Fremington's Bright Stars

Fremington's Little Fishes 1a Beechfield Road, Fremington, BARNSTAPLE, Devon, EX31 3DD

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 14/09/2012 Not Applicable

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early years provision

This inspection: 2 Previous inspection: Not Applicable How well the early years provision meets the needs of the range of children who attend The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children 2 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 2

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This provision is good

 Children make good progress in their learning and development because they experience a broad range of activities and staff support them well.  Staff skilfully use everyday routines and activities to help children think critically and solve simple problems, such as, how to divide the dough so everyone has a piece and whether there are enough cups for everyone at snack time.  Children's confidence and self-esteem grows because they receive plenty of praise and encouragement. Staff value what they say and do. They provide clear boundaries so children know what is expected and behave well.  Enthusiastic staff and management place a strong emphasis on providing a secure environment where children's individual needs, health and welfare are effectively met.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 There are occasions when activities and resources for younger children are not as well organised to inspire curiosity and challenge learning.  Staff are not always fully prepared to respond to children's spontaneous interests with additional resources when they are not readily available.

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Information about this inspection

Inspections of registered early years provision are scheduled:  at least once in every inspection cycle. The current cycle ends on 31 July 2016  more frequently where Ofsted identifies a need to do so, for example where provision was previously judged as inadequate  brought forward in the inspection cycle where Ofsted has received information that suggests the provision may not be meeting the legal requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage; or where assessment of the provision identifies a need for early inspection  prioritised for inspection where we have received information that the provision is not meeting the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage and which suggests children may not be safe  at the completion of an investigation into failure to comply with the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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Information about this inspection

The provision is also registered on the compulsory part of the Childcare Register. This report includes a judgment about compliance with the requirements of that register.

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Inspection activities

 The inspection was conducted by one inspector.  Evidence was gathered from observations of children, staff and the environment.

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Inspection activities

 Evidence was gained from discussions with parents, staff and children, as well as, a formal meeting with the owner.

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Information about the setting

Fremington's Little Fishes registered under new ownership in 2011. It is privately owned and operates from its own premises in the village of Fremington near Barnstaple. The nursery provides two play rooms, which can be separated to accommodate the needs of different aged children. There is access to an enclosed outdoor play area. The nursery is open 51 weeks a year from 7.30am to 6pm Monday to Friday and Saturdays subject to demand. Out-of-school care is also provided, before and after school and during the holidays. The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and the compulsory part of the Childcare Register. There are currently 35 children on roll. The nursery receives funding for the provision of free nursery education for children aged two, three and four years. There are nine members of staff, including the owner. There are seven members of staff with an early years qualification at level 3, two members of staff working towards a

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Information about the setting

level 2 qualification and two working towards Early Years Professional Status.

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To further improve the quality of the early years provision the provider should:

 develop the educational programme for expressive arts and design with under twos by: planning varied arrangements of equipment and materials that can be used to fully extend their interest and provide challenges; developing space and resources so children can explore, build, move and role play.

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To further improve the quality of the early years provision the provider should:

 extend the educational programme for understanding the world by: conducting focused evaluations of planning, activities and the impact of staff's practice to help identify how to take full advantage of all learning opportunities as they arise; providing fact and fiction books in all areas including the garden.

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who attend

Children are enthusiastic learners. They arrive confidently greeting staff and friends. They choose what they want to do and quickly settle. Staff have high expectations for all children. They provide them with plenty of opportunities to solve problems and work out things for themselves. For example, children take turns to help prepare the snack and set the table. They learn how to use tools safely when cutting up fruit and talk about the importance of healthy eating. Children guess how many cups they need for everyone. Staff give them time to realise for themselves that four is not enough and then work out how many more are required. Likewise, when sharing out dough staff expertly introduce mathematical terms, counting and problem solving, through skilful questioning. Staff respond well to children's interests and spontaneity. When they find a spider in the garden this prompts a hunt for bugs and excitement increases when they find some. Staff extend

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who attend

the activity by collecting pictures of mini-beasts from indoors and identifying the ones they have found. However, there are no charts to record what they found, magnifiers or reference books in the garden in order to take full advantage of all learning opportunities as they arise. Staff use relaxed conversations successfully to encourage children's language and understanding. They are extremely encouraging and value what children have to say.

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who attend

Older children are eager to talk and explain what they are doing. There is a good variety of books for different ages and a cosy area to enjoy them. However, because they are in the area used by the younger children they are not always readily available for older children. Staff help children to recognise their names and the sounds and shapes of the first letter during routine and planned activities, although do not always draw children's attention to them at other times. Older children are keen to add their names to pictures and notices in the role-play area reinforce that text has meaning. Many concentrate for sustained periods and focus on completing what they are doing. Staff make sure they have the tools they need to be successful, such as, scissors they can manage and shapes they can cut out.

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who attend

Staff plan activities around different themes throughout the year to make sure they are covering all areas of learning and children learn about the world around them. They go on outings in their local environment. They grow vegetables and taste them when harvested. Staff get to know children well and incorporate their next steps for learning in the activities they offer. However, at the beginning of the day the provision of challenging activities and resources for under twos is not as carefully planned to fully support independent exploration and individual interests. Staff involve parents in children's learning. They find out what they can do when they first attend and keep them up-to-date with their progress. They use a variety of methods to share information. They involve parents in the theme so they can support children's learning at home. Overall, the nursery equips children well with the skills they need for future learning.

