Treetops Silvertrees

Silver Trees PDN 40 Ashbourne Road, Derby, Derbyshire, DE22 3AD

p.1

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 04/12/2012 19/02/2009

p.1

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

p.1

This provision is good

 Staff demonstrate that all children are making good progress towards the early learning goals given their starting points. Children are interested and keen learners who display the characteristics of effective learning.  There is a stimulating, well-resourced and welcoming environment, both in and outdoors, to support children's all-round development and emotional well-being.  Regular self-evaluation by the manager and staff, with the contribution of parents and children, makes sure that priorities for development are identified and acted on, in order to promote a good quality of education and care.  Children are well-behaved and have formed positive relationships with adults and peers. Children are encouraged, praised and their efforts are acknowledged appropriately.

p.1

It is not yet outstanding because

 Opportunities for children to advance their mathematical skills have not been fully embraced. This includes staff not always encouraging children to use mathematical language or skills while they play or when they are involved in focused activities.  Inconsistencies in the implementation of some procedures by some staff, such as deployment, disrupt the smooth running of the nursery at lunch times and hinder children's care and learning.

p.1

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.

p.2

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.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector observed activities in the playrooms and the garden.  The inspector held a meeting with the manager and area manager of the provision.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at children's assessment records, planning documentation, evidence of suitability of practitioners working within the setting and a range of other documentation.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector also took account of the views of parents and carers spoken to on the day.

p.2

Information about the setting

Silver Trees Private Day Nursery is part of the Treetops chain of nurseries. It opened in 1997 and operates from a two-storey, converted house close to Derby City centre. The nursery is open each weekday from 7.30am to 6pm, excluding bank holidays. Children are cared for in rooms according to their age and stage of development. All children share access to an enclosed outdoor play area. The day nursery serves the local and surrounding area.

p.2

Information about the setting

The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and on both the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. There are currently 82 children on roll, all of whom are within the early years age range. The nursery provides funded early education for three- and four-year-olds. The nursery supports children with special educational needs and/ or disabilities and also supports children who speak English as an additional language.

p.3

Information about the setting

There are 13 members of staff, 10 of whom hold appropriate early years qualifications. The nursery receives support from the local authority.

p.3

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

 increase opportunities to further support children's thinking, in respect of using mathematical language and skills in their free play and focused activities

p.3

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

 review and develop staff's knowledge of all procedures and their implementation; paying particular attention to procedures at lunchtime.

p.3

who attend

Staff have a good impact on children's learning and progress, given their starting points and capabilities. This is because all staff have a good understanding of the areas of learning and high expectations of the children. Staff have good observation skills for assessing effectively the progress children make. Children's progress records demonstrate regular and precise assessments of children's progress. All staff contribute to planning, which considers detailed information on the prime and specific areas of learning. Hence, the planning caters for the needs of individuals and their next steps in learning. The effective activity plans support each child to acquire skills and foster their capacity to continuously develop. Children are motivated by staff who show their own enthusiasm during activities, offer plenty of challenges to children and reward them with lots of praise and encouragement. Children demonstrate they are interested and enthusiastic learners

p.3

who attend

who display good characteristics of effective learning. This ensures that children are developing the necessary skills to support their readiness for school.

p.3

who attend

During group activities, children pay good attention and respond appropriately when listening to their names being called or being asked about the days and weather. Children talk freely with peers, staff and visitors. They use language to share their experiences and thoughts during role play, for example 'I have bought some mince pies for Santa and carrots for Rudolph.' Good opportunities are provided for all children to begin using their early writing skills for different purposes and to use their phonic knowledge for linking sounds and letters. For instance they know that 's' is for 'Santa' and write Christmas lists for the presents they would like to receive. In a small adult-led group, children show great curiosity as they explore different materials and improve their language skills as staff encourage them to describe their experiences. Staff skilfully ask many 'how' and 'why' questions to extend children's thinking as they build Santa's house. Children enjoy role

p.3

who attend

play activities to act out scenarios and compound their learning from other activities. For example, they demonstrate co-operation with each other as they act out Santa visiting the children and making the toys, using appropriate props. They talk to Santa on play mobile phones to ask him if he has made all of the toys. However, staff miss opportunities to increase children's use and understanding of mathematical language while the they are building Santa's house, by using words such as 'taller', 'bigger,' 'how many' and 'more'. A selection of resources and good opportunities are provided for children to familiarise themselves with information and communication technology, such as, electronic tills and computers.

p.4

who attend

All children have opportunities to understand the world as they learn about a varied range of subjects, from how things grow and where food comes from, to understanding the computer programmes or learning about each other's cultural and family differences. Children choose whether to play with others or play alone. Some children like to engage in their own activities, showing good levels of concentration as they tackle problems. For example, they make Christmas decorations and use the play dough cutters skilfully. They are delighted when they achieve this. All children are able to move freely between the indoor and outdoor areas. They happily extend their play into the outdoor area by moving toys and equipment to either area themselves. Staff allow children to take calculated risks to test out their own strength and abilities when using large equipment. The wealth of creative activities help children to enjoy different textures and mediums, for example,

p.4

who attend

painting, sticking and cooking, where they ably use appropriate equipment to help them explore their chosen activities.

p.4

who attend

On entry, parents contribute to initial assessments of their children's starting points and receive regular information about the daily activities their children participate in. In return, they advise staff of activities and events their children participate in at home. This allows staff to be flexible in the educational programmes to include activities which hold interest for individual children. Overall, children are making good progress towards the early learning goals and have a good time whilst they learn at nursery.

