Little Learners Day Nursery

Little Learners Day Nursery 156 Whitehorse Road, West Croydon, Surrey, CR0 2LA

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 10/10/2012 11/05/2010

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early years provision

This inspection: 2 Previous inspection: 2 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

 Monitoring of the nursery highlights staff training needs effectively and provides for these, which greatly benefits the children.  Good practice in the nursery stems from the staff's secure knowledge of the children and their understanding of how they learn and develop.  Children are happy, settled and very keen to learn. They have a good bond with their key carers who provide interesting learning experiences that help children progress well.  Staff promote diversity well within the nursery. Children's home languages are reflected well and cultural awareness is enhanced through the well planned activities.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Opportunities for babies to move around confidently in the main play area are not fully in place.  Children's learning and understanding of health and hygiene is not fully embraced by staff.

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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 voluntary and compulsory parts of the Childcare Register. This report includes a judgment about compliance with the requirements of that register.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector sampled records and documentation relating to: children's progress and development; safeguarding; staff suitability; parent questionnaire responses and newsletters; the settings records relating to quality assurance and self- evaluation.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spent equal time observing the outcomes for both groups of children, under twos and over twos, both inside and outside. The inspector sought the views of children through discussion with them and observation of their play.  The inspector discussed leadership issues with the manager.  The manager and the inspector carried out a joint observation of a teaching activity.

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Information about the setting

Little Learners Day Nursery registered in 2009. It is a privately owned setting. The provider also runs another day nursery in South Croydon. The nursery is located in the London Borough of Croydon. It operates from a single storey building, there is disabled access and toilet facilities. There is a car park available for parents to drop off and collect their children. There is one main playroom, which is divided into areas to accommodate children, who are grouped into two age ranges. There is a separate kitchen, toilet facilities, office and an enclosed outdoor area for children to have outdoor play opportunities.

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Information about the setting

The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and both the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. There are currently 30 children on roll, most attend on a part-time basis. The nursery supports children who speak English as an additional language. The nursery is open weekdays 7.30am until 6.30pm for 51 weeks a year. The nursery receives funding to provide free early education to children aged two, three and four years old.

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Information about the setting

A total of seven staff are employed to work with the children, including the manager. Of these, four hold the equivalent of National Vocational Qualifications at Level 3 or 4, 2 have Level 2, and two are working towards a qualification.

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

 plan spaces in the baby area to encourage free movement without the clutter of resources

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

 support children's health and self-care by helping them understand that good practices with regard to hygiene can contribute to good health.

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who attend

Children are happy and settle in the nursery. They separate well from their parents. Staff are caring and enthusiastic and the good use of opened questions enhances the children's learning and development well. Children have bonded well with their key carers; staff have a good understanding of their stages of development and use this information well to plan how to progress them. Staff move around the nursery to make sure that children are supervised and supported during their play. Children enjoy free flow to and from the garden and activities and resources extend their learning well.

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who attend

Staff plan well to enhance all of the children's learning and development. Each activity is adapted to meet the needs of the more and less able children that are participating. Planning shows a broad range of activities to enhance the children's progress across all seven areas of learning. Children are able to independently access all resources as they are stored at their level. Staff label resources well in both English and a mix of the children's home languages. This enables the children to learn early word recognition and to have their home languages celebrated.

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who attend

Staff regularly share the children's next steps of development with the parents and give suggestions and what they can do at home. This further enhances their leaning and development. Parents' evenings allow the staff to share further the children's progress and how well they are doing. Staff carry out tracking of the children's learning and development every couple of months so they can see how well they are developing and what they can work on next. They use children's interests when planning, to provide fun and exciting activities to promote the children's learning and development well.

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who attend

Children thoroughly enjoy learning about different foods from around the world. Staff talk to the children about the foods on display and ask if any of them can name them. Staff praise the children well for their answers and explain to them at a level they can understand the differences between bananas and plantains. Children enjoy feeling the foods and smelling them. Staff ask the children to describe how they feel and what they think it smells like. After they have talked about the foods the children draw them. The activity is extended further in the afternoon as the staff prepare some of the food for the children to taste. They ask children to describe the taste of the coconut water, the yams and the green banana. Staff talk to the children about the foods they have at home and ask if they have any of the foods they are eating. Children enjoy the activity and talk to the staff about how they enjoy the plantain and but do not like the coconut water. This

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who attend

activity enhances the children's communication and language skills and their understanding of the wider world around them.

