Hugs and Giggles Nursery

Hugs and Giggles Nursery 101a Headstone Lane, HARROW, Middlesex, HA2 6JL

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 08/10/2012 Not Applicable

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early years provision

This inspection: 4 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 4 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 4

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This provision is inadequate

 Staff have a poor understanding of the learning and development requirements and as a result, planning is not effective in matching activities to children's needs through play.  The range of educational programmes does not adequately cover the seven areas of learning in enough depth and breadth, in order to provide adequate challenge for children  The systems for observations and assessment are very much in the early stages and are not accurate enough to build on children's progress.  The nursery is not well-resourced both indoors and outdoors to support children's all round development and to provide challenge through a range of experiences that capture their interest.  The nursery does not support children who learn English as an additional language sufficiently to support their communication and language skills and to help them feel valued and included.  Self-evaluation is weak and has too little impact. As a result, actions taken to tackle

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This provision is inadequate

areas of identified weakness are insufficient.  The provider has not taken reasonable steps to prevent the risk of injury to children, as the outdoor patio play area which is covered, is not adequately enclosed to stop children falling through as they play.  Children do not have access to drinking water at all times which impacts on their health and well-being.  Some records are not available and easily accessible for inspection.

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It has the following strengths

 Staff are kind and generally attentive as children play and explore their surroundings.  Children have suitable access to outdoor play as they enjoy fresh air and exercise, which means they have plenty of opportunities to be physically active.  Staff work well with parents keeping them informed of their children's care and activities while at nursery.

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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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Inspection activities

 The inspector spent the majority of time observing children in the toddler and baby rooms and in the outdoor play area.  The inspector sampled children's information and development records.  The inspector had on-going discussion with the manager throughout the visit.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector held a meeting with the manager and discussed the following policies Safeguarding, partnerships with parents and other agencies, children's learning and development plans and profiles, staff recruitment and self-evaluation were discussed with the provider/manager and policies sampled  Discussion took place with one parent during the inspection.

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Information about the setting

Hugs and Giggles Nursery registered in 2012 and is owned by a private provider. The nursery operates from the grounds of Headstone Park, within the London Borough of Harrow. The nursery is based in a pavilion and provides care and learning for children based in four rooms. Children have access to an enclosed outdoor play area. The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register. There are currently 10 children in the early years age group on roll. The nursery receives funding to provide free early education for children aged three and four years.

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Information about the setting

The nursery is open each weekday from 8am to 6pm for 51 weeks of the year. It supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children who speak English as an additional language. The nursery children are looked after by three staff who hold relevant early years qualifications and the provider who is the manager holds Qualified Teacher Status.

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must:

 ensure the outdoor space, in particular, the raised patio area, is safe and secure for children to use  ensure the environment supports the educational programme by providing stimulating resources inside and outside, to provide rich learning opportunities through play.  implement procedures to promote equality of opportunity and inclusive practices for all children, especially those who learn English as an additional language by, for example, learning key words in their home languages to help them feel included and valued and to support their communication and language skills  complete regular and precise assessments of children and use these effectively to; plan an enjoyable and challenging learning experience for all children based on their individual interests and needs in each of the seven areas of learning  ensure fresh drinking water is easily accessible to children at all times  implement effective supervision of staff to provide support, coaching and training

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must:

to develop knowledge and understanding to meet the requirements of the Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage  make sure all records are available for inspection, in particular, the documentation relating to the manager's qualifications.

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who attend

Staff are kind, caring and generally supervise the children to make sure they are safe. Younger children show they feel safe and secure and approach staff for hugs and cuddles.

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who attend

Although children have chances to engage in some activities, in the main, they do not have adequate access to a good range of toys and resources to support their all-round development. As a result, children do not actively play and explore, as most of the time they wander around without purpose.

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who attend

Children have access to some creative activities, such as sand and painting. However, children are not given opportunities to design and create their ideas, using a variety of materials. For example, children have some modelling dough to create and mould shapes. However, the quantity is little and hard, meaning children quickly loose interest. Younger children pour sand in the sand wheel and watch it go round, learning about cause and effect and experiment with texture. However, staff do not model language well enough to help children develop their ability to express ideas and extend their use of new words. Some children attempt to dab paint to create a picture. However, they quickly loose interest as staff do not sufficiently use questions to challenge them to think and find out more by encouraging them to speculate and test ideas through trial and error. Staff give choices to children about what they want to do, showing they follow some children's

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who attend

interests. For example, children say they want to paint with pasta. Staff set about organising the materials. However, in the process, they do not involve the children in setting up the activity. This leaves children hanging around with nothing to do, as the playroom is sparse of alternative toys and resources for them to select from. Children enjoy some chances to develop their early mathematical skills. They begin to learn to count as they sing 'five current buns in a bakers shop'. However, children who speak English as an additional language do not participate, as they do not understand what is happening. Children and staff begin to look at books at story time. However, staff do not effectively involve and check children's understanding of what is happening in the story. In addition, there are too few books for children to select from, in order to engage their attention and interest. Young children develop their early writing skills as they colour

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who attend

and paint. However, older children have too few chances and are not actively encouraged to develop their writing skills in a variety of contexts.

