Hamilton House Nursery

Hamilton House Nursery 43 Montgomery Road, SHEFFIELD, S7 1LN

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 17/12/2012 06/12/2011

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early years provision

This inspection: 2 Previous inspection: 2 How well the early years provision meets the needs of the range of children who attend The contribution of the early years provision to the well-being of children 2 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 2

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This provision is good

 Children are happy, settled and staff know them well. Consequently, children have developed good levels of independence and curiosity and they have positive relationships with each other.  Staff have a good knowledge and understanding of the Early Years Foundation Stage and how children learn. Therefore, all children are making good progress in their learning, given their starting points.  Children benefit from healthy meals and snacks provided by the nursery. Mealtimes are social occasions where children are learning good table manners and developing an understanding of a healthy diet.  The manager ensures that everyone's views are sought to inform the self-evaluation of the nursery. They carefully plan to make positive changes and therefore, continually improve outcomes for all children.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Children's progress in literacy is not prompted as effectively as possible because the outdoor environment lacks a variety of print or a wide range of writing resources to support their early writing skills.  Children's learning potential is reduced because parents are not fully encouraged to contribute to their children's ongoing learning and development record or to share activities or achievements from home.

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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 learning environment.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took part in a joint observation of daily routines in the baby, toddler and pre-school rooms.  The inspector held meetings and observed practice with the manager of the nursery.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at children's assessment records, planning documentation, evidence of suitability of practitioners working within the setting, the provider's self- evaluation form and a range of other documentation.  The inspector took account of the views of parents spoken to on the day.

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Information about the setting

Hamilton House Nursery was registered in 2002 on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. It is situated in a large detached Victorian property in the Nether Edge area if Sheffield, and is privately owned and managed. The nursery serves the local area and is accessible to all children. It operates from four playrooms across two floors and there is a fully enclosed area available for outdoor play.

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Information about the setting

The nursery employs 21 members of childcare staff. Of these, one holds Early Years Professional Status (EYPS), two hold a degree in early years, one of whom is currently working towards Early Years Professional Status. Of the other staff members, one holds a relevant qualification at level 4, 12 hold an appropriate early years qualifications at level 3, one holds an appropriate early years qualifications at level 2. In addition, four members of staff are currently working towards an appropriate early years qualification at level 3.

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Information about the setting

The nursery opens Monday to Friday all year round, excluding bank holidays. Sessions are from 7am until 7pm and the nursery offers holiday play-care to nursery children and the community. Children attend for a variety of sessions. There are currently 43 children attending, who are in the early years age group. The nursery provides funded early education for two-, three- and four-year-old children. The nursery also offers care to children aged from five to 11 years of age. It supports a number of children, who speak English as an additional language and those with special needs and/or disabilities. The nursery is a member of the National Day Nurseries Association.

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

 extend further the provision for literacy by creating an outdoor environment that is rich in print and where children can learn about words by, for example, using names, signs, posters, providing word banks and a variety of writing resources

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

 develop further systems to enable parents and carers to regularly contribute to their child's learning and development record and to share achievements from home.

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who attend

Staff have a good knowledge of the Early Years Foundation Stage and understand how children learn, so that they can provide interesting and challenging experiences. Consequently, children make good progress in all areas of learning. This is reinforced by the detailed and accurate learning records. The environment is well-organised to encourage children to choose their own activities, so that they are well motivated to learn. Children's physical skills are developed as they confidently handle tools to create snowmen collage pictures with straws, coloured tissue paper and felt. Staff extend their imagination skills further as they question what they are doing and encourage them to talk about what else a snowman might need, such as a scarf and buttons. Children become thoroughly engaged in the activity and eagerly discuss the different materials available and how they might use them. They concentrate well and demonstrate good listening skills as they

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who attend

follow instructions. Children happily recall events in their own lives as they talk to staff about what they did at the weekend. Children learn about the differences between themselves and other people because they enjoy regular visitors to the nursery. For example, recent visitors include a dentist, fire officers, radiographer and a lady from the Maasai Mara, who did a paint workshop with the children. Children's understanding of the world is further supported by regular trips to the duck pond, picnics at local gardens and walks in the community.

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who attend

Children begin to learn about adding and subtracting as they pretend to be sweet shop owners. They happily take orders from other children and staff for strawberry and lemon sweets and count how many they need in total. Staff effectively extend their learning by asking how many they will need if they add two more or if they take one away. Children are developing good independence skills as staff encourage them to put on their own coats and shoes and praise them for waiting patiently to go outside. They are learning about the effects of physical exercise on their bodies as they play with bats and balls, ride bikes, explore the sand pit and play cooperatively on the see-saw. Children are allowed to take risks and persevere as they explore the large climbing frame and experiment with pouring water down the guttering. Children enjoy expressive arts and design activities outside as they draw with chalks on an easel. However, there is very little print in the

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who attend

outdoor environment, such as, names, signs, posters and word banks, for children to learn to recognise familiar letters and develop further the skills they need for reading. In addition, the range of writing resources available to develop children's early writing skills are variable.

