Squirrels Day Nursery

Squirrels Day Nursery Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number 511691 Inspection date 25/04/2012 Inspector Judith Butler

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Setting address Nelson Primary School, Nelson Road, Twickenham, Middlesex, TW2 7BU Telephone number 020 8893 3645 Email squirrelsdaynursery@btinternet.com 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

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

Squirrels Day Nursery registered in 1991 and is run by a voluntary committee. The nursery operates from two classrooms within the grounds of Nelson School, Whitton is in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. Children have access to an enclosed outdoor area and it is not shared with anyone else. The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register. A maximum of 25 children aged from two years to the end of the early years age range may attend at any one time. The nursery is open each weekday from 8am to 6pm for 50 weeks of the year. Children attend for a variety of sessions or stay all day. There are currently 26 children on roll. The nursery is in receipt of funding for the provision of free early education to children aged two, three and four years old. The nursery supports children learning English as an additional language and children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. The nursery employs one part-time

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Description of the setting

and four full-time members of staff, all of whom hold appropriate early years qualifications. A further staff member is employed to provide assistance during the lunch and afternoon tea period.

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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 very settled, comfortable and confident in this nursery. Staff set up a welcoming and stimulating environment for the children as they arrive and throughout the day. Children make good progress in their learning and receive effective support from the established staff team. Staff promote children's safety well, overall. The partnerships with parents are positive, overall, which assists in promoting consistency in the children's care. Self-evaluationidentifies areas for development accurately and recommendations from the previous inspection have been addressed effectively, so the nursery demonstrates a strong capacity to make continuous improvement.

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further?

To meet the specific requirements of the EYFS, the registered person must:

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further?

 keep a record of the risk assessment clearly stating when it was carried out, by whom, date of review and any action taken following a review or incident (Documentation) 14/05/2012

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further?

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

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further?

 improve systems to share records of children's development and progress This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 with the parents and the child, on a more regular basis  display lists of words from children's home languages and invite parents and staff to contribute to these, in order to encourage parents to feel involved and valued.

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the early years provision

Children play in an attractive, warm environment where they feel safe and secure. Their welfare is protected as all staff have a good understanding of safeguarding children with policies and procedures clearly understood and implemented. Robust recruitment procedures are in place; all staff have appropriate clearances and visitors' procedures are stringently followed. Staff undertake daily safety checks both inside and in the garden prior to children's arrival, so they play in safe environments. Policies and procedures to promote the health and welfare of children are in place and reviewed regularly.

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the early years provision

The nursery has a secure view of its practice. The manager and staff use a variety of useful evaluation systems, including seeking parents' views, that drive improvement successfully. New targets for improvement are realistic and outcomes for children are good. Staff use the available space well. The secure outside area provides a useful play environment where children develop their skills well, while enjoying in fresh air. An extensive range of well-maintained and appropriate resources is readily available to the children. This arrangement allows them to make choices and decisions from clearly labelled units throughout the premises, so children have equal access to activities.

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the early years provision

Good partnerships with parents develop through generally effective communication systems. There is some particularly good practice in regard to helping children settle at the nursery and in establishing effective liaison with parents. Staff undertake home visits to meet with children and parents before they start at nursery, for example. This system enables staff to get to know children in an environment where children are comfortable. These useful visits help staff establish children's starting points on entry to the nursery. Staff and parents share information face to face at the beginning and end of the nursery day. They use other communication systems for those parents who do not come in. Parents speak very highly of the nursery, particularly the friendliness and commitment of staff, and of how their children really enjoy coming to nursery. Parents are actively involved in their children's learning and development. Staff invite them to twice-

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the early years provision

yearly meetings to discuss their child's progress with the 'key person' and to view developmental records. The storage system for these records does not allow parents, or children, to look at them more frequently if they so wish.

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the early years provision

The nursery works well with outside agencies to support all children's learning and development, including those with additional needs. The nursery meets the needs of individual children who attend well and recognises their uniqueness. Resources reflect the diverse community, and staff recognise the importance of developing some awareness of a child's home language. Staff do not do all they might to display words from children's home languages, however, in order to value these. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 Good links are established with the nearby school and other local schools that children attend, which aids transfers when children leave the nursery. Early years support meetings enable staff to develop strong relationships and opportunities to share practice with other nurseries.

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and outcomes for children

Staff focus successfully on helping children make good progress. Planning is flexible and allows children to make individual choices about the toys and equipment they wish to use throughout their time at the nursery. The key persons know their individual children incredibly well and respond to their likes and interests, for example, through singing and music activities where children bring in instruments from home. Children's developmental files carefully record observations and next steps in learning.

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and outcomes for children

The nursery provides children with an extensive range of toys and resources that encourage each area of learning. This extends to the very well resourced outdoor area that is developed by staff. Children readily choose resources when outside from a range of shelving units and drawers. Children show positive attitudes to being outdoors. They especially enjoy their time outside in the rain, sweeping with vigour at a puddle and declaring, 'The water keeps coming back; we will have to be quicker'. Children follow good hygiene procedures, overall, confidently washing their hands before lunch and after using the toilet; however, staff do not always remind children to do so as they arrive at nursery and sit down for breakfast. Effective nappy changing procedures are in place and staff record changes to ensure parents receive accurate feedback about individual children's routines at the end of the day. Mealtimes are sociable occasions when children sit with their

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and outcomes for children

key person and chat happily about their day and events in their lives. They watch the steam rise from their food and talk about hot and cold. A good variety of healthy meals and snacks help children learn about healthy eating successfully. Children willingly take on responsibilities in day-to-day tasks as they assist with placing the food on the table from a trolley and help with carrying plates. Children are confident in their use of cutlery at meal times. They show how well they can think for themselves by questioning why there are forks on the table: 'Why have we got forks? We need spoons to eat our soup with'.

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and outcomes for children

Children develop good relationships with one another and with the staff. They chat happily with staff and visitors, showing curiosity through asking questions. Older children enjoy assisting younger ones, such as helping one child find their name and placing it on the number line as they arrive. Younger children receive support from staff who use both language and signing to communicate effectively; for example, while waiting for lunch, a member of staff asks a child 'Are you hungry?' and pretends to eat food.

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and outcomes for children

Children initiate their own games and have many opportunities to act out life experiences, such as playing with the babies, and building houses in different areas of the nursery, using soft play mats to create special places. Children really This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 enjoy stories, listening carefully as staff read them. They select books from the wide variety in the cosy book corner. They develop awareness that the written word has meaning through clear labelling around both nursery rooms. Children are developing their own writing skills. Children enjoy guessing the items in the box and begin to recognise letters and sounds by naming the items that begin with the same letter. Children develop their mathematical understanding through a variety of toys and activities, such as making patterns with the shapes and by blowing bubbles in the paint. All such activities help children develop useful skills for their

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and outcomes for children

Children are very aware of safety requirements. As they move between rooms and to the outside area, they often remind one another of the 'rules', such as walking when inside. Children begin to find out about the wider world as they celebrate different events in their lives and talk about their varying backgrounds. Parents are encouraged to visit the nursery and share information from their homes, such as bringing in drums to play to the 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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