Southlands Creche

Southlands Creche Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number 218489 Inspection date 25/05/2011 Inspector Parm Sansoyer

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Setting address St. Margarets C of E Junior School, Knutton Road, NEWCASTLE, Staffordshire, ST5 0HU Telephone number 01782 714465 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

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

Southlands Creche opened in 1991. It operates from four rooms within the old school house building in the grounds of St Margaret's School, Wolstanton. There is a fully enclosed outdoor play area. The setting serves the local community. Children attend for a variety of sessions.

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Description of the setting

The setting is registered to care for a maximum of 26 children in the early years age group, of whom no more than 18 maybe under two years at any one time. There are currently 40 children on roll, all of whom are in the early years age group. It is registered by Ofsted on the Early Years Register. The setting is open Monday to Friday and operates from 7.50am to 5.45pm throughout the year. It supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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Description of the setting

There are 10 members of staff who work with the children. Of these nine hold a qualification at level 3 in early years and one holds a qualification at level 6 and Early Years Professional Status.

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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 and their parents are warmly welcomed into this calm and caring environment. Children are happy, content and comfortable and their individual care needs are met well. The resources and teaching methods, which are mostly effective, help children make good progress in their learning and development. Children are fully safeguarded because all of the staff team have good knowledge of child protection issues. Relationships with parents, carers, other settings and professionals are strong. An effective self-evaluation process ensures a rigorous monitoring system to help improve outcomes for children.

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further?

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

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further?

 develop further planning systems to ensure the learning intention of all activities is clear, to help maximise the potential of all experiences  broaden the range of experiences on offer for more able babies to explore, investigate and be creative with resources, such as sand, water, paint and dough.

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the early years provision

There are good policies, strategies and procedures in place to ensure the safety and welfare of children. A designated member of staff has clear management responsibility in relation to child protection issues and all staff are aware of this. All This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 staff know and understand their roles and responsibilities well in relation to safeguarding children. There are effective procedures in place to ensure adults caring for children, or having unsupervised access to them, are suitably qualified, vetted and experienced. All records, policies and procedures required for the safe and efficient management of the service and to meet the needs of all children are in place and regularly reviewed. Effective written risk assessments are completed for the indoors, outdoors and any outings undertaken with the children.

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the early years provision

All adults are deployed well to support children's learning and their care needs. An effective key worker system means adults know the children well and mostly plan effectively for their enjoyment and individual needs. A good range of planned, purposeful play, especially for children aged over 18 months, extends children's learning and development. Outdoors is especially popular with these children, as they can freely choose, explore and discover with curiosity. Regular observations and assessment of what the children do and like are used effectively to support children's learning. However, on occasions the learning intention of some activities is not always clear and therefore these experiences not always fully maximised. Staff are very skilled and offer good support to get all children actively involved.

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the early years provision

The setting is committed to working in partnership with parents and carers and has established effective links between staff, parents and their children. Positive relationships with parents and carers means they are kept well informed about the setting and their children's care and achievements. Parents and carers are clearly happy with the service provided and the support their children receive. Partnerships with the local feeder nursery and other agencies are effectively established to help support transition, continuity of care and those children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. The management team has a clear understanding of the service they provide for children and their families and have a good overview of how to further improve the nursery. The well established staff team are happy and work well together to test new ideas and questioning practice, to help improve outcomes for children.

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and outcomes for children

Children's personal, social and emotional development is supported very well. All children develop close relationships which are warm and caring with both adults and each other. Babies in particular form close attachments with their assigned key people and familiar staff. This secure base means they are happy to explore and investigate their surroundings and resources. Older children develop their confidence well as they busily move around their environment while deciding what to do.

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and outcomes for children

Children's communication, language and literacy skills are supported well. The environment, both indoors and outdoors, incorporates resources which promote early writing skills for both boys and girls well. For example, many boys who prefer being outdoors develop an interest in early writing skills as they use the easel. Children develop a keen interest in books because these are made easily accessible This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 and enjoyed by many of the children. In addition weekly sessions, which are led by a visitor, focus on extending the children's communication skills by using a range musical instruments, books and story aids. Babies enjoy making eye contact and using their voices to communicate with adults, who support their communication skills well.

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and outcomes for children

Children engage in a wide range of experiences in which they encounter creatures, people, plants and objects in their natural environment and real-life situations. Many children have very good opportunities to make daily visits to the local area. For example, children visit the local shops, parks, lake, woods and museum. These trips offer good first-hand experiences and enrich the children's learning. Children have a good understanding of diversity through themed activities and access an appropriate range of resources. Children's problem solving, reasoning and numeracy levels are building well. They seek patterns, count, sort and match when using a range of construction toys, puzzles and games. Many children enjoy a wide range of experiences to express their creativity and imagination through a variety of arts and crafts materials and freely engage in role play.

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and outcomes for children

Children under 18 months have good opportunities to explore everyday objects and materials. For example, they show a keen interest in the treasure baskets, which incorporate a range of metal objects, sponges and brushes to extend children's curiosity in texture. However, the more able children under 18 months have fewer opportunities to explore investigate and be creative at their own leisure with resources, such as the paint, sand, water and dough.

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and outcomes for children

Children develop good habits due to the clear routine and the praise and encouragement they receive from staff. Staff are consistent in their approach to behaviour management, which helps children learn right from wrong and how to stay safe. Children have a good understanding of how to stay safe when outdoors on their daily walks and learn about crossing the road safely. They benefit greatly from access to fresh air and the outdoor environment throughout the session, which contributes significantly to their health and well-being. Children benefit from well balanced, nutritious meals and snacks, which are freshly prepared on the premises and enjoyed by the children. Children become active and inquisitive learners, and develop good skills for the future. 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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