Dolphin Day Nursery

Dolphin Day Nursery Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number EY399838 Inspection date 05/07/2011 Inspector Anne Austen

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Setting address Falconers Hill Infant School, Ashby Road, DAVENTRY, Northamptonshire, NN11 0QF Telephone number 01327 301600 Email info@dolphindaynursery.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

Dolphin Day Nursery re registered after expanding from a 25 place to a 56 place nursery to larger premises in 2010 and is privately owned. It operates from a purpose built premises in a residential area of Daventry, Northamptonshire. All children have access to enclosed outdoor play areas. The setting is all on one level with wheelchair access.

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Description of the setting

The nursery is open five days a week from 7:30am to 6pm all year round except for Bank Holidays and a short break between Christmas and New Year. Children are able to attend for a variety of sessions. The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and on both the voluntary and compulsory parts of the Childcare Register. A maximum of 56 children may attend the nursery at any one time. There are currently 40 children attending who are within the Early Years Foundation Stage. The nursery also offers care to children aged over five to under eight years. The nursery provides funded early education for three- and four-year- olds. It 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

The nursery employs nine members of childcare staff. Of these, eight hold appropriate early years qualifications. The manager has an Early Years Foundation Stage Degree and Early Years Professional Status and the pre-school team leader also has Early Years Professional Status. 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

Overall children make good progress towards the early learning goals in a safe and welcoming setting. Staff tailor learning experiences to suit the needs of each child and are generally deployed effectively to support children s learning and development The environment is welcoming and outdoor areas are continuing to be developed. Policies and procedures are effective and inclusive for those children who attend. Well-established partnerships with parents, outside agencies and other settings which children attend ensure consistency in children s welfare and learning. Regular self-evaluation ensures that any priorities for future development are promptly identified and acted on, resulting in a service that is responsive to the needs of all of its users.

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further?

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

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further?

 develop further the range of resources and activities provided in the outdoor play areas to cover the six areas for learning This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006  develop further staff deployment to ensure that the individual needs of all children are consistently met.

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the early years provision

Robust steps are taken to safeguard children. Staff have a good awareness of the indicator signs of abuse. The designated person has attended safeguarding children training and understands the importance of following the Local Safeguarding Children Board procedures in the event of child protection concerns. A written safeguarding children policy and all the relevant guidance documents are in place to support the staff's practice. Secure recruitment procedures are in place to ensure that all staff are suitable to work with children. Appropriate checks are carried out and references obtained. Risk assessments are clear and detailed, with confirmation of any action taken to minimize risks and hazards to children, for example, guards prevent children from burning their hands on the radiators and dangerous substances, such as cleaning materials are made inaccessible to children. Security within the provision is a priority. Staff closely monitor the arrival

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the early years provision

and departure of the children, ensure that children are only collected by authorised adults and a record of visitors is maintained. Most staff have up-to-date first aid knowledge. Clear procedures are in place to record and monitor any accidents and for the safe administration of medicines. As a consequence children's health and well-being is well promoted.

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the early years provision

The manager and staff have appropriate qualifications and are clear of their roles and responsibilities. They participate in appraisals and attend further training to develop their existing knowledge and professional development. A good range of written policies and procedures covering different aspects are maintained and effectively support the provision's practice. For example, a behaviour management and equal opportunities policy. The manager of the nursery has high aspirations for the continual development of the provision. She is enthusiastic and works hard to ensure that the nursery is responsive to the needs of the children and families who attend. The manager encourages all staff, parents and children to contribute their ideas for further developments. For example, parents are encouraged to complete feedback questionnaires and older children are asked to express their views about the provision. Consequently targets have been set to support the

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the early years provision

provisions capacity to continually progress and build on the good practice already established.

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the early years provision

Staff promote an inclusive environment. Systems are in place for the early identification of children's learning needs and to ensure quick responses to any area of particular difficulty. Staff work well with outside agencies to assess and support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children who speak English as an additional language also receive good support. For example, staff take time to learn key words and phases in their home language, give them extra support in learning English, use translation aids and embrace their different cultures and celebrations to share with the children. This is further enhanced through displays and resources that depict diversity in order to ensure that children learn to value those that are different from themselves. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 Resources are fit for purpose, age appropriate and attractively displayed so that

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the early years provision

children can make choices in their play. As a consequence the environment is conducive to learning and children enjoy their play. However, staff are not allows effectively deployed to fully support children's learning and development. This potentially compromises their welfare and progress. Children are able to free-flow between the indoor and outdoor environment, however, staff do not always ensure that the outdoor environment is set up to cover the six areas for learning. This potentially limits the children's range of experiences when they play outside.

