Sunshine Under 5's

Sunshine Under 5's Nursery Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number 303487 Inspection date 17/11/2011 Inspector Heather Morgan

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Setting address 441 Eastwood, Windmill Hill, Runcorn, Cheshire, WA7 6LJ

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Telephone number 01928 716061 Email Type of setting Childcare - Non-Domestic 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 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

Sunshine Under 5's Nursery was registered in 1987 and is managed and organised by a voluntary committee made up of parents and carers. The nursery operates from a converted house in the Windmill Hill area of Runcorn, Cheshire and children have access to an enclosed outdoor area.

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Description of the setting

The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register. It provides care for up to 19 children aged between two and the end of the early years age range, at any one time. It is open on Tuesdays to Fridays during school term times from 9.15am to 2.45pm. There are currently five children in the early years age range on roll. The pre-school receives funding for the provision of free 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

A staff of two work with the children, both of whom hold appropriate childcare qualifications at level 4.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Overall the quality of the provision is inadequate.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Arrangements for safeguarding children are inadequate because regulatory requirements have not been met. Although staff have taken steps to indentify and implement actions to improve their practice, their evaluation has not been sufficiently robust to identify key regulatory issues. Nevertheless, children are happy and settled at the nursery and enjoy a range of activities. A lack of detailed observation and assessment of children's achievements limits the planning of activities to promote their individual progress. However, overall, children make satisfactory progress in their learning and development. Staff develop partnerships with parents and other professionals which results in some useful exchange of information to help them meet children's individual needs.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Overall, the early years provision requires significant improvement. The registered person is given a Notice to Improve that sets out actions to be carried out.

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further?

To comply with the requirements of the EYFS the registered person must take the following action by the specified date:

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further?

 ensure there are effective procedures in place for checking that all adults involved in the running of the nursery are suitable to do so. 02/12/2011

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further?

To improve the early years provision the registered person should: This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006  develop systems of self-evaluation to identify strengths and priorities for development that will improve the quality of provision for all children and ensure welfare requirements are met  fully implement procedures for observing and assessing children's achievements and use this information to identify and plan what children need to learn next  develop the outdoor area to provide further opportunities to explore and make progress in all areas of learning.

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the early years provision

Arrangements for safeguarding children are not sufficiently robust. Procedures for ensuring that adults associated with the nursery are appropriately vetted are not implemented effectively. This is a breach of welfare requirements. Nevertheless, staff take steps to promote the safety and security of the children while they are at the nursery by assessing potential hazards and undertaking daily checks of the premises.

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the early years provision

Staff interact sensitively with children to support and extend their play. Consequently, overall, children make satisfactory progress in their learning and development but too little attention is paid to tracking their progress and identifying what they need to learn next. Staff do not make effective use of observation and assessment of children's progress to plan activities that address each child's individual learning needs.

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the early years provision

Staff have made some progress since their previous inspection but are currently experiencing issues regarding the sustainability of the nursery. This has impacted on their ability to sustain continuous improvement. Staff reflect on their practice and welcome the input of other professionals, such as an Early Years Consultant Teacher, but evaluation of their provision is not fully effective as they have failed to identify that a regulatory requirement has not been met. However, they have an action plan in place to address some of the issues they have identified for improvement, such as implementing new procedures for planning activities to build on what each child already knows and can do.

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the early years provision

Staff make good use of the resources they have and present them attractively so that children can access many of them independently. They encourage children to play outdoors regularly but do not always provide activities outdoors to support children's progress in all areas of learning.

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the early years provision

Staff have recently attended specific training which has helped them support children's speech and language development. However, the lack of assessment and planning for each child's individual progress does not ensure that all children are supported in achieving their full potential.

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the early years provision

Staff gather detailed information from parents to help them settle children when they first join the nursery. They share some information about children's progress This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 but this lacks sufficient detail to ensure strong links between children's learning at home and at nursery. Staff are pro-active in contacting schools and other providers to support children's transition from one setting to another but have not maintained the level of information they gather regarding children's progress to sustain effective partnerships.

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and outcomes for children

Children settle well at the nursery and are happy and confident in the care of the staff. They have a positive approach to healthy lifestyles as they enjoy playing outdoors in the fresh air, exercising their bodies and eating healthy snacks and lunches. They understand the importance of keeping their environment tidy to limit the risk of accidents and take steps to keep themselves safe, such as positioning cushions to create a safe landing when they are exercising. They regularly practice fire drills and are able to evacuate the building quickly.

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and outcomes for children

Children's behaviour is good. They play well together in small groups and staff are on hand to help them negotiate turn-taking and sharing resources. They sometimes attend play sessions at a nearby Children's Centre, which helps them identify with their local community. They learn about cultural diversity as they celebrate a range of celebrations and festivals.

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and outcomes for children

Overall, children make satisfactory progress in their learning and development. They are confident at initiating their own play and benefit from the sensitive interactions of staff. For example, when playing with a rocket ship the member of staff helped them extend their game by thinking about where the rocket ship would go and what it would find. This resulted in a lively conversation describing aliens with four eyes and six ears. Later, the children enjoyed painting colourful pictures of the aliens. They enjoy being creative and exploring the different colours they make by mixing paint. They are also interested in activities that are initiated by staff, for example, when they suggest getting out the play dough.

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and outcomes for children

Children use role play to explore familiar experiences, such as imitating calling names from a register and marking attendance on a chart. They enjoy playing outdoors where they learn to climb, balance, manoeuvre wheeled toys and master ball skills. Although they regularly play outdoors, the activities are limited predominantly to promoting their physical development, rather than encouraging their development in all areas of learning. Nevertheless, they show an interest in nature and are delighted to discover snails in the garden.

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and outcomes for children

Although children are making satisfactory progress overall, they are not supported well in achieving their full potential because staff do not pay enough attention to observing their play, assessing their progress and planning activities that will support each individual child's development. They are supported well in settling in, which results in them becoming confident, independent and able to initiate their own play. 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 3 The effectiveness with which the setting promotes equality and diversity The effectiveness of safeguarding 4 The effectiveness of the setting’s self-evaluation, including the steps taken to promote improvement The effectiveness of partnerships 3 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 3

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Stage

The extent to which children achieve and enjoy their learning 3 The extent to which children feel safe 3 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 3

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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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