Beckley Church of England Primary School

Nightingales Nursery Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number 123175 Inspection date 22/07/2011 Inspector Carol Willett

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Setting address St. Francis Xavier College, Malwood Road, Wandsworth, London, SW12 8EN Telephone number 020-8772-6056 Email e.thompson.sfx.ac.uk 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

Nightingales Day Nursery is a private day nursery, which opened in 1994 to provide care for the children of the staff of St Francis Xavier College and the local community. The nursery is managed by the governing body of St Francis Xavier College. It is located in Clapham South in the London Borough of Wandsworth. The children attending the nursery come from different social backgrounds with some cultural diversity. The premises consists of three age-based playrooms in a converted house in the grounds of St Francis Xavier College. The baby room and pre-school room are situated on the first floor. There is also an office, kitchen and toilet facilities. Children have access to an enclosed 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. It is registered to care for 20 children in the early years age group, of which 14 can be under three years and six under two years. Currently there are 28 children on the roll who attend a variety of sessions. Children aged three and four years receive funding for free nursery education. The nursery can support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children who have English as an additional language.

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Description of the setting

There are six members of staff who work with the children and a cook. All staff have level 3 qualifications in childcare and education. The manager has completed an early years foundation degree. The nursery also offers work placements for students undertaking training in childcare.

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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 secure and happy and spend their time actively learning through play within the small friendly nursery environment. Overall, they make good progress in their development as they are well supported by caring staff who have a good understanding of children's individual needs. The nursery's capacity for continuous improvement is good as practice is continually monitored and evaluated and staff are committed to training to develop their knowledge and skills. Partnerships with parents, the college and other agencies are effective which contributes significantly to improving outcomes for children. Documentation is in place to support all areas of practice and contains good detail.

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further?

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

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further?

 increase opportunities for children in developing and using their own home languages during play This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006  review the balance of adult-led and child-initiated play in the outdoor environment  develop staff teaching skills in promoting the use of open-ended questions.

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the early years provision

Children play safely in the nursery as security is good and they are well supervised. Risk assessments are thorough and effective daily safety checks are made of both the indoor and outdoor environment and for any outings. Children's welfare is safeguarded well. Recruitment and induction procedures are robust and all staff are vetted. The nursery has procedures in place to review staff's ongoing suitability and identify training needs. All staff have safeguarding training and they are confident with the procedures to follow should they have any concerns. They are well supported by the college management team. The small staff team work well together to ensure all children are purposefully occupied within a secure caring environment. They organise the premises effectively to ensure children are happy and making good progress in their development. Children have easy access to a good range of age-appropriate resources and activities which enables them to

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the early years provision

develop in independence as they choose what they play with. Staff value children's efforts and display some of their artwork and photographs of the children at play on boards within the playrooms. All children are welcomed and inclusion is positively promoted in the nursery. Children and staff come from a variety of cultural backgrounds. Children learn about diversity through planned activities and there are resources to provide positive awareness. Staff have an awareness of the children's home languages, although this is not reflected in the room resources. For example, key word labelling does not include all languages used within the nursery to support children in developing and using their own languages during play.

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the early years provision

Partnerships are good. Staff have established effective working relationships with parents and others involved in children's care and development. They work closely with the early years team to make continuing improvements to their practices. Parents are actively involved in partnerships within the nursery as they are invited to attend monthly meetings to offer support, arrange social events and raise any issues of concern. Parents are kept well informed about the children and nursery life through both verbal and written information, emails, newsletters and information displayed on notice boards. They discuss their child's progress at regular parents meetings. Parents are very positive and state that the nursery has very warm friendly atmosphere and children are very happy.

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the early years provision

The manager has a positive approach to inspection processes and uses feedback to continually improve outcomes for children. She completes and updates a comprehensive self-evaluation form reflecting on nursery practice and identifies priorities for improvement. The nursery are currently working towards improving their garden area to maximise the learning opportunities for all children outdoors. All recommendations raised at the previous inspection and from local authority visits are addressed and so they are continually making improvements to practice. Staff value input from parents and act on feedback from parents' surveys. Staff are This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 committed to improving their own knowledge and skills and undertake training, with the manager completing an early years degree.

