Workplace NurseryOfsted inspection, 2 Jun 2011

Workplace Nursery Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number 255159 Inspection date 02/06/2011 Inspector Karen Cooper

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Setting address Council House, Freeth Street, Oldbury, West Midlands, B69 3DG Telephone number 0121 569 3165 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. You may copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as

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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

Workplace Nursery opened in 1991 and is located within Sandwell Council House in Oldbury. The nursery is self-contained and offers childcare placements to employees of Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council and the local area. There is a fully enclosed area available for outdoor play.

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Description of the setting

A maximum of 50 children aged from birth to eight years may attend at any one time. There are currently 47 children on roll, all of whom are within the early years age range. This includes 17 funded three- and four-year-olds. Children attend a variety of sessions. The nursery operates from 7.30am and 6pm Monday to Friday, closing for Bank Holidays. It offers a range of full and part-time places. The nursery supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who speak English as an additional language. The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and both the voluntary and compulsory parts of the Childcare Register.

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Description of the setting

The nursery employs 12 staff, all hold whom hold an appropriate early years qualification. The nursery receives support from the local authority.

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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 and settled and benefit from a good range of toys and activities which encourage them to make progress in their learning and development. The self-evaluation process is used effectively to make changes that benefit children. The setting works well with parents and external agencies to ensure children's individual needs are met. Policies and procedures are mostly effective and documentation is well organised.

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further?

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

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further?

 continue to develop further methods of observation and assessment and link these to planning in order to ensure that children progress to the next steps of learning and development at a pace suitable to their individual needs  review procedures to ensure that all staff are aware of the need to maintain confidentiality, particularly in relation to displaying children's personal information.

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the early years provision

Staff are well informed about their responsibilities to protect children. They have a good understanding of the different types of abuse and of the procedure to follow This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 should they have a concern about a child in their care. All adults who come into contact with children are vetted to ensure they are suitable to do so. The environment, both indoors and outside, is subject to rigorous risk assessments that ensure potential hazards to children are effectively minimised. Staffing deployment is good, which ensures children receive appropriate levels of support to enable all to participate in the activities. The staff group children effectively, using a key worker system. This promotes consistency and allows lots of discussion and individual attention. Indoor and outdoor space is organised effectively, creating a welcoming, child-friendly environment which enables children to play, sleep and

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the early years provision

The staff work well together as a cohesive team to promote children's care and learning. They regularly attend training to update their knowledge and the management demonstrate a strong capacity to maintain continuous improvements by addressing all the recommendations from the last inspection. Improvements have been made to the outside play area and some organisation to the sessions. For example, story time and access to resources mean that opportunities have been extended for children to make full use of the range of experiences available to them. The whole staff team is involved in the self-evaluation process. They constantly reflect and evaluate the service provided to identify where changes are required. Regular questionnaires are sent out to parents and any suggestions are used to feed into the process.

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the early years provision

The staff place great value in ensuring that parents develop a strong sense of belonging to the setting. As a consequence, there is successful partnership with parents, who express their satisfaction with the service they receive. Many parents identify how happy and settled their children are and the progress they have made in their development since attending the nursery. Parents are provided with a pack of information about the nursery when their child first starts to attend and care plans are developed with the parents to provide the staff with the necessary information required to promote their child's health and well-being. Parents receive daily information about children's experiences and parents meetings are effectively used to discuss progress. Parents are invited to write comments on books sent home and children's home life to ensure that there is a shared vision of developing children's potential. Attractive displays of children's work around the environment

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the early years provision

show parents how children enjoy their time there. The nursery works consistently with external agencies that support staff in meeting children's additional needs and to reflect on practice issues. The management is aware of the importance of sharing transition documents when children leave to attend other settings and have formed positive links with local schools and the children's centre. Documentation is regularly reviewed to ensure it complies with legal requirements. However, some of the children's personal details are displayed within their base room, which means that confidentiality may be less rigorously applied. Children are valued and individual needs are met as agreed with parents. There ares a vast range of resources that reflect the children's backgrounds, and activities are implemented consistently to reinforce their understanding. The nursery provides a fully inclusive environment and all children are welcome.

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the early years provision

This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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and outcomes for children

Children enjoy their time at the nursery because they engage in a wide range of activities that help to promote their learning and development effectively. Children are relaxed and settled. This enables them to make good progress in their personal, social and emotional development. The staff have attended Early Years Foundation Stage training and demonstrate that they know the children well. They plan a variety of focused activities, ensuring that there is a good balance between adult-led and child-initiated activities. They observe children as they play and record what they can do. However, this information is not sufficiently matched to the expectations of the early learning goals to ensure that children progress to the next steps of learning and development at a pace suitable to their individual needs. Children are valued and staff help them to feel good about themselves by frequently providing positive praise and support while managing their behaviour

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and outcomes for children

effectively; this helps build children's self-esteem.

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and outcomes for children

Children are gaining a good understanding of the world through play and this helps them to develop skills for the future. They have planted cress seeds, spring flowers and bulbs and watched as they grow. They show real excitement when using magnifying glasses to investigate and observe insects and use information technology with increasing confidence, which helps to promote their understanding of how things work. Cooking, sand and water activities promote their understanding of weights, volume and measures. Consequently, problem solving skills are applied within a meaningful context. Lots of opportunites are provided for children to improve their mark making skills, and they enjoy using chalks and drawing around themselves to make life size cut-outs. The staff talk to the babies and young children sensitively to encourage their language development. Books are accessible in all playrooms and children enjoy listening to familiar stories. As a

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and outcomes for children

result, their ability to recall information is developing and their vocabulary is growing consistently. Children are able to express themselves as they play with role play equipment and enjoy using their imagination as they act out familiar roles within the community, such as a travel agent. Children are encouraged to be creative and experiment using different media, such as play dough, soil and paint. Babies and younger children have access to a variety of programmable toys and resources to help increase their skills. For example, they enjoy using musical toys and show how excited they are when using a rain maker as they watch and listen to the beads falling from the top to the bottom. Walks around the local area teach children about the community they live in.

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and outcomes for children

A range of meals and snacks are provided and children have easy access to drinks throughout the day. Appropriate hygiene practices, such as hand washing, are introduced to children through everyday routines. Children learn to keep themselves safe as the staff talk to them about issues, such as road and fire safety, and give explanations about safety when they play. Children have ample opportunities for physical play. The well-resourced outside space is used effectively to promote large muscle skills as children ride around on bikes and play enthusiastically on the rockers and slides. 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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