Bright Sparks Children's Centre LTD

Bright Sparks @ Efford The Jeremiah Centre, 71 Stott Close, PLYMOUTH, Devon, PL3 6HA

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 29/11/2012 30/11/2010

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early years provision

This inspection: 2 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 2 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 2

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This provision is good

 The staff team are very caring and relate well to the children. They are very diligent in attending to children's care needs.  Children are well engaged throughout the day, and take part in a good range of indoor and outdoor activities to support their learning and development.  Considerable improvements have been made to the premises and the organisation of the nursery and the management demonstrate a good commitment to continually improve outcomes for children.  The baby area is a very calm environment and babies and very young children receive good levels of individual support.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 There is scope to enhance the exchange of information between home and nursery to further support children's learning.  There are sometimes missed opportunities at snack and meal-times to enable children to make choices and develop their independence.

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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 the play rooms and the outside learning environment and spoke with staff in all areas.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector completed a joint observation with the manager of the provision in the outdoor play area.  The inspector looked at children's assessment records and planning documentation.  The inspector took account of the views of parents and carers spoken to on the day.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector checked evidence of suitability and qualifications of practitioners working with children.

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Information about the setting

Bright Sparks @ Efford, known as Bright Sparks Day Nursery, opened in 2004 and moved to its current premises in 2010. It is privately owned and operates from rooms within the premises of Mount Carmel Church in Efford, Plymouth. It is open each weekday from 7.30am to 6pm for 51 weeks of the year, except for Bank Holidays. The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and the voluntary and compulsory parts of the Childcare Register. A maximum of 37 children may attend the nursery at any one time. There are currently 61 children on roll, 55 of whom are in the early years age range. Care is provided for children aged from three months to under 12 years. The nursery has a number of children with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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Information about the setting

There are 10 members of staff who work with the children, all of whom hold early years qualifications to at least level 2. One member of staff has Qualified Teacher Status and has also achieved Early Years Professional Status. The manager has a Foundation Degree in Early Years, another member of staff has a level 6 qualification and four staff have level 3 qualifications. The nursery provides funded early education for children aged two, three and four years. Out of school and wrap-around care is provided for local schools and a school nursery.

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

 enhance opportunities to exchange information between home and nursery, for example by making children's learning journey books more readily accessible.

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

 review the organisation of snack time to provide further opportunities for children to be more independent and make choices.

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who attend

Children make good progress in the nursery because staff are well deployed to support their learning and work well together as a team. They are clear about their roles and engage well with the children. They plan an appropriate range of activities that interest and challenge children, both indoors and out. Staff use appropriate questioning to encourage children to think and to extend their learning. For example, an adult asks a child to help tidy the bricks and asks him to pass the red bricks then the blue, and talks about how many bricks are left. Staff regularly introduce numbers and counting and talk about size and comparison as children play. They discuss whether the child is making a big or a small house as they play with the farm set. They talk about numbers on advent calendars and what number the child has opened today. Most children concentrate really well when they are absorbed in activities. They are fascinated as they take turns to hold a

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who attend

land snail and talk about whether it is cold or warm, wet or dry.

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who attend

Staff use various methods to support children's language development. They have identified a lead practitioner to support this area and use ideas from the 'Every Child a Talker' programme to develop communication skills. Regular assessments alert staff when additional support may be required, which ensures that all children make good progress in relation to their starting points. Pre-school children also take part in a special programme to boost their listening and talking skills. As a result children develop good skills to support them in the next stage of their learning or when they start school.

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who attend

Children have lots of opportunities to be creative and explore different media. Babies explore the texture of oats mixed with baby lotion, squeeze it with their hands and explore the texture. Staff support them well, quickly respond when a child becomes bored and introduce a different activity. Older children use cutters to make shapes out of play dough and develop their fine motor skills as staff support them to carefully peel away the dough to reveal the shape. Pre-school children concentrate as they make potato prints of Christmas shapes. They carefully dip the potato into the paint and press it on the paper to make patterns. Outdoors they develop their physical skills as they balance on stilts, ride a tractor and paint or chalk on the boards on the fence. Overall, children have plenty of opportunities to develop their personal independence and self-care skills. However sometimes opportunities to extend these skills are missed. For example, staff do not

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who attend

always encourage children to pour their own drinks or help with domestic tasks at snack and meal times.

