Magic Roundabout Nurseries Ltd

Magic Roundabout Nursery 141 Coronation Road, Southville, Bristol, BS3 1RE

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 23/10/2012 28/04/2010

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early years provision

This inspection: 3 Previous inspection: 3 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 3 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 3

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This provision is satisfactory

 Children enjoy their time at the nursery and are happy, secure and enthusiastic learners because the knowledgeable staff team establish warm and caring relationships. Children are growing steadily in confidence and make sound progress in relation to their starting points and capabilities.  The key person system successfully develops strong partnerships with parents, sharing information about each child's day and enabling the identification of children's on-going individual needs through discussion.  The manager and senior staff monitor the nursery provision well and are beginning to effectively build staff's knowledge, understanding and practice. The whole staff team show commitment in addressing the priorities for improvement and planned actions are steadily having a positive effect on the outcomes for children.

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It is not yet good because

 The learning environment is made stimulating and interesting for children in most areas of the nursery and is of good quality in some areas, such as the outside play area. However, there are fewer opportunities for children in the two to threes room to develop their imaginations and ideas through numerous, easy to access and good quality resources, such as role-play materials.  There are weaknesses in the use of a new system of observational assessment, meaning that staff do not always complete regular, accurate and precise assessments of children. This affects their ability to plan good levels of challenge for some children and to support focussed learning in some areas.  Staff do not always make the most of opportunities to support children's good communication and language skills, such as during free-flow activities when children's activities are self chosen, and this affects the consistency of some children's progress in

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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

 One inspector carried out the inspection.  The inspector observed activities in each room and the outside area.  The inspector held meetings with the manager and with the senior practitioners.  The inspector looked at children's assessment and planning records.

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Inspection activities

 The Inspector checked the evidence of suitability and qualifications of practitioners working with children.  The inspector took account of the views of parents' spoken to on the day.

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Information about the setting

The Magic Roundabout Day Nursery operates from a Victorian terraced property in the Southville area of Bristol. A company that also own four other nurseries in the London region runs the nursery. The nursery is open Monday to Friday, from 7.30am until 6pm and operates all year round except for Bank Holidays. Children have access to all areas of the building except for the kitchen, laundry room, office and staff facilities. There is large hard surfaced area to the rear of the premises, used for outdoor play. There is stepped access to all four floors of the nursery and to the front of the building. There is a ramp from the rear of the building which affords access to two playrooms on the ground floor. The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register. There are currently 94 children on roll. The nursery supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children who learn English as an additional language. There are 24 staff employed to work

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Information about the setting

directly with the children, of whom 16 staff hold level 3 qualifications in childcare. Four members of staff are working towards relevant qualifications. Two members of staff have Early Years Professional Status and one has Qualified Teacher Status. The setting is in receipt of funding for free early education for children aged three and four years.

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must:

 develop the programme for expressive arts and design especially for children aged two to three years by providing a stimulating and well resourced environment that offers a rich range of resources for children to engage their imaginations, develop their ideas through role-play and provide them with choice.

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

 develop further the process of observational assessment to more accurately identify children's next steps in development by: a)embedding staff's knowledge of the characteristics of children's effective learning into practice; and b) creating the conditions for more effective assessment.

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

 develop children's communication and language further during child-initiated play by placing a greater focus on encouraging conversation and asking children to expand on what they say during their chosen activities.

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who attend

Children make suitable progress in their learning and development because the staff plan from children's interests and activities. Learning opportunities adequately meet the individual needs of children. Key persons establish warm and close relationships with children, creating emotional security for all babies and children and helping them grow in confidence. Babies happily sit together in a group and a member of staff sings a nursery rhyme. They watch, giggle and respond, trying to clap and copy the movements, showing excitement in response to the enthusiasm of the member of staff. Consequently they grow in confidence, learn to be social, practice control of their bodies and have fun listening and responding to the sounds. Children aged two to three enjoy the story read at story time. They listen well and most respond to the member of staff's skilful questioning. They learn about books and that print carries meaning because the member of staff models looking

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who attend

at the pictures, pointing to the words and turning the pages well. Not all children have the opportunity to fully participate and to have their voice heard as they do not always have sufficient time for everyone to respond. However, they do enjoy the story and gradually increase in confidence and understanding although not all extend their language skills rapidly.

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who attend

Children of all ages make secure progress in their physical development because they thoroughly enjoy taking their play outside each day. They show satisfactory control and coordination in large and small movements, generally in line with their expected development. Children outdoors safely practice their climbing, hopping and jumping skills on a suitable range of equipment and with close support from a member of staff.

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who attend

Children have some rich learning experiences that closely meet their individual needs because they are skilfully supported by knowledgeable staff who deliver thoughtfully presented activities. During an activity around the festival of Succoth young children explore the fruit items placed in a tent, having decorated the outside with cloth materials. They show a strong motivation to explore, handle and investigate the textures and fruit and make themselves understood by pointing. Members of staff sensitively prompt their communication further by introducing familiar words, interpreting and repeating back each child's attempts to communicate. Children happily respond with single words. They choose additional resources, such as props from the role-play area and natural resources from the good selection available. They sit cosily with staff, actively engaging in play, counting and naming fruit items; and listening and attending. Children make adequate progress in their

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who attend

communication and language skills because staff sensitively support play with skilful interventions and attention. In general they perceptively listen to children and use a range of questioning that suitably encourages children to express themselves through out their day.

