Busy Bees Day Nursery at Letchworth

Busy Bees Nursery at Letchworth Icknield Way, Letchworth Garden City, Hertfordshire, SG6 4GY

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 31/10/2012 16/01/2009

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early years provision

This inspection: 1 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 1 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 1

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This provision is outstanding

 Practitioners provide rich and stimulating experiences for children across the seven areas of learning that foster excellent progress towards the early learning goals.  Children are extremely motivated and engage readily in new learning. All transitions to new rooms or learning situations are exceptionally well managed to support children's feelings of self-confidence.  The provision uses highly successful strategies to engage all parents in their children's learning. Arrangements for working in partnership with other agencies and professionals are extremely well developed to support all children's needs.  The manager supports a detailed programme of professional development for practitioners which is based on thorough performance management and supervision processes. Consequently, practitioners are motivated and knowledgeable.  Detailed risk assessments are completed to ensure that children may play safely and

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This provision is outstanding

initiate learning.  Rigorous systems for self-evaluation, involving managers, practitioners, parents and children, identify priorities for continued improvement. External audits, as well as those completed by the main company, are used to set targets and improvement plans throughout.

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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 observed activities in all rooms and the outside area.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at a selection of documentation including induction procedures, quality audits, and minutes from staff meetings as well as other documentation.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took account of parents' views by viewing parental feedback forms and emails.  The inspector carried out a joint observation with the manager.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke with the manager, childcare and curriculum advisor for Busy Bees, staff and children at appropriate times throughout the inspection.

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Information about the setting

Busy Bees at Letchworth was registered in 2004. It operates from purpose-built premises in Letchworth Garden City, Hertfordshire. The provision is one of 214 nursery provisions that are part of Busy Bees Day Nurseries Limited. The provision serves the local and wider community. The provision is accessible to all children and is on one level. There are enclosed areas available for outdoor play.

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Information about the setting

The provision opens Monday to Friday during all year round with the exception of bank holidays only. Sessions are from 8am until 6pm but the provision can accommodate early sessions from 7.30am, and late finish to 6.30pm, where required. Children attend for a variety of sessions.

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Information about the setting

The provision is registered by Ofsted on the Early Years Register and on both the voluntary and compulsory parts of the Childcare Register. The provision offers 104 places to children under eight years of whom 104 may be in the early years age group, and of whom, 39 may be under two years. There are currently 104 children on roll.

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Information about the setting

The provision provides funded early education for three- and four-year-old children children. It supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children who speak English as an additional language. The provision employs 23 members of childcare staff, including the manager, and a cook. Of these, 17 hold appropriate early years qualifications at level two, three or above.

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

 consider continuing to broaden the provision of natural building materials and discovery within the main outdoor garden.

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who attend

Practitioners have very high expectations of themselves and children. They have an excellent understanding of how to engage children in playing and exploring to promote rapid learning. Children are highly motivated and show an enthusiasm for learning which results in them meeting, or being in advance of, their developmental milestones. Practitioners plan first-hand experiences and challenges that enhance children's learning and development. For example, they have an initiative of regular cooking activities using a quality range of resources and child-centred cookery books. Children eagerly engage in the unpacking and exploration of such new resources. They demonstrate an excellent recall of previous events, and extend and demonstrate broad vocabulary skills. Children themselves incorporate learning areas such as personal hygiene, and show their knowledge of initial sounds and letters as they tell staff words that start with the letters of

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who attend

cookie cutters. Staff skilfully extend the free exploration into making cakes and children work very well together to prepare cakes for the oven. Later children decide to extend this learning further, as a group, by making an indoor picnic. They talk about the quantities of food required, and compare and contrast sizes as they decide which dressing up clothes will fit which person. Such encompassing activities foster children's learning across all areas of learning and are significantly led and developed by children.

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who attend

All children thoroughly enjoy singing and stories regularly. They engage in a very effective daily 'wake and shake' programme of physical development and utilise the indoor physical playroom to extend large movement. Babies, toddlers and older children spend time exploring the local community around them. They carry out investigative works using toys linked to road crossing or environmental issues. Children take photographs of themselves with the toys as they explore the areas and then return to make wall displays showing what they have done. Parents are invited to be involved in this programme and carry out their own works with children that are later reviewed and extended by staff. All children use the gardens every day. Younger babies explore tactile experiences attached to the fences in their separate garden. They are provided with all-in-one rain suits and enjoy free exploration outdoors. Babies, toddlers and older children use a range of equipment

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who attend

outdoors such as sand and gloop, or books and mark making. They use static and mobile equipment to ride, climb or push. Gardening is carried out to explore growth such as growing tomatoes and pumpkins. Children eagerly solve problems with some support from staff. For instance, when the features of their scarecrow are eaten by birds, they decide to draw them back on with a marker pen. This means that the features will not disappear. In addition, when tricycle wheels squeak, staff help children to spray them with oil and they are fascinated to find that the squeak disappears! Staff continue to develop the main outdoor garden by adding further resources for exploration and replacing older materials. Staff have identified this action as enhancing the children's eagerness to learn and fostering motivation. Although, some outdoor provision is worn and hence is less inviting to children in their play.

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who attend

Younger babies are stimulated to explore and discover what is around them. A black, white and shiny sensory area attracts their attention and stimulates exploration. A tactile area focussed around lilac tones promotes relaxation. Babies are introduced to sensory baskets, creative materials such as paints, and explore the many laminated photograph books and boards supplied for them. This helps them to discover new materials and extend concentration. Younger toddlers delight in exploring expressive arts through movement and through creative projects. For instance, staff develop a large area to paint where they trickle paints in spirals. Children use their whole body to stamp, slip and slide, smear the paint across their bodies, and make prints to cover the paper. They begin to express wonder as they vocalise their enjoyment with 'ooh', 'look', and 'at' as they use their hands to splat the paint! Communication and language is fostered in partnership with

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who attend

parents and carers. 'Chatterboxes' are produced by children at home and brought into the provision to share. They are filled by children with objects that are special to them. They provide a time where children can speak and be heard as they talk about their special box.

