The Honeytree Day Nursery & Pre-school, Portishead

Honey Tree Day Nursery - Portishead Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number 509169 Inspection date 22/07/2011 Inspector Phillippa Wallis

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Setting address 13 Stoke Road, Portishead, Bristol, North Somerset, BS20 6BQ Telephone number 01275 843752 Email honeytreeportishead@hotmail.co.uk 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.

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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

The Honey Tree Day Nursery is one of four nurseries and is part of a privately owned company. It was registered in 2001 and operates from a single storey premises in Portishead, North Somerset. The nursery serves the local area. The nursery is open each weekday from 7.30am to 6pm all year round, except bank holidays. A maximum of 53 children may attend the nursery at any one time. Of these, not more than 37 may be under the age of three years and no more than 21 may be under the age of two years, at any one time. There are currently 108 children aged from six weeks to five years on roll; of these, some two year olds, children aged three and four years are funded for early education. The nursery supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. The nursery employs 12 members of staff who work directly with the children. All hold appropriate early years qualifications. In addition, the nursery is working with

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Description of the setting

Weston College to employ apprentices. The nursery receives support from the local authority's early years advisory teachers.

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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

There is inadequate and ineffective recording of progress through all stages of the Early Years Foundation Stage, so children's progress is slowed because staff do not plan or organise activities appropriately for their learning and development. Safeguarding of children is inadequate and several specific legal requirements are not met relating to safeguarding and the organisation of the nursery. Most required documentation is in place; however, while policies are regularly reviewed, staff do not always implement these effectively. Satisfactory partnerships with parents and other professionals are developed, which help staff meet some of the children's welfare needs. Evaluation systems are ineffective with many areas of weakness unidentified, which means the management of the setting demonstrate limited ability to maintain improvement.

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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 the premises are secure 08/08/2011 This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006  undertake effective sensitive observational assessment in order to plan to meet young children's needs 05/09/2011

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further?

 ensure all members of staff adhere to the behaviour management policy 08/08/2011

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further?

To improve the early years provision the registered person should:

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further?

 extend self-evaluation to identify more accurately where systems need improvement, in order to better meet children's individual needs  support staff in adopting a consistent approach to keeping the premises clean.

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the early years provision

The provider has not met a number of specific legal requirements. Arrangements for safeguarding are inadequate to ensure children are appropriately protected. Risk assessments are undertaken and management have evaluated additional hazards in the outside area whilst building work is progressing. However, identified procedures are not implemented effectively, so the premises are not secure, placing children at risk. Appropriate recruitment procedures are in place to assess suitability of new staff, Criminal Record Bureau checks are undertaken and references are held. While necessary checks are being obtained, staff do not have sole responsibility for children. The nursery is ineffective in providing for and tracking the progress and needs of children. Observations are either infrequent or of insufficient quality to monitor children's progress, so do not inform planning for future activities. This means that

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the early years provision

children's individual learning needs are not identified and met. Children engage in free play with limited involvement or direction from adults. Children, both as individuals and in groups, spend much of their time with little purpose or supervision. Disputes are not resolved in a respectful way to support children in learning appropriate behaviour or social skills. Resources, including the deployment of staff, are not used to good effect to support children's learning or individual needs. The outside area is poorly resourced and has limited shade or shelter. Self-evaluation is weak, overlooking some specific legal requirements. Not all staff are involved in evaluation processes. New methods of tracking and monitoring children are correctly identified as required, but are not in place, so it is too soon to judge possible impact on the outcomes for children. Policies and processes are in place and reviewed annually, although these are not always implemented

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the early years provision

effectively by staff. Management is currently working with an external organisation to review these. Levels of engagement with families are adequate, as are wider partnerships with outside professionals. The nursery generally communicates positively with parents about main events, offering newsletters and planning parents' evenings. It gains sufficient information to support staff in meeting children's preferences. The nursery links with schools to which children transfer to aid this process. A good start has been made with developing the early years network, now coordinated by This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 the Children's Centre. The nursery takes advice from the local authority's early years professionals to help make improvements.

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and outcomes for children

A key person system is in place and all children have an allocated worker, as required. Staff use this system to overview children's needs. It is ineffective in tracking children's progress or planning for future learning activities in the six key areas of learning, however, so does not support children's progress. Staff support individual children in one to one activities and work effectively to help settle children when arriving at the nursery. Staff interactions are friendly and warm with both parents and children. When staff are engaged with individual children, however, others spent their time with little purpose. Some children wander aimlessly and do not engage in activities or individual play. Toys are freely available for children to access, although there are few in the outdoor area. This disadvantages those children who learn better when outside. Children move freely between the indoor and outdoor play areas. A football net is

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and outcomes for children

available; children create a muddy area and enjoy spontaneous games with cars and trucks. The initial access to the garden is supervised by staff. Children are aware of the routines, which helps promote their feelings of security when in the nursery. Staff do not always support a consistent approach to these routines, however. Children go outside, some with and others without their outdoor coats and shoes, as weather deteriorates. Consequently, children who do not change shoes bring mud indoors on their return, which results in the carpet area becoming dirty. Staff are weak in consolidating, challenging and extending children's learning as they play. They help children gain some appropriate skills for their future lives, such as helping them learn to write their names. Overall, however, they do not interact sufficiently well to challenge children's thinking and extend learning opportunities, such as during paint mixing. They do not support children in

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and outcomes for children

becoming active, independent learners. The staff set up activities for children to freely access but information and communications technology equipment is not currently available. A new table and computer equipment is waiting for software to be uploaded, so children cannot apply their skills. This means that, taken overall, children are not making sufficient progress in gaining a range of skills that will be useful to them in the future. Children develop some personal independence skills appropriately, such as helping themselves to drinks during the sessions by pouring water into their own cups. At snack time, children know the hygiene requirements and routines. They wash their hands before eating and enjoy healthy foods but they take their choice of snacks to the carpeted area, which is unclean. This poses a potential risk to children's good health. Children appear to feel safe and are confident with adults, when

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and outcomes for children

asking for resources; however, the overall systems to maintain their safety are weak and place them at risk. Additionally, staff do not take a consistent approach to behaviour management. For example, when children stack chairs unsafely, staff do not intervene appropriately by following up on requests not to do this, leaving children at risk of falling chairs. Some children are forming friendships but This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 sometimes, when bored, behaviour deteriorates, play becomes rough and, again, staff do not intervene. 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 4 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 4

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Stage

The extent to which children achieve and enjoy their learning 4 The extent to which children feel safe 4 The extent to which children adopt healthy lifestyles 3 The extent to which children make a positive contribution 4 The extent to which children develop skills for the future 4

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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: Not Met (with actions)

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Annex B: the Childcare Register

The provider confirms that the requirements of the voluntary part of the Childcare Register are: Not Met (with actions)

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Annex B: the Childcare Register

The registered provider does not meet the requirements of the compulsory and or voluntary part/s of the Childcare Register.

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Annex B: the Childcare Register

To comply with the requirements of the compulsory part of the Childcare Register, the registered person must take the following action/s by the specified date:

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Annex B: the Childcare Register

 take action as specified on the early years section of the report (Suitability and safety of premises and equipment, How the childcare is organised) 08/08/2011

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Annex B: the Childcare Register

To comply with the requirements of the voluntary part of the Childcare Register, the registered person must take the following action/s by the specified date:

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Annex B: the Childcare Register

 take action as specified on the early years section of the report (Suitability and safety of premises and equipment, How the childcare is organised). 08/08/2011

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