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who attend

Staff have a limited understanding of the revised Early Years Foundation Stage, and as a result planning is not effective in matching activities to children's needs. They collect starting points through parents sharing children's likes and dislikes through completing a 'settling-in questionnaire'. However, staff do not use the information collected to promote children's learning and development. Systems for observing and planning children's next steps in their learning are still very much developing and do not transpire in practice. Consequently, this restricts children's ability to make sufficient progress in their learning and development. In addition, staff have yet to use information gained from their observations to effectively plan suitable challenges for individual children. As a result, activities set out are more general, often not challenging children to become fully engaged and interested, in order to meet their developmental needs. This means, for some of the

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who attend

time, children are running around, without purpose or direction.

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

The key person system is not adequate and does not meet the basic needs of all the children. Children show they feel safe and secure with the adults caring for them. However, staff are not aware of key words or phrases used by children in their home languages, when they speak English as an additional language. This does not fully support children's sense of belonging, communication and language skills.

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

Younger children's sense of security is well promoted during their nap times, when staff hold and comfort them as they fall asleep. Some children develop their self-care skills as they go to the toilet independently and show they understand the importance of hand washing before snack and meal times. Suitable hygiene practices are in place, as staff disinfect nappy changing stations after each use to prevent cross-infection. Staff establish nappy changing routines and meet the needs of the younger children.

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

The nursery uses an external catering agency to provide meals for children. Children have healthy food and drinks that take account of their individual dietary needs. Although, children are given drinking water at snack and meal times, this is not freely accessible, to fully promote children's well-being. Staff group all ages of children together and, in the process, do not meet all their individual routines and needs. For example as older children have their lunch at 11.15am with the younger children, when they are not fully ready or hungry.

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

Children enjoy fresh air as they participate in some activities outdoors. They develop their physical skills, as they actively use their legs to manoeuvre and coordinate a large kiddie car and pedal on the tricycle. Staff keep children safe through appropriate supervision. Some opportunities exist for children to learn how to keep safe, as staff practice fire drills. However, children with English as an additional language do not always understand what is happening and why, as staff do not use appropriate strategies to effectively communicate. This means overall, children's understanding of safety issues is not effectively promoted. Children generally behave well. However, they do run around as toys and resources insufficiently engage them.

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provision

The provider is in breach of a number of requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage and does not have a strong understanding of their responsibility in meeting them. Some arrangements for safeguarding children are suitable. Staff are vetted and undergo checks and references are taken up prior to their working with the children. Staff have an adequate understanding of safeguarding procedures to follow should any concerns arise regarding the welfare and safety of children. Security of the premises is strong, as visitors' only have access when staff unlock the front gate, preventing any persons not yet checked for their suitability to be around children from entering. The manager demonstrates that she appropriately assesses risk indoors, in order to prevent hazards that pose as a risk to children. However, the outdoor raised patio area poses a risk to children's safety. The fencing is not fully enclosed and it is possible for a younger child to

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provision

fall through the wide gap onto the hard concrete below.

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provision

Polices and procedures are in place, although staff lack a thorough understanding of these to make sure that they follow all correct practices. Not all records relating to the manager's qualifications are easily available and accessible for inspection. Self-evaluation is in the early stages and shows little impact on routines and practices. The provider welcomes and develops links with the local authority's early years' team. This team identifies and highlights clear targets and priorities for improvement. However, this does not translate in to practice, which means improvement is limited. Staff supervision is not fully effective. The provider does not ensure staff have the knowledge and skills to deliver the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage effectively.

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provision

Practice is not sufficiently inclusive at the setting. For example, systems are not in place to support children who have English as an additional language effectively. This results in staff having little understanding of what some children are saying in their home language as they play. As a result, staff miss key chances to help children develop their speaking and listening skills in English. The nursery does not have any children who attend that have special needs and/or disabilities. However, the provider demonstrates through discussion a reasonable understanding of the relevance of working with external agencies, in order to meet the needs of children. Children do not currently attend school or other settings. However, the provider understands the need to form links with others in order to promote continuity of care and learning for children when the occasion arises.

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provision

Partnerships with parents are satisfactory. Staff engage warmly with parents and keep them informed of their children's daily routine and their activities. However, they do not fully involve parents in their child's learning and assessment by encouraging them to share, contribute and update information. Generally, parents report they are happy with the care provided for their children and like the local environment within which the nursery is located.

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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 EY443930 Local authority Harrow Inspection number 789683 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 5 Total number of places 46 Number of children on roll 10 Name of provider Headstart Nursery and Learning Centre Ltd Date of previous inspection Not applicable Telephone number 020 8861 3983

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Setting details

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

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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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