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who attend

Caring staff support children in the baby room well They are close at hand to offer cuddles of support and reassurance to them. The room has many large pieces of equipment on the floor, which takes up a lot of space. As a result, babies who are just learning to move either by walking or crawling have to navigate around these, which can impede this part of their development. Staff sit on the floor with the children and respond to their babbling. Children enjoy independently accessing resources and trays of toys. Staff talk about the cars the children are playing with. They name the colours and repeat the names for the children to learn. This enhances the children's communication and language skills.

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

Children move around the nursery both inside and out safely. Staff supervise them well and take time to explain to the children about safety when using resources, such as the climbing frame. Regular fire drills take place so the children are aware of what to do in an event of an emergency. Staff ask the older children if they can remember the rules when they use the ball pit outside. The children are able to tell her they need to take their shoes off and to look before jumping. This is teaching the children about the safety of themselves and their friends during play. Staff are all consistent in their approach to behaviour management. Children use sand timers well when they need to take turns. Children take charge of these and when the sand runs out they approach the staff to say to swap over the resources. This is teaching the children well about the importance sharing and turn taking. Given the children's ages and stages of development they are

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

At meal times, children confidently and independently find their place mats with their names and pictures on them. They take turns to hand out the cutlery and the plates. They are skilled in serving their own meals and are good at their portion control. Staff sit with the children and talk about what they are having for lunch and the importance of eating their meals. They talk about the effect the food has on their bodies. Although at lunch time the children wash their hands this is not consistent, as before snack they do not. Staff do not always enhance the children's understanding of their health and well-being as they do not talk about why they are washing their hands. Staff are quick to respond to the children's needs, such as when they need their noses wiped. Older children are encouraged to teach themselves how to do this and staff are nearby to offer support when children ask for it.

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

Staff handle the transition of children well. They meet with the new key carers when children move from the baby to the pre-school room. They discuss the children's stages of development and next steps in learning, so the new key carers can start to progress the children when they move up. Children have a settling in period so they can gradually get used to their new room. When children prepare for school the staff work with parents. They have settling in sessions at the school and when they are at the nursery staff talk to the children about the school and what to expect. This helps the children start school as confident learners.

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provision

Staff have a good understanding about how to safeguard children and the nursery's child protection policies and procedures. They work closely with local agencies caring for the children to provide continuity in children's care. Staff also work closely with the local children's centre as the nursery also provides free education two year olds. They provide regular reports for the agencies so they can see the progress the children are making. Robust systems are in place for the recruitment of staff and all have Criminal Records Bureau checks in place. Regular training is in place for the staff and they are fully aware of the procedures to follow if they have any concerns. Staff place high priority on providing a safe play environment for the children, and support this through the use of daily and monthly risk assessments.

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provision

Staff work with the parents through daily feedback, regular meetings and questionnaires to gather their thoughts and views of the nursery. They use this information to shape the provision and the service it provides. Recent changes following such feedback include making the baby room a no-shoe area to promote the children's welfare. The manager also works closely with the local authority and the provider to assess the quality of the care that they provide. The manager and the staff work on any targets that have been set. The nursery has worked through the recommendations that were set at the last inspection. They clearly indentify the key areas they are working on now for improvement and how they go about this. Staff attend in-house training every three months and further training needs are identified through regular supervisions and monitoring of the staff. A couple of the staff are currently undertaking sign language courses, which the provider

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provision

has highlighted will clearly benefit the care and well-being of the children.

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The Childcare Register

The requirements for the compulsory part of the Childcare Register are Met The requirements for the voluntary 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 EY401871 Local authority Croydon Inspection number 884591 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 8 Total number of places 22 Number of children on roll 30 Name of provider Joanna Louise Bennett Date of previous inspection 11/05/2010 Telephone number 02086832476

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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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