain information to assist assessment and planning  encourage children's self-care skills further with regard to serving drinks and meals. 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 safeguarded through a clear management structure which ensures staff understand their responsibilities. A written safeguarding procedure is in place and staff are helped to understand the importance of them acting if they are concerned about children's safety. For example, displays in the staffroom help staff deepen their understanding of safeguarding processes. Appropriate recruitment procedures and induction processes ensure staff's suitability is established. The very stable and longstanding staff group has its ongoing suitability assessed through appraisals that identify any training requirements. Observations of staff's practice when working with the children is undertaken by the manager and her deputy, and formal room assessments are completed by the nursery's practitioner who holds Early Years Professional status. The building and grounds are safe and secure and staff manage the entry of parents and visitors. Staff have a clear

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the early years provision

understanding of risks within and outside of the building and written risk assessments for the building, grounds and any outings are completed and reviewed regularly.

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the early years provision

Required policies and procedures are in place to help with the safe and smooth management of the setting. The senior management team have successfully encouraged the staff to draw up action plans for improvements for their rooms and the nursery as a whole. Action has been taken to implement changes and the formal self-evaluation is being updated to include the new extension. Staff take responsibility in small teams to manage aspects of the nursery, for example, the sourcing of toys, recycling and fesitival activities.

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the early years provision

Parent partnerships are seen as crucial to the staff team, and parents are made very welcome. Parents and staff work as a team to ensure appropriate settling-in processes are used. These are developed and changed based on children's individual needs. Policies are shared with parents, along with daily sheets, newsletters and parent boards to keep parents up-to-date with latest news and topics. Parents are confident about how to access their child's development files and appreciate the termly development sheets staff send home and the parents' evenings which give an unhurried opportunity to discuss their child with the key worker. Partnerships in the wider context are used to develop the quality of education and care and links with other professionals are used to gain information on how best to help children with additional needs and ideas about best practice. The nursery is aware of the need to develop links with other providers of the Early

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the early years provision

Years Foundation Stage to the children who attend the nursery to provide continuity of care and gain a full picture of the child's development. They have successfully forged links with a number of schools to support children's transitions into reception classes. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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and outcomes for children

The nursery promotes children's learning, development and welfare very well. The staff have a secure knowledge of the Early Years Foundation Stage and demonstrate a good understanding of their planning and assessment processes. They use a mixture of observations to build a picture of children's development. Practical systems are in place to measure children's progress and clear processes help staff use their knowledge of their key children to inform the planning of activities that will support children's learning. Staff review children's progress by drawing together information of children's abilities under the six areas of learning on a termly basis. They make clear assessments of whether children are making adequate age-appropriate progress towards all aspects of the early learning goals. Parents are informed about the observation files and are confident about asking to see them. The termly summary sheets ask parents to make a written comment

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and outcomes for children

about their child's interests at home or the observations staff have made about their child's progress, which adds to staff's knowledge of the types of activities that would be appropriate.

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and outcomes for children

Children are supported by a key worker when they attend the nursery and this gives them the confidence to explore the environment and join in with activities. They are very well settled and have a positive attitude to learning. Story times are interactive and engaging. Staff use puppets and toys to bring the stories to life for even the youngest children and this, along with appropriate questions posed by staff, ensure children's concentration and love of books is developed. They grow in independence as one child each day is chosen to provide a helping hand as 'key group helper' to set out cups at snacktimes and resources such as collage materials which are accessible for children to access throughout the sessions. However, children do not have an opportunity to pour their own drinks or serve their own vegetables from the serving bowls at lunchtimes. Staff take advantage of the all-weather outside surface to use the outside area as a learning environment

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and outcomes for children

on most days. However, the conclusion of recent building work has limited the space currently available to children, therefore, access has to be timetabled and the all weather surface restricts staff's ability to introduce children to plant growing outdoors on anything but a small scale. Numbers, shape and size are introduced as part of daily activities as they, for example, count the cups they are setting out or discuss the water they are using to pour and fill containers during water play. Children are introduced to other cultures through activities based around cultural festivals that are of significance to them and a range of meals with influences from around the world. A small staff team take lead to ensure all major religions are represented. A broader 'celebrations' theme has been used to link to events in children's lives, for example, children had discussed, christenings, birthdays, weddings, as well at achievements such as winning a dancing medal. This values

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and outcomes for children

children's experiences and helps them develop a sense of time and of their place in the community. Children have ready access to computers, and other programmable and push button toys.

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and outcomes for children

Staff are confident in their ability to provide a tailored service for all children, including those with additional needs. They have an excellent understanding of the This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 needs of children with food allergies and other medical conditions, they are clear about the precautions they need to take to keep all children safe and promptly access additional help when this is required. Children benefit from a dedicated cook employed to provide a healthy range of appealing snacks and meals which are prepared from fresh local ingredients. Good hygiene practices are introduced to children through everyday routines, and their understanding of health issues is extended through discussion. For example, during story time children were able to recall how to minimise the spread of infection when they sneeze. In similar ways children are shown how to keep themselves safe through clear rules which are

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and outcomes for children

carefully explained. They demonstrate a good understand of how to minimise any risk presented. Staff manage the children's behaviour in a very positive way. Distraction and negotiation is used and some rooms have introduced reward systems in the form of sticker charts. Children are able to make good progress in developing skills for the future and the move to school or another provision when the time comes. 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 2 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 2 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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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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