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who attend

Children have sound opportunities to develop their skills in mathematics and to count and match shapes. They show excitement in a card game where they match the colours of cards and staff encourage them to count. They learn to take turns and pay attention to the game as the member of staff manages their differing needs skilfully.

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who attend

Overall the educational programmes are adequate. Although the system of observational assessment and activity planning is newly in place, the overall process is secure and staff base their planning on children's interests. This has yet to provide additional depth and breadth across each area of learning so that children are able to make consistently good progress because not all staff are familiar with the new process. This affects the current quality of the assessments, the activities on offer and the staff's ability to support children's specific learning priorities, particularly in free flow activities. Consequently, the quality of interaction and teaching that promotes learning tends to fluctuate. Staff are beginning to refer to the publication 'Development Matters in the Early Years Foundation Stage' to track children's progress and to plan more effectively. Staff have begun to undertake a review of children's progress when children are between two and three years

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who attend

of age. This is at an early stage of implementation and suitably developing. Children particularly enjoy the sand pit and mud containers where they scoop, fill and dig. They move freely between activities, playing and exploring and combining resources and equipment, as they engage in good range of open ended activities and follow their own ideas.

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who attend

The key person system enables parents to contribute to children's assessments of starting points at the point of entry and provides sound information about children's progress. Parents have some opportunities to share information about children's learning at home, such as through the information tree where their 'wow' statements are on display.

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

Babies learn to sit unsupported on the floor and staff warmly encourage them to explore their surroundings. They respond well to the presence of adults showing they are making secure attachments and have a strong sense of belonging. Older children equally benefit from the warm interactions with adults, demonstrating strong bonding. The sound transition arrangements help children to settle into their new surroundings when they transfer between rooms.

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

In general, staff support children well to learn self-care skills, however, the support they provide is variable. Not all staff have an accurate understanding of children's capabilities so support does not focus consistently on extending all children's skills. For example, a young child has begun to feed themselves with a spoon but staff do not always provide sufficient opportunity for the child to try this for themselves. Children take themselves to the toilet but cannot always manage their own basic hygiene and personal needs. The staff are usually on hand to help, however, small lapses in close supervision mean children are not always well supported to develop these skills rapidly. The learning environment is stimulating and interesting for children in most areas of the nursery and is of good quality in some areas, such as the outside play area. The very recent introduction of some additional equipment and resources provides children with adequate variety, and this is

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

beginning to have a positive impact. However, there are fewer opportunities for children in the two to threes room to develop their imaginations and ideas through good quality resources, such as role-play materials. New activity storage trays and boxes have yet to show clear labelling and offer ease of access to children. Staff work hard to make the whole nursery environment attractive to children. However, improvement in the experiences for children in the two to threes room is gradual and does not reflect the stronger improvements made elsewhere in the nursery since the last inspection.

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

Children learn to be suitably aware of their own safety and that of others as staff provide clear boundaries. Children help clear away resources at various times, including when they come in from outside. Children learn to line up to negotiate the stairs safely as a group and they have clear routines. However, staff do not always place enough emphasis on children taking care of resources in the environment and this does not fully foster children's sense of responsibility. Overall, children acquire satisfactory skills to aid learning and are adequately prepared in readiness for school and to move to the next room in the nursery.

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provision

Recent changes in structure and to the roles of the manager and senior staff in the nursery are beginning to lead to the development and consolidation of good practices throughout the nursery. Thorough evaluation, using a number of processes, and assistance from several local authority support workers improvements have been made to children's experiences. This has included good consideration given to the learning environment in each of the rooms and the outside area. Most rooms are attractive, age appropriate, child-friendly and resources are more accessible to children. The manager and senior staff now hold a strong overview of the provision. They have a clear understanding of their responsibilities with regard to meeting the welfare and learning and development requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. A new system is in place to monitor the educational programmes by the childcare lead worker. Although recent

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provision

changes, such as to the system of observational assessment and planning, have yet to be fully embraced, they are beginning to have a positive effect on the outcomes for children. However, assessments do not provide a precise and accurate understanding of all children's skills, abilities and progress. Reflective practice takes place at each level of the nursery and staff are working hard to secure further improvement. A system of staff appraisal and supervision is in place and suitably supports their professional development. The formal monitoring of staff practices by room leaders is at an initial stage so this has yet to drive improvement further.

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provision

Clear safeguarding procedures and staff training enable all staff to have a suitable awareness of how to protect children if they have a concern. Policies, procedures, and other documentation successfully promote children's welfare. Risk assessments suitably minimise potential risks to children and ensure they are cared for in a safe and secure environment free from risks. All staff have been suitably vetted.

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provision

The staff team demonstrate a clear commitment to working in partnership with parents. Parents comment positively about the approachability of staff, describing them as caring and very engaged with children. They receive information about children's progress regularly through discussion and access to learning profiles. The nursery does establish some partnerships with other professionals and multi-disciplinary practitioners involved in providing care and support for children and this adequately contributes to meeting the individual needs of children. The role of the special educational needs coordinator is beginning to provide support to parents and children but has yet to make a strong contribution in meeting children's needs at an early stage.

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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 107009 Local authority Bristol City Inspection number 813308 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 5 Total number of places 108 Number of children on roll 94 Name of provider Magic Roundabout Nurseries Limited Date of previous inspection 28/04/2010 Telephone number 0117 963 9800

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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

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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