Oscar Bears Childcare Centre

Oscar Bears Child Care Centre Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number 309600 Inspection date 15/09/2011 Inspector Anita Pyrkotsch-Jones

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Setting address 142 Blackburn Road, Accrington, Lancashire, BB5 0AD

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Telephone number 01254 238 600 Email info@oscar-bears.co.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. 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

Oscar Bears Child Care Centre opened in 1999. Itis privately owned and operates from a large Victorian house situated on a main road near to the centre of Accrington in Lancashire. The nursery provides full day care for a maximum of 108 children aged from birth to eight years. There are currently 58 children on roll, of these 18 receive funding for nursery education. The nursery supports children with English as an additional language and special educational needs and/or disabilities. The nursery opens from 7.30am to 6pm, Monday to Friday, 51 weeks of the year. An after school provision and holiday club are available for up to 38 school aged children. The setting is registered on the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register.

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Description of the setting

Children access three floors and are catered for in individual rooms according to their ages and stages of development. There is a separate baby unit on the upper floor, the ground floor accommodates children aged two years to five years and the basement area is for school aged children. There is a secure outdoor play area.

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Description of the setting

The nursery employs 14 members of childcare staff. Two staff hold relevant degree level qualifications, eight hold level 3 early years qualifications, three are working towards appropriate level 3 qualifications and one towards a level 2 early years qualification. There has been a recent change of nursery manager. 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 attending the nursery are happy, contented and secure in the stimulating and inclusive environment, which meets the needs of all children. The good knowledge and understanding of the staff ensures that all children are making good progress towards the early learning goals. Partnerships with parents and carers and other services are strong and support the nursery in the self-evaluation of its provision. The recently restructured management team has a clear vision and focus for the continued development of the provision, which is having a positive impact on the children's experiences.

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further?

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

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further?

 ensure all children have the opportunity to wash their hands before meal times to help to keep them healthy  keep the safety gates closed and fully secure at all times to keep children safe within the nursery. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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the early years provision

Children are safeguarded and protected well because staff have a good knowledge and understanding of the need to protect the children in their care. They have all completed safeguarding training and are clear in their responsibilities and the procedures to follow if they have concerns about any of the children. Recruitment of staff is strong and thorough vetting procedures, including a single central register for Criminal Record Bureau checks ensures that appropriate people are employed to work with the children. The new manager has reviewed all policies, procedures and risk assessments which are now much more rigorous and robust. Each room within the nursery, plus the outdoor area, has a daily risk assessment, plus an annual risk assessment of the full provision is undertaken. Risk assessment is effective. However, the safety gate to the kitchen was not fully secured on one occasion and the gate in the baby room would benefit from minor modification to

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the early years provision

ensure greater security for the children.

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the early years provision

The new manager and her team have a clear vision for continuing improvement. The self-evaluation document has been reviewed and re-written, this now incorporates the views of the parents and the staff team. Team meetings take place monthly. Staff discuss the effectiveness of the provision at the meetings and are actively encouraged to make suggestions for improvement. Continuing professional development within the nursery is strong. There is a matrix in place that tracks training that staff have undertaken and supports the manager in assessing training and development needs. This also links well to the appraisal process. The Lancashire Step into Quality Award was partially completed in 2010; the new manager has now recommenced gathering evidence for this and is confident that it will be completed shortly. Therefore, leadership and management within the nursery are strong.

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the early years provision

Staff have good knowledge and understanding of the Early Years Foundation Stage and use this well to support and develop the children's learning. Two staff have recently achieved degree level qualifications and use their knowledge and understanding well to support children's learning and development. There is a very good range of resources that are used to cover all areas of learning, which ensures that children are well supported. Positioning of resources in rooms is carefully considered and the pre-school and toddler rooms have designated areas for activities, such as books, role play, mark making and creative activities. Babies benefit from resources including treasure baskets of natural resources. Equality and diversity are effectively promoted throughout the nursery. Systems are in place to identify and support children who have additional learning needs and children's individual needs are consistently met, for example, bi-lingual staff

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the early years provision

support children for whom English is an additional language. The nursery has formed effective partnerships with other services to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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the early years provision

Partnerships with parents are strong because they are provided with detailed information about their child. In baby and toddler rooms, children have daily diaries that are shared with parents and carers. Staff also verbally feedback to This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 them on daily basis. Parents receive detailed welcome booklets with helpful information about the nursery and its policies and procedures. They complete questionnaires to evaluate the provision, which are then used as part of the self- evaluation process. Parents are very complimentary about the high levels of communication that have been established.

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and outcomes for children

Children make good progress in their development and learning because staff have a secure knowledge of the Early Years Foundation Stage. Children are confident, happy and settled at the nursery and are enthusiastic in their participation in activities. Planning documentation has recently been reviewed and amended; this now effectively identifies the main learning aim and outcome of activities. Staff are developing this further to fully capture all opportunities for developing knowledge and skills across all six areas of learning. Staff interact well with the children and provide them with innovative and stimulating activities. A wide range of activities and opportunities are planned to extend children's learning, for example, they play imaginatively with wooden train tracks, talk about where the train is going, and develop their numeracy skills by comparing sizes and colours of the engines and sequencing the carriages by colour. Children enjoy using the yellow play dough,

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and outcomes for children

making all things yellow including the sun and bananas, chatting animatedly with each other while they make their creations.

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and outcomes for children

Children freely access mark-making materials and areas of continuous provision, such as books, role-play, sand and water and construction. Designated areas of the room are provided for children to select their own resources and children select and excitedly use building blocks to make towers and buildings. Babies have access to a range of materials made from natural resources and equipment, such as push-along toys, baby gyms and sit-and-ride toys that are appropriate to their age and stage of development. The outdoor areas are extremely well resourced, with the area covered in safety flooring. Children develop climbing and balancing skills through the use a polydron climbing frame and slide. Children also have a planting area where they grow fruit and vegetables, such as carrots and strawberries. A covered and fenced area means that smaller children can join in outdoor play and the outdoor area can also be used in all weathers.

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and outcomes for children

Children learn about the wider world through the very effective resources and equipment to support equality and diversity. Books, small world equipment, signage in a number of languages and the celebration of a range of festivals and events reflect positive images and anti-discriminatory practice. They develop skills for the future as they use the programmable toys and the computer to create pictures and use simple programmes.

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and outcomes for children

Children's independence is promoted as children help themselves to the drinking water that is freely accessible to them. There is also a good balance between adult-led and child-initiated activities, with a designated area within the rooms for children to self-select resources from the clearly labeled storage boxes. Children develop strong relationships with their peers and the staff. They generally share This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 the resources with staff occasionally intervening to settle minor disputes. They are well-mannered and consequently behaviour is good. There are generally good hygiene practices across the nursery with staff using suitable protective clothing during nappy changes and disposing of soiled items appropriately. Children are supervised in bathroom areas with adults supporting them to independently toilet themselves and wash their hands. However, some children do not wash their

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and outcomes for children

hands before meal times. Meals are healthy and freshly prepared daily with menus reflecting dietary need. A key worker system is in place for each child and is effective because staff know their children well and observe them during play and activities to assess their learning and develop and plan for their next steps. Children's learning journey files are becoming increasingly well developed and observations are carefully tracked against the early learning goals and stages of development. Children's welfare and well-being is a priority and they feel safe within the nursery. 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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