Northover House Day Nursery

Northover House Day Nursery and Pre-School 3 Northover House, Northover, Ilchester, Yeovil, Somerset, BA22 8NG

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 22/11/2012 02/06/2009

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early years provision

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

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This provision is satisfactory

 The owner/managers monitoring of the learning and development requirements is given priority. She has Early Years Professional Status and a clear understanding of teaching and learning.  Emphasis is given to language skills using 'Every Child a Talker' and 'Letters and Sounds' programmes to give staff a focus of ideas of how to promote children's communication and language development.  Pre-school children, toddlers and babies benefit from all coming together for communal mealtimes, where they can socialise and enjoy healthy, nutritious snacks and meals.

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It is not yet good because

 Risk assessments are not sufficiently carried out or monitored in order to identify and address all potential hazards to children. Children's individual needs are not always consistently met in regards to their access to toys, activities and their positioning of highchairs for babies to be fully included in social mealtimes.  Information sharing with parents is not sufficiently maintained in order to keep up with changes after admission, in relation to which other settings children attend, so that links can be formed and information sharing carried out to further meet children's individual needs.  Children's individual needs are not always consistently met in regards to their access to toys, activities and their positioning of highchairs for babies to be fully included in social mealtimes.

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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

 The inspector talked to the owners/manager and looked at documentation relating to learning and development, safeguarding and welfare.  The inspector carried out a tour of the building and outside play area.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector observed children and staff in the baby room, toddler room and pre- school room.  The inspector observed snack time, lunch time and spoke to parents.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector carried out a joint observation with the owner/manager in the toddler room.

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Information about the setting

Northover House Day Nursery and Pre-school registered in 2005. It operates from the ground floor of a large house in the town of Ilchester, Somerset. The deputy manager lives on the first floor of the house. The setting is registered on the early years register to provide care for 40 children within the early years age range. They currently have 35 children on roll. The setting receives funding for the provision of free early year education to children aged two, three and four years of age. The setting is open from 8.00am to 6.00pm Monday to Friday all year round. The owner/manager has an early years degree and holds Early Years Professional Status. Her deputy has an early years degree. Five staff hold level 3 qualifications, one has a level 2 and working towards a level 3. Two members of staff are unqualified.

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must:

 ensure risk assessments are a) carried out regularly to identify any risks to children's safety and b) monitored by management to improve when and by whom aspects of the building will be checked, and how the risk will be removed or minimised

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

 improve information sharing systems to be proactive at finding out if children attend other settings, so that links can be established to ensure that individual needs are identified and met

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

 develop the system for self-evaluation, to include careful monitoring of all aspects of the setting and identify areas for improvement as well as strengths

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

 improve children's access to resources in all rooms and involve them in keeping the setting tidy by taking responsibility for their belongings and toys; make sure babies are positioned in their highchairs at mealtimes where they are fully included in the social occasion.

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who attend

Children's individual learning and development needs are met most of the time due to an appropriate range of activities planned by staff. The grouping of children according to age and stage is effective at meeting their general needs, for example, children progress through the baby room, toddler room and preschool in preparation for their next stage of learning and school.

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who attend

Some staff are skilled at understanding and promoting children's learning. They provide positive role models for less experienced staff. However, without their guidance and support, some activities are not well planned or carried out and very young children are left for long periods of time without being engaged in an activity and told to wait for their turn when they were first to be ready. There are insufficient paint palettes, brushes and paper for the number of children involved in a painting activity and it is poorly prepared. For example, the paint rollers do not fit in the shaped paint palettes and the paper is too small to see the effects of the rollers. This is identified by the owner/manager and guidance is given to staff to improve the activity.