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who attend

Staff provide babies with a wide range of activities to stimulate their senses. For example, they enjoy making marks in shaving foam and glitter and eagerly explore the different coloured tinsel in the interest tray. Babies' language development is fostered well because staff are good at adapting the way they interact with their different stages of development. For example, they repeat words back to younger babies and extend language further for older ones by adding words to what they are saying and pronouncing them correctly.

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who attend

Staff work well with parents to help children to settle. 'Bag Books' are completed daily for babies and toddlers, which are shared with parents. These include information about the day's activities and care routines. Parents interviewed during the inspection confirm that they are regularly informed about their children's progress. Also they are encouraged to view their children's learning and development records, particularly at yearly parent's events. However, staff are not fully encouraging parents to play a full and active role in their child's ongoing learning, such as adding comments to their development records or sharing their achievements or special events from home. Consequently, children's learning potential is slightly reduced.

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

The nursery's well-established key person system ensures that children form secure attachments and have a good sense of belonging and well-being. This means that they are happy and confident to explore the good range of activities provided and develop their independence from an early age. Behaviour is consistently good throughout the nursery because staff are good role models. For example, when building with wooden blocks staff demonstrate how to ask another child for some equipment and encourage them to say thank you' when they receive what they asked for. In addition, staff have effective strategies in place to support children to understand the boundaries and routines. For example, a timer is used effectively to signal when it is time to tidy away. In particular, this approach is successful when supporting children, who have special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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

The environment is warm and welcoming with many displays of children's art work. Babies and children enjoy spending time with their friends and staff in the comfortable seating areas to enjoy a story or sing songs and rhymes. Children enjoy nutritious, freshly prepared meals and are beginning to learn about healthy choices through discussions about what they are eating. Babies' individual dietary requirements are discussed regularly with parents and meals times adapted to suit their needs. Meal times provide a good social experience and are thoroughly enjoyed by babies, children and staff as they sit and eat together in small groups. Children are learning about the need for good hygiene practices as they routinely wash hands before touching food and after visiting the toilet. Staff provide good opportunities for children to explore nature when planting and caring for tomatoes, potatoes, strawberries and runner beans in the garden. Regular walks in the

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

local community are used effectively by staff to teach children how to cross roads safely and understand the risks in the environment.

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

Children all enter the nursery happily and leave their parents and carers without support. They are effectively prepared for transitions within the nursery because they know all the staff well and spend time in different rooms before they move into them permanently. Teachers from the schools children will be moving to are invited to visit the nursery and staff complete a detailed transition document containing their achievements. As a result, children are well prepared for their next stage in learning.

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provision

Children are safeguarded well in the nursery and the safeguarding procedures are fully understood and implemented by all staff, who have all received relevant training. Effective recruitment and induction procedures ensure that all adults are suitable to work with children. All staff have appraisals twice a year and managers spend time observing practice in all areas of the nursery. This means that any support is clearly targeted to further improve performance. In order to identify any gaps in the educational programmes, all the children's learning and development records are reviewed regularly. This means that managers can ensure they are displaying an accurate assessment of children's skills, abilities and progress and they can support staff to target particular areas of development.

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provision

The manager carries out a thorough self-evaluation of the nursery and identifies areas for further improvement effectively. During the process, they take into account the views of parents, staff and children through questionnaires and a suggestion box. Staff also contribute in regular staff meetings and older children are consulted about what they like to do. This process ensures that strengths and weaknesses are identified and successfully targeted to improve outcomes for children.

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provision

The nursery supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who speak English as an additional language, particularly well. This is because they have established effective links with a variety of other professionals to ensure that appropriate interventions are secured and children receive the support they need. Overall, the nursery also has good relationships with all parents, in order to ensure that children's needs are well met. Parents are welcome in the nursery at anytime. They are provided with a large amount of information about the nursery via the notice boards and regular newsletters. Parents' comments about the nursery are positive, for example, 'staff are always friendly and there is plenty for the children to do' and 'I can leave my child confident in the knowledge that they are safe and happy'.

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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 EY235677 Local authority Sheffield Inspection number 894396

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 94 Number of children on roll 43 Name of provider Mr P & Mrs M Kissoondyal Date of previous inspection 06/12/2011 Telephone number 0114 2812381

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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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