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who attend

Assessment, across the provision, is sharply focussed and builds from an initial assessment that fully includes parents and carers. Ongoing assessment includes planned 'together time' and active learning sheets. These include next steps for every child to inform the planning for the next week. Parents contribute by completing observations at home, and ideas for activities at home are provided by staff. Development summary sheets completed every six months are used to ensure that children continue to achieve at a rapid rate. Children are also monitored to assess their overall well-being and level of involvement. These measures mean that staff can securely monitor ongoing learning, development and level of engagement.

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

The strong skills of all key persons and the highly effective deployment of staff ensures that all children form secure emotional attachment. By having a second key person working alongside children and families those attachments are reinforced. All children, from the youngest baby, show an extremely strong sense of belonging within the provision. Talking tins, which hold the recorded voices of parents, help children to feel secure during the day. Key values, appropriate to the age of the children, are displayed on the playroom doors and are promoted by staff with the children. These focus around care for each other and values linked to kindness. In this way they encourage children to become aware of the effect of their behaviour on others. Babies and toddlers receive consistent support to help them to feel secure. Staff are very aware of the additional support required by some of the younger children and ensure that they receive the

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

reassurance needed to enhance their well-being.

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

All children learn about the world around them and become aware of the culture and lives of each other. Displays, including 'I am a Christian', and 'I am a Muslim' add to the general works completed throughout the provision. Children hear many new languages through discussion and song that fosters their awareness of others around them. Staff work with parents and carers to learn key words from children's home languages. Those languages are displayed throughout the provision, and family boards are continually refreshed to help children feel secure. Extensive works are completed throughout the provision looking at celebrations both nationally and worldwide.

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

Children show excellent self-care skills and develop an excellent understanding of healthy practice. Meals of a high quality are produced by the cook, overseen by the main company head office. Vigilant procedures are followed by staff to ensure that appropriate meals are both ordered and provided to children to meet specific dietary needs. Children love to clean and prepare the tables for their meals and demonstrate a high awareness of the importance of washing their hands to remove germs before eating or whilst dealing with foods. They eagerly explain about the importance of vitamins showing that they understand how foods and vitamins are linked to good health.

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

Children's understanding of safety is promoted at all times. Children learn to take risks within a safe environment where they climb or balance on equipment in the garden or the indoor physical movement room. Regular excursions provide daily opportunities to practise road safety in the community. This is enhanced by the visitors who come to the provision to carry out safety sessions with children. Routine emergency evacuation is completed and enhances children's understanding of personal safety. Extremely detailed procedures for transition between the different rooms, or to other settings providing Early Years Foundation Stage, mean that children's learning is promoted to the optimum level. This includes work entitled seamless transitions. It involves the staff planning different activities for the children to take part in during a four week period. Seamless transitions finish with a pre-school graduation and marks a new period for children.

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provision

The management team has very high expectations for the quality of care that is offered to children and families. Regular and robust reviews of all paperwork and procedures take place to ensure that all requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage are met. This includes audits completed by the Busy Bees company staff, audits through the local advisory team, and those sought through the National Day Nursery Association (NDNA). Extremely thorough reflective practice includes input from all members of the management team, all staff, parents and carers, and children. A company initiative 'See the Difference and Smile' is also completed to enhance all areas of practice throughout the provision. A parent liaison group meets once every three months wherein parents may set any questions or feedback comments from the parent group. In addition to this, room assessments are issued to parents that ask them to score their children's room across

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provision

several areas of care. This feedback is collated and used to develop improvement plans for the staff and rooms. The manager is especially vigilant in monitoring practice throughout the provision. She provides extensive supervision programmes that lead into the annual appraisals and inform staff training programmes. Such dedication to reflecting on practice and continuing to improve all aspects of the provision shows that there is a strong drive to maintain the high levels of achievement.

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provision

Partnerships with parents, other settings providing Early Years Foundation Stage and other agencies are a key strength. Staff work closely with any new key person preparing informative documents and accompanying children to new settings to help them settle. Meetings are arranged with childminders, who care for children, to establish consistency of care. The provision involves parents and the extended family by inviting them to breakfasts, grandparents' teas and other celebrations. Informative seminars, either single evenings or spread across several sessions, help parents to understand the key areas of children's learning. For example, an Early Years Foundation Stage information session helps them to understand the areas of learning. A group of sessions, across ten weeks, addresses babies' development and supports parents and carers in many areas of early childcare. The staff work extremely closely with many external advisors and agencies and

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provision

are part of a Community Support Scheme initiative. They fulfil obligations to attend and host 'team around the child' meetings and work closely with others to identify all children's needs and help them to progress.

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provision

Arrangements to safeguard children within the provision are very robust. All staff receive regular training to ensure that they fully understand and adhere to the detailed procedures set out by the company head office. The manager has very effective systems to monitor their implementation. Staff create an environment that is welcoming, safe and stimulating where children engage in active learning. The environment is especially safe with risk assessments completed each day and CCTV security systems to monitor the exterior of the premises. All children are very secure, thoroughly enjoy their play and learning, and are learning to be independent and self-assured. Consequently, children embark on their learning career having established an eagerness to learn and seek out new experiences.

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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 EY289914 Local authority Hertfordshire Inspection number 888705

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 104 Number of children on roll 104 Name of provider Busy Bees Day Nurseries Limited Date of previous inspection 16/01/2009 Telephone number 01462 683761

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Type of provision

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. 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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