p.4

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

Children show they feel safe and at home at the nursery because they move around freely, helping themselves to toys and activities. This behaviour is the result of good, effective settling-in and care practices shared between staff and parents. The well- established key person system allows staff to form good working relationships with parents and ultimately a close bond with children to help children feel emotionally secure as they separate from their parents and make the transition into the nursery. Babies show that they are contented and build relationships with their key person, as they are willing to try new things. For example, they learn to pull themselves up and are inspired to crawl in order to explore equipment in their room. In particular they love the messy play activities, such as painting using building blocks. They laugh and giggle as they smear the paint across the table and connect the bricks together. Regular care routines, including snack

p.4

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

and mealtimes allow children to feel emotionally and mentally secure as they become familiar with them. Staff provide a stimulating, enabling environment for the children both indoors and outside. Toys are good quality and well maintained. Resources, especially those in the baby room are eminently suitable for the ages of children using them. For example, the investigative play, in the form of treasure baskets, allows children to explore their environment safely.

p.5

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

Children's safety is a high priority for staff. Effective daily and monthly risk assessments ensure that children stay physically healthy and help them to develop a suitable understanding of how best to use toys and equipment. For example, children help clear away unused toys to prevent trip hazards. Children practise the good evacuation procedures each month in order to become familiar with emergency routines. Effective management of children's behaviour is reflected in the good levels of co-operation between children. They demonstrate caring attitudes as they help each other and staff to manoeuvre toys and equipment and support each other in play activities. Staff are good role models for the children. This reflects in the good levels of polite co-operation between children as they play together and share toys and experiences. For example, children help each other with coats and wellington boots. This helps children develop skills that will

p.5

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

support their next move, such as starting school.

p.5

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

Children's health and well-being is made a priority, as the staff emphasise the benefits of outdoor play and indoor physical activities on a daily basis. Access to an inviting garden helps to provide a balanced and broad range of opportunities in all areas of learning. Children understand the importance of basic personal hygiene and wash their hands enthusiastically before they eat and after messy play. Staff promote children's health awareness through topic activities, including healthy eating and dental hygiene. They create a sociable and relaxed atmosphere at snack times and all children enjoy drinks and fruits. Children enjoy plenty of fresh air and physical exercise. Equipment is organised well in outdoor play, to challenge children's physical development. Children negotiate space as they ride wheeled toys, adjusting their speed or direction as they approach younger children. They balance and climb with skill and staff encourage participation in ball games.

p.5

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

Toddlers show a particular high level of self-help skills as they independently put their coats on and wash their hands after using the pasta paint.

p.5

provision

Leaders and managers monitor the delivery of the educational programme carefully. All staff are using the revised Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage and planning now focuses on the revised areas of learning. New systems are in place to meet the new requirement for a summary assessment of all two year olds to share with parents and, through them, other professionals. Managers implement rigorous safeguarding procedures. Staff demonstrate good knowledge of the safeguarding and welfare requirements. Clear procedures are in place and staff attend child protection training to enable consistency in their knowledge and to protect vulnerable children in the event of any concerns. The nursery is safe and secure and effective risk assessments help to reduce hazards. Should children have an accident, they are well cared for, as several staff have kept their first aid training up to date. All the required policies, procedures and

p.5

provision

documentation are in place. New staff undergo checks to confirm that they are suitable to work with children and have a thorough induction. However, some staff do not fully implement the procedures in place. For example, the procedures for lunchtime cover are not always accurately carried out in relation to how staff deploy themselves. This slightly hinders children's care and learning as it means that, occasionally, there are less staff working directly with the children at this time.

p.6

provision

The nursery demonstrates good capacity to drive improvement. The management team and staff are dedicated and enthusiastic. There are good systems in place for self- evaluation, which staff use to identify strengths and areas for improvement. The manager uses this well to produce an effective action plan, in order to make continuous, challenging improvements to the setting. She has a positive attitude to the inspection process. She uses feedback from inspections in other similar settings she oversees, to continually improve outcomes for children.

p.6

provision

The nursery is well organised and staff work well together to provide an enabling environment. They develop good partnerships with parents, which helps ensure they have a firm understanding of the children's and families' needs. The nursery is committed to working in partnership with parents and seeks their views in a variety of ways to further enhance practice. Parents are encouraged to contribute to their child's learning by providing observations of their achievements at home. As a result, there have been improvements to guidance given to new parents. In the event of any concerns about children's development, staff liaise with parents and external agencies to share information to implement early intervention. As a result, staff enable children to receive the support they need. Comments from discussions with parents indicate they are happy with the caring, friendly, staff and the service provided. The setting successfully supports

p.6

provision

children with special educational needs and there are well-established partnerships with other agencies involved in children's care. Staff are also proactive in communicating regularly with other early years providers where care of children is shared with another setting, in order to provide consistent and coordinated care.

p.6

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

p.6

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.

p.7

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.

p.7

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.

p.7

Setting details

Unique reference number EY282326 Local authority Derby, City of Inspection number 894357

p.7

Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 82 Number of children on roll 82 Name of provider Treetops Nurseries Limited Date of previous inspection 19/02/2009 Telephone number 01332 366663

p.8

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.

p.8

Type of provision

For the purposes of this inspection the following definitions apply:

p.8

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.

p.8

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.

p.8

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.

p.8

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,

p.8

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’.

p.9

Type of provision

T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk

p.9