Harpsden Parochial School

Apples and Honey, The Nursery on the Common Inspection report for early years provision

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Unique reference number 123134 Inspection date 24/05/2012 Inspector Denise Aitken

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Setting address 1 Queensmere Road, Wimbledon, London, SW19 5QD

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Telephone number 02088 796 915 Email judith@isho.plus.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. 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

Apples and Honey, The Nursery on the Common registered in 2002 and operates within self-contained premises at the Wimbledon and District Synagogue. It is situated in Wimbledon, and lies midway between Southfield's underground station and Wimbledon train station. The premises include two playrooms and an enclosed, outdoor area. Children from all religions and faiths are encouraged to join the nursery, although the majority of children are Jewish. Children engage in Jewish celebrations and customs, and are encouraged to develop an awareness of oral Hebrew. The nursery liaises with the toddler group that runs on site.

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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 a maximum of 30 children at any one time aged from two years to under eight years. There are currently 32 children aged from two years to five years on roll. The nursery is open each weekday, term-time only. Sessions run from 9.30am, to 2pm Monday to Thursday and 9.30am, to 12.30pm on Fridays The nursery receives funding for the provision of free early education for children aged three and four years. The nursery supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children who speak English as an additional language. The nursery employs seven members of staff, including the principal. Of these, three hold qualified teacher status and two hold relevant National Vocational Qualifications in Early Years at level 3 and above

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

Overall the quality of the provision is outstanding.

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The overall effectiveness of the early years provision

The nursery is outstanding in meeting the needs of children. There are meticulous procedures in place to ensure that each child is treated as an individual, whose care and education is of paramount importance. Overall, the nursery provides children with activities that are inspirational, which means that children enjoy learning. The nursery is subject to excellent evaluation and quality assurance procedures put into place by all staff. These ensure that the nursery maintains outstanding continuous improvement.

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further?

To further improve the high quality early years provision the registered person should consider:

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further?

 providing further information and communication technology (ICT) activities outdoors .. This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006

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the early years provision

The nursery principal works with children, aided by a team of highly qualified, experienced staff, who are thorough at implementing the policies and procedures. There are highly robust systems in place to safeguard children. All staff are vetted and hold Criminal Records Bureau checks. They meticulously maintain all regulatory paperwork, and risk assessments of equipment, activities and trips are excellent. Therefore, they promote children's well-being exceptionally well.

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the early years provision

The principal and staff carry out excellent self-evaluation and compile an ongoing list of improvements. In particular, staff's recent training to support children's social communication has had great impact. Therefore, innovative activities and resources enable children to develop exceptional confidence and self-esteem. All staff show high motivation to develop their professional skills. They implement original ideas to enrich every area of the nursery so children are highly stimulated to learn.

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the early years provision

Staff have excellent attitudes towards promoting equality and diversity, supporting children from different religious and cultural backgrounds. Staff extensively use impressive ranges of books, displays and very well planned activities to invite children to talk about different customs, festivals and traditions. One particularly inspirational activity was a visit to another faith-based setting for children to learn about similarities and differences. This means that children at an early age are gaining a rich awareness of different communities. The special educational needs coordinator works highly effectively with children's key persons and parents to identify possible concerns. She has excellent relationships with health professionals and her work with them is highly productive in ensuring that children receive relevant services. She also supports parents in making their own referrals. Children with additional needs receive comprehensive, individual education plans, which

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the early years provision

ensure that they have opportunities to learn from every area of the nursery environment.

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the early years provision

Children, their parents/carers and key persons are all involved in preparing for entry into the nursery, and children receive help to prepare their own entry profile. In this way, children's individualism and family background are acknowledged and celebrated, and they gain an excellent sense of belonging to the nursery community. One new parent said, 'I could not have hoped for better; in just a short time, my son cannot wait to get to nursery every day.' The nursery promotes highly effective partnerships with schools and goes to great lengths to exchange information about children's needs as required. The nursery is excellent at engaging with parents. Staff actively plan partnership with parents into the curriculum, and parents participate regularly in activities and trips. Parents receive invitations to events at which they can learn more about child development. Staff fully include parents' views and consider them important in shaping the

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the early years provision

development of the nursery; there is a parents' forum and annual survey to gauge parental satisfaction, views and ideas for the future. Feedback to parents is extensive, through daily staff conversation, email from key persons, a newsletter, This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 and parents' evenings to discuss children's progress. Parents say that they are very happy with the quality of information they receive.

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and outcomes for children

Children are extremely happy. Staff's nurturing skills and attentive planning for social and emotional development enable children to build strong, trusting relationships with key persons and to enjoy friendships. Children are extremely confident and competent in communicating their thoughts. Exemplary organisation of the rooms and equipment helps children move around independently and safely. Children show that they feel entirely safe through their attitudes and dispositions.

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and outcomes for children

Children show high levels of independence, imagination and involvement. They select activities from the abundant range on offer as they move freely through rooms and outside. All areas provide imaginative spaces to play in and learn from; children cut, write, draw and play offices in workshop areas, inside and outside. Trips to museums, environmental centres and natural habitats stimulate exploration of the natural world to a high degree. Children conduct their own observations through making weather charts, gardening and recycling. They keep their own wormery and a water butt to feed and irrigate their vegetables and plants.

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and outcomes for children

Children are very knowledgeable about customs and traditions of the Jewish faith, which are embedded into the curriculum. Staff are excellent at using festivals to enhance children's learning about the world and people. Staff model craft techniques and design-planning to inspire children to develop their own ideas. In this way, children are adept at participating in group art projects, as well as selecting and exploring art materials. Children are highly proficient at talking about their pictures, and staff have been innovative in introducing new techniques to aid children's language skills. Children record their experiences, what they have done and what they are learning, into talking tins, which they share with friends and parents. Children proficiently use construction toys, equipment and games to promote their problem-solving skills, aided by staff's highly effective teaching skills.

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and outcomes for children

The nursery offers enrichment groups in literacy, numeracy and computer skills to help children prepare for moving onto school. There are currently fewer ICT resources available to children in the outdoor area than indoors. Children are enthusiastic about writing their names, recognising numerals and counting, and the staff provide these learning activities in each area of the nursery so all children are motivated to learn. Staff have excellent early years knowledge to observe and monitor each child's progress. They take great care to plan challenging, learning opportunities for each child and groups of children. This results in children having consistently good, and often excellent, levels of achievement while developing skills for the future.

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and outcomes for children

All children develop a very good understanding of how to keep themselves safe This inspection was carried out under sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 and healthy. They use washing facilities independently, including in preparation for eating. They know drinking water is important for their body and sun cream is important for their skin. Children discuss the different types of fruit they are eating and give thanks for the nourishment these provide. All children learn to serve themselves and their friends and are adept at keeping their nursery clean and tidy. Staff are highly effective at planning for physical play and activities that challenge children to use their whole body. Provision of all-weather clothing enables children to be outside in all seasons. Children demonstrate exceptionally positive behaviour and high levels of self-control and are proud of their achievements. Children contribute to this friendly, vibrant nursery in a highly positive manner as they

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and outcomes for children

share in the richness of its community life. 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 1 The effectiveness with which the setting promotes equality and diversity The effectiveness of safeguarding 1 The effectiveness of the setting’s self-evaluation, including the steps taken to promote improvement The effectiveness of partnerships 1 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 1

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Stage

The extent to which children achieve and enjoy their learning 1 The extent to which children feel safe 1 The extent to which children adopt healthy lifestyles 1 The extent to which children make a positive contribution 1 The extent to which children develop skills for the future 1

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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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