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The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children

Children feel safe and secure in the nursery. This is evident in the way they quickly settle when they arrive and young children settle for sleep. Children develop secure attachments with staff. The improved key person system means there is a buddy key person to cover staff absence and maintain consistent care of individual children. Staff liaise closely with parents and agree arrangements to ensure their child's individual health and welfare needs are effectively met. Parents comment on how much they appreciate the daily diary, which supports this two-way flow of information. They feel well-informed and satisfied with the quality of care the nursery provides. They talk about how much their child likes attending and the varied activities they enjoy.

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The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children

Staff place a strong emphasis on keeping children safe. They maintain a safe environment and make sure children understand how to use small and large equipment safely. Overall, the nursery offers a welcoming and stimulating environment where children's all round development is supported well. Most of the time children access resources easily and older children become increasingly independent in managing tasks for themselves.

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The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children

Staff are good role models. They use consistent guidance and clear boundaries to help children understand what is expected. Consequently, children behave well. They learn they must take turns to be the snack time helper but also that offering to help is appreciated. They are rewarded with a different task which they enthusiastically complete. Children receive clear messages about being healthy. They enjoy nutritious snacks, play outdoors daily and develop their physical skills when enthusiastically exploring the soft play equipment. Children become competent at managing their own personal needs and need few reminders to wash their hands. Children's health and emotional well-being is nurtured by caring staff who get to know them well. They boost children's confidence and self-esteem with plenty of praise and encouragement.

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provision

Children's welfare is safeguarded because staff have a clear understanding of child protection issues and know what to do if they have concerns about a child in their care. Staff are fully aware of their roles and responsibilities which positively contributes towards the smooth operation of the nursery. The owner implements robust recruitment procedures to make sure staff are suitably qualified to work with children. She instigates a programme of continued professional development and successfully supports staff with ongoing training to extend their skills and expertise.

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provision

The enthusiastic owner has high expectations for the nursery. She liaises with the local authority and gathers feedback from parents and staff to help her identify areas for further development. She responds positively and, together with staff, takes effective steps to address issues raised. Currently, they are adapting systems for planning and assessment to meet the requirements of the revised Early Years Foundation Stage. The manager has a secure understanding of the areas of learning and how children learn. This helps her monitor practice. Overall, self-evaluation processes are thorough. However, they are not always sharply focussed to identify precise ways in which practice can be enhanced on specific areas. Staff develop strong partnerships with parents and work closely with other agencies, such as speech therapy, which helps them to meet children's individual and diverse needs.

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The Childcare Register

The requirements for the compulsory part of the Childcare Register are Met

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Grade Judgement Description

Grade 1 Outstanding Outstanding provision is highly effective in meeting the needs of all children exceptionally well. This ensures that children are very well prepared for the next stage of their learning. Grade 2 Good Good provision is effective in delivering provision that meets the needs of all children well. This ensures children are ready for the next stage of their learning. Grade 3 Satisfactory Satisfactory provision is performing less well than expectations in one or more of the key areas. It requires improvement in order to be good. Grade 4 Inadequate Provision that is inadequate requires significant improvement and/or enforcement. The provision is failing to give children an acceptable standard of early years education and/or is not meeting the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. It will be inspected again within 12 months of the date of this inspection.

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Grade Judgement Description

Met The provision has no children on roll. The inspection judgement is that the provider continues to meet the requirements for registration. Not Met The provision has no children on roll. The inspection judgement is that the provider does not meet the requirements for registration.

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Inspection

This inspection was carried out by Ofsted under Sections 49 and 50 of the Childcare Act 2006 on the quality and standards of provision that is registered on the Early Years Register. The registered person must ensure that this provision complies with the statutory framework for children’s learning, development and care, known as the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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Setting details

Unique reference number EY440186 Local authority Devon Inspection number 782401

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 8 Total number of places 20 Number of children on roll 35 Name of provider Fremington's Little Fishes Children's Nursery Limited Date of previous inspection Not applicable Telephone number 01271321277 set out in the guidance ‘raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted', which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk.

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Type of provision

For the purposes of this inspection the following definitions apply:

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Type of provision

Full-time provision is that which operates for more than three hours. These are usually known as nurseries, nursery schools and pre-schools and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage. They are registered on the Early Years Register and pay the higher fee for registration.

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Type of provision

Sessional provision operates for more than two hours but does not exceed three hours in any one day. These are usually known as pre-schools, kindergartens or nursery schools and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage. They are registered on the Early Years Register and pay the lower fee for registration.

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Type of provision

Childminders care for one or more children where individual children attend for a period of more than two hours in any one day. They operate from domestic premises that are usually their own home. They are registered on the Early Years Register and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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Type of provision

Out of school provision may be sessional or full-time provision and is delivered before or after school and/or in the summer holidays. They are registered on the Early Years Register and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage. Where children receive their Early Years Foundation Stage in school these providers do not have to deliver the learning and development requirements in full but should complement the experiences children receive in school. 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,

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Type of provision

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 4234, 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. To receive regular email alerts about new publications, including survey reports and school inspection reports, please visit our website and go to ‘Subscribe’.

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Type of provision

T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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