Small Wonders Nursery, Pre-School and Forest School

Small Wonders Day Nursery And Out Of School Club Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY269478 Inspection date 26/04/2011 Inspector Lynn Dent

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Setting address 2a Eastwood Road,, Oundle, Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, PE8 4DF Telephone number 01832 274929 Email swondersnursery@aol.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

Small Wonders Day Nursery Ltd is privately owned. It opened in 2004 and operates from four rooms in a purpose built premises in Oundle in Northamptonshire. Older children are cared for on the first floor of the property which is accessed by stairs. All children share access to a secure outdoor play area.

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Description of the setting

The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and both the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register to care for a maximum of 105 children under eight years at any one time. There are currently 85 children aged from three months to under five years on roll, some in part-time places. The setting also provides out of school care for 31 children over five years to eight years of age.

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Description of the setting

The nursery is open each weekday from 8am to 6pm all year except for bank holidays and three days between Christmas and New Year. Children come from Oundle and the surrounding villages. The nursery currently supports a number of children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and also supports a number of children who speak English as an additional language. The setting is in receipt of nursery education funding. The owner employs 19 staff. Of these, 15 hold appropriate early years 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

Children benefit because the nursery promotes inclusive practice through highly effective partnerships with parents, carers, other settings and specialists services. Detailed information about children's routines and personal needs are collected at induction enabling staff to meet these. Staff interact effectively with children to support their learning and development through play. Older children's independence is not always promoted during everyday routines. Systems to ensure staff are suitable to work with children are in place at induction. The management have implemented a range of effective self-evaluation systems showing a commitment to improvement.

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further?

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

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further?

 improve procedures for updating the ongoing suitability of staff to work with children  improve the use of everyday routines to further develop older children's independence  develop the arrangements in place to further determine children's starting points so their strengths and interests can be fully built upon. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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the early years provision

Children's welfare is effectively safeguarded because staff clearly understand their responsibility to report child protection concern within the nursery and to the relevant agencies. Robust recruitment and vetting procedures ensure that all staff are suitable to work with the children. Criminal Records Bureau checks are updated every three years. However, systems to update other changes that may affect staff's suitability are not as robust. Regular risk assessments are completed ensuring that the premises, toys and resources are safe for children to use. Consequently, no hazards were identified on the day of inspection. Further risk assessments are completed for outings resulting in children safety being maintained during these times.

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the early years provision

The effective organisation of the rooms and the availability of developmentally appropriate toys and resources mean that children can freely move around and engage in different activities at will. Staff move around the room to engage well with children in their chosen activity. All children are making good progress in their learning and development due to effective planning which shows a balance of adult-led and child-initiated experiences. Staff collect information about the children form parents at induction, although, little information is collected about their learning and developmental stage. Consequently, this impacts on the staff's ability to fully build on what the children already know and can do. The staff use their own observations and the effective assessment procedures mean that children's achievements and learning priorities are identified. The efficient system for self-evaluation involving staff, parents and children results in all aspects of the

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the early years provision

provision being monitored and evaluated, therefore, supporting ongoing improvement. As a result of consultation with parents, the routine for the exclusion during periods of illness has been amended further protecting the children's welfare.

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the early years provision

Children feel valued in the highly inclusive setting because their differences are recognised and promoted. Excellent arrangements are established with other settings that children attend. This includes sharing reports about the children, promoting consistency in their learning and development. Staff highly value partnership working with parents and carers. This begins at induction and continues every step of the way throughout the child's time at the nursery. The views of parents are sought at induction and after six weeks when they receive detailed reports about how their child has settled-in. This also occurs as their child makes the transition to the next room. All parents are invited to review their children's developmental files regularly and attend parent's evenings. Consequently, they are involved in their child's learning and development. A parents committee is actively involved in working with the management where

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the early years provision

parent's anonymous opinions are heard and offering the parent's perspective on improvements for the nursery. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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and outcomes for children

Babies and toddlers individual needs are effectively met because staff maintain their sleep and feeding routines from home in a calm and caring atmosphere. All children feel secure, confident and quickly settle on arrival at the nursery. Staff are positive role models for good behaviour. Consequently, children behave very well as they share, take turns and show respect for others, showing they are developing important skills for later life. Children engage in a wide range of sensory experiences, such as, playing with paint, lentils, feathers and pasta. Babies are surrounded by natural materials, mirrors and everyday objects. They particularly enjoy playing with tin lids and exploring shredded paper. Toddlers and older children pour their drinks at snack time. However, older children's independence is not fully promoted during lunchtime. Children have a clear understanding of healthy living as they engage in exercise everyday and take part

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and outcomes for children

in 'Yoga bugs'. Systematic cleaning and infection control procedures are carried out by staff ensuring that children are protected from the spread of germs.

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and outcomes for children

Children develop an understanding of how to keep themselves safe by participating in routines, such as, the emergency evacuation procedure. Older children manage the use of the stairs in a safe manner. Staff plan well to ensure that children have the opportunity to play outdoors where their learning continues to be promoted through further interesting activities, such as, mark making and role play. Children learn about the local community and the wider world as they visit places of interest, such as, the farm. Toys, resources, signs and positive images used in the setting very effectively promote equality and differences in the society. Staff make concerted efforts to enable children who support children who speak English as an additional language. They learn key words in the child's own language and work with parents to translate songs and rhymes for the children to learn at home.

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and outcomes for children

All children make good progress in their learning and development because the staff effectively use planned activities to promote this and extend children's language during conversation. Older children work in groups to complete developmentally appropriate activities. For example, some are using puppets to re- tell a story, others are using a range of toys and articles or writing on boards with chalks to identify sounds and letters. Consequently, they have a good understanding of these and enjoy well-known stories. Staff use free play experiences well to promote children's interests. Toddlers are playing in the role play kitchen pretending to make pancakes. They mix these and pretend to cook the pancakes on the play oven. Staff remind the children to be careful because the oven is hot, helping them develop an understanding of safety through play. Children benefit because staff clearly understand the aims of the activities they are

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and outcomes for children

providing and how to help each child achieve these. For example, while using stickle bricks, they explain that for some children this is to help them to design and make something, for others it is to help them learn colours and shapes. 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 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 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 1 The extent to which children make a positive contribution 1 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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