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who attend

Staff are skilled at communicating with children. They get down to their level and sit on the floor so they have eye contact, for example as they support children playing around the base of a tree. Regular observations of children enable staff to identify and plan appropriately for the next steps in their learning. Arrangements are in place for the two- year progress check and to share these with parents. Each child has a personal record book that includes observations and assessments, photographs of activities and examples of their work. Parents and carers have many opportunities to contribute achievements from home. For example they share 'wow' moments, such as when a child takes her first steps pushing a walker. Children's learning journey records are shared with parents but are not readily accessible to encourage parents to regularly review them. As a result, some opportunities are missed for staff to work in for partnership with parents to ensure

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who attend

children to make the best possible progress.

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

Children quickly settle when they come into the nursery and separate from carers. Staff are skilled at reassuring them. Key persons know their children well and understand their individual needs. Children generally behave well as staff use effective techniques to promote positive behaviour. For example, they provide more physical activities indoors when needed to enable children to use their energy positively. They praise children for being kind, for example when a child voluntarily shares some play dough with a friend. Staff support children's social skills well. They encourage children to wait their turn to hold the snail and to talk quietly so they don't hurt his ears.

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

Staff are very attentive to children's care needs. For example they rock babies to sleep in the cot, responding to the child's routines. Children enjoy healthy food at snack-time and nutritious cooked meals for lunch. Babies, in particular, receive very good individual care and staff complete home books to share information about their day. Children enjoy lots of fresh air and exercise. Babies are provided with waterproof suits for outdoor play, to keep them safe and warm. Older children change into their outdoor shoes when they play outdoors. They hang these up with their coats on their individual hooks in the entrance foyer, which helps them to be independent. They learn the importance of good hygiene practices as they wash their hands thoroughly after handling the snails. They learn to keep safe as staff remind them to walk indoors.

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

Younger children join the older ones at the beginning and end of the day, so children become familiar with all the staff. This helps prepare them for moving between groups. Staff also work with the children who are about to start school to prepare them for transition. For example, they share a book of photographs provided by the local school. There is a good range of resources that support children's development and enable them to make choices. Babies love the sensory tent, playing with the glowing balls and watching the light shows. There is suitable provision for children to rest, with wooden cots for the babies and cushions and quilts for the older children.

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provision

The manager has a good understanding of her responsibilities to support children's learning and development, and to ensure their well-being. All legal requirements are met and policies and procedures are generally very well-organised to support the good care provided. Responsibility for specific roles is delegated to individual staff, such as health and safety, special educational needs and support for early language. This ensures that staff develop their skills and children receive appropriate care and support for their needs. Staff attend external training and the manager arranges some in-house training, such as first aid, to enable all staff to take part.

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provision

The Early Years Professional supports staff in the delivery and monitoring of the children's learning. The manager has also begun to observe staff in order to contribute to the assessment of practice. Staff appraisals and regular staff meetings take place, and the manager has started regular supervision meetings with staff. Parents' views are welcomed and posters are provided so they can add their comments and suggestions. For example, parents complained that the bell did not work so this was replaced with an effective intercom system. Parents also comment on things the nursery does well, with many positive comments about the staff and how happy and settled their children are.

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provision

There are effective systems in place to ensure all staff working and living on the premises are suitably checked, including Criminal Record Bureau checks. Staff spoken to had a sound understanding of their responsibilities to keep children safe, including the 'whistle blowing' procedure should they have concerns about another adult. The manager has completed a number of courses on safeguarding children and ensures her knowledge is kept up to date. Risk assessments are completed for activities, the premises, the garden and for outings. The premises are secure and improvements have been made to improve children's safety and comfort. For example, a new fence has been installed in the upper garden to protect children from a slope. The fitting of new doors to the cloisters area enable it to be used as a pre-school room, where children can take part in more challenging activities away from the younger ones.

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provision

The nursery has expanded rapidly over the past 12 months and taken on a number of new staff and children. They have received support from the local authority to develop the provision and improve quality. The staff team work well together and are keen to continue to make further improvements and develop their practice. They work well in partnership with other agencies, such speech therapists and staff from the maintained nursery, to ensure that additional needs are supported. Overall the management demonstrates a good capacity to reflect on practice to identify any weaknesses and to continue to improve.

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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 EY411404 Local authority Plymouth Inspection number 891594

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 8 Total number of places 37 Number of children on roll 55 Name of provider Bright Sparks Childrens Centre Limited Date of previous inspection 30/11/2010 Telephone number 01752 225115

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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.

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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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