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the early years provision

The setting develops highly positive relationships with parents and carers. Staff work effectively with parents to gain information about children's welfare needs and interests. This helps to ensure continuous and consistent care for the children. Parents receive a detailed prospectus about the setting. Staff support parents to spend time settling their child and provide individual reassurance to parents as required. Communication diaries, daily discussion, open evenings, newsletters, 'stay and play' sessions and social events enable staff to talk to parents and provide them with opportunities to discuss their child's achievements and well- being. Staff effectively liaise with other providers who deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage which ensures progression and continuity in their care and learning.

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and outcomes for children

Children play, learn and have fun in the company of their friends and adults at the nursery. They demonstrate a positive attitude to learning and are offered a variety of play opportunities that support them in making good progress towards the early learning goals in relation to their capabilities and starting points in their learning. Staff generally have a good knowledge of the Early Years Foundation Stage learning and development requirements and are continuing to develop their skills to build on children's ideas and to ask relevant questions to fully extend their knowledge and skills. They observe the children as they play and make assessments of their learning and development using the Early Years Foundation Stage guidance document to plan children's next steps.

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and outcomes for children

Younger children enjoy exploring different media and natural materials, using all their senses. For example, children handle a range of natural materials during holistic play, feel the shiny silver items and immerse their hands in sand, water, shaving foam, jelly, gloop and paint. Children press and pull buttons and levers on activity centres, listen to different sounds and look at themselves in the mirror. They relax on cushions in the soothing 'lilac area', feel the texture of the soft toys and look at pictorial books.

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and outcomes for children

Children learn to take responsibility and are developing their independence; for example, children independently select resources, help to tidy away and older children access the bathroom by themselves. Staff respond to younger children's gestures and sounds and older children communicate with growing confidence and This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 are developing their listening skills, for example, during circle time. Children enjoy stories, look at books for enjoyment and make marks as they draw, paint and chalk. Older children are beginning to draw recognisable pictures and are developing their emergent writing skills. Children are learning to count and solve simple number problems. They complete puzzles, learn to recognise different shapes, play number games such as dominos, sequence the elephants in order of size and fill different sized containers with water to learn about volume and

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and outcomes for children

The children use their imaginations when they play with small world resources and act out real and imagined events. For example, children make up stories, play in the pirate ship and make meals and serve drinks in the cafe. Children make cards, lanterns and paint pictures of different bugs. They learn about life cycles, care for the fish and gerbil and plant sunflowers. Children's information and communication technology skills are promoted as they experience a good range of opportunities to access a computer, calculators and a range of battery and pre-programmable toys.

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and outcomes for children

Children are secure and develop a sense of belonging in the setting. They seek support, reassurance and comfort from the staff as they need it, which effectively promotes their emotional development. Children are developing an understanding of how to keep themselves safe, for example, they learn about stranger danger, how to evacuate the building in the event of a fire and how to handle tools such as the scissors safely. They enjoy visits from people who help us, such as, the police. Behaviour is well managed; the children respond to gentle reminders or corrections, learn to share, take turns and develop good manners.

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and outcomes for children

Children's good health and well-being is effectively promoted. They enjoy being physically active, develop skills in coordination, control, manipulation and movement. They are able to rest according to their needs and enjoy daily fresh air. Babies are encouraged to develop their physical skills, such as learning to sit, crawl and walk. Older children run, balance, climb over and crawl under the tyres, manoeuvre wheeled toys, roll the hoops, jump over the skipping rope and climb on the raised grass bank. They have fun and squeal with delight. Children are provided with a range of activities to develop their hand-to-eye co-ordination and strengthen small muscles. For example, younger children use spoons and forks to eat their lunch and older children learn to carefully thread the wooden fruit and hold writing implements and paint brushes with growing precision.

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and outcomes for children

Children's dietary health is maintained because records are kept of any special food requirements and staff are knowledgeable about children's dietary needs and provide accordingly to this. Food preparation areas are very clean and the setting has been awarded a Five Star rating for food hygiene. Children are adopting healthy lifestyles as they learn to follow health and hygiene routines, for example, children are learning to wash their hands after using the toilet. They use anti bacterial soap and have access to individual hand towels. Nappy changing procedures are secure and all children have individual bed linen which is regularly washed. This effectively minimizes the risk of cross-infection. 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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