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and outcomes for children

Children make good progress in all areas of development in a small friendly nursery. Staff create a positive, encouraging environment and each room provides age-related opportunities and resources for children to make progress to all the early learning goals. Children confidently join in planned activities, for example, with cornflour and playdough and craft materials. Older children enjoy outings on the underground to exciting places, such as the natural history museum to see butteries and dinosaurs, linked to their interests and topics taking their own photographs for a display of their favourite bits. Children's physical skills are developing well as they use the range of equipment provided outside. They ably manoeuvre a range of wheeled toys and have opportunities to climb, balance and catch. They love to chase the bubbles and talk about where they may be going as they disappear in the sky. Babies learn to crawl and walk and enjoy push button

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and outcomes for children

activity toys; toddlers use tools such as paint brushes and glue sticks with confidence and enjoy singing sessions matching words and actions; older children are confident in naming colours and shapes and some can write their own name and understanding simple mathematical concepts. Children are confident communicators and chat happily both to their friends and adults. Staff are skilled at supporting children's emerging skills and language, offering lots of praise and encouragement. Labelling in the playroom encourages children's awareness of print. Staff have a good understanding of children's development. Babies are actively involved in their play, confidently selecting and exploring tactile resources, such as cornflour and spaghetti play. They are supported well by staff and as they progress into the older age group they become confident in their daily routines. Babies and young children are content and settled because their emotional, health,

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and outcomes for children

physical and dietary requirements are well met. Children enjoy the interest staff take in their play and respond well to the staff support. Staff ensure children have many opportunities to consolidate or further their learning. However, questioning techniques are not always effective in encouraging children's thinking. Children make good progress in their learning as staff plan activities based on their observations and children's interests. Staff complete development records which include their observation and photographs for all children. They use tracking records and share their observations regularly with parents to involve them in setting children's next learning steps.

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and outcomes for children

Children are settled and secure and make good progress in their development as they form close caring relationships with the friendly caring staff. The key person system works very well and babies form strong bonds and love to snuggle in to the familiar staff showing they feel safe at the nursery. Staff plan effectively for children's learning and organise the three playrooms so all areas of learning are covered on a daily basis. Displays of children's work and photographs of them at play make the rooms child-friendly and welcoming. Staff work well with parents and early years development team to improve the nursery and have made lots This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 changes to the outdoor play area to increase children's enjoinment and interests. However they do not plan focused activities for outside play so that children make maximum progress in their development.

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and outcomes for children

Children's healthy is promoted well. They learn good personal hygiene through regular daily routines. They know they need to wash their hands and they enjoy nutritious hot meals, such as tuna pasta bake and fruit compote with natural yoghurt, cooked freshly on site in the college kitchen. Fresh fruit and vegetables are provided daily and children freely access drinks of water. Children all go out daily to use the outdoor play area and sometimes go across to the common for walks. They dig and plant and grow herbs vegetables and flowers and use the college grass areas during holidays. Good recording systems ensure staff know about any health or dietary issues the children may have. Staff effectively complete and share records with parents of accidents or any medication administered.

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and outcomes for children

Children show a strong sense of belonging encouraged through caring relationships with staff and attractive displays of their work and photographs of them at play. Children form close friendship, their behaviour is good and they learn to care for others. They play well together and older children look out for the babies as they all join together for outside play. Staff gently encourage children to share and take turns. They learn the rules to play games and the consequences if they do not play fairly through discussions with staff supporting their play. Children are confident in the nursery routines and know what is expected of them as they happily make their own choices and decisions. They take responsibility for the environment as they help to pack away toys and serve themselves lunch. Children are active learners and staff provide good opportunities and encourage all round skills for children's future learning.

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and outcomes for children

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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