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who attend

Experienced staff promote children's language skills and communication well using 'Every child a talker' and 'letters and sounds' programmes to enhance their planned activities and focus their teaching. Other staff are more directional in their approach and give children limited opportunities to think for themselves or make choices. Positioning of babies in their highchairs at mealtimes does not always meet their individual needs, for example, staff have their backs to them which means they are not involved in the social experience of mealtimes and there are missed language opportunities. Other babies have their individual needs understood appropriately by staff, who plan specific activities to help develop specific skills identified as needing more practice, such as 'tummy time' to encourage babies to stretch and reach for toys to help their physical development.

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who attend

Staff carry out appropriate observations of children's learning and link them to the seven areas of learning in the Development Matters guidance, which shows their steady progress towards the early learning goals. Staff have begun to carry out two-year-old progress checks to assess children's learning and development and share these with parents. Staff encourage parents to view their child's learning and development files at any time and provide information about play and the Early Years Foundation Stage through regular parent sessions.

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

Children usually benefit from a consistent key person and back-up key person but due to recent staffing changes, this is not working as effectively at the moment. However, staff covering the baby room vacancies are sensitive to babies needs and the fact that the owner/manager knows all the children so well means children are still happy and having most of their needs met effectively. For example, crawling babies are given time to crawl into the dining room for their snack, rather than be carried, which meets their needs well. Children have daily opportunities to be physically active and when the weather is severe to prevent outside play, children enjoy a large, exciting indoor soft playroom to be active. Although there are many toys stored around the building, some areas are sparsely resourced. For example, the home corner in the pre-school room has limited items to bring the play alive and tables are bare with many toys fallen on the floor and not picked

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

up. Toddlers have easy access to books, including those with paper pages, which is positive for them to learn about care of belongings rather than only board books. Babies enjoy exploring natural wooden shapes, such as rings, balls, cones and cups. They also enjoy exploring cornflour and water mixture. Children's experiences are dependent on which room they are based in and the support of the owner/manager at different times of the day, as standards improve with her input of ideas and support.

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

Children are safe in the setting due to the adult-to-child ratios and supervision within each room. However, there are some potential risks, which have not been identified by the staff. Children learn how to keep themselves safe through boundaries and rules, discussions about safety and being involved in regular fire drills. Children learn about healthy eating through homemade, nutritious meals, which introduce new vegetables such as courgettes in their ratatouille. Children have small portions, regularly throughout the day so as not to overwhelm them and keep their energy levels up. They have the option of second helpings and have easy access to drinking water. Children are encouraged to be independent in using the bathroom and other self-care skills. They are praised and encouraged which builds their self esteem and confidence. Children are well behaved and wait patiently for their turns, they express themselves well when engaged in stories and

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

do not want to miss the end to be taken to wash their hands ready for lunch, which staff respect. Children explore feelings and make angry and sad faces linking with storylines of books they listen to. These skills prepares children appropriately for the next stage in their learning.

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provision

The owner/manager has appropriate systems in place for safeguarding children. For example, visitors identities are rigorously checked, staff inform visitors and parents when nappies are being changed in order to keep un-vetted adults away the bathroom area and promote children's dignity. Policies and procedures are regularly updated and reflect current requirements, such as the safeguarding and whistle blowing policy including the use of mobile phones and cameras in the setting.

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provision

The risk assessments carried out have lapsed through ineffective monitoring of procedures and practices. For example, aerosols, food colouring, washing up liquid and plastic carrier bags are stored in low cupboards accessible to children. Management believed these items to be stored out of reach of the children and that bags always tied up but they are not. Likewise, a discarded plastic carrier is on the floor in one of the entrance lobbies. This is an area rarely monitored by management and the standards have slipped with out-of-date notices to parents, unkempt wall displays, discarded socks, belongings and litter. Due to the limited impact on children's safety as they are always supervised by parents in the lobby and by high ratios of staff in the playrooms the outcome of the inspection judgement has not been brought down further.

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provision

Management oversee the learning and development requirements well, with support and ideas to help staff develop their skills through observation and monitoring of planning and assessments. However, the weaknesses in the welfare requirements have not been identified by management, which means their self-evaluation is not a true reflection of inspection findings. There is however, a commitment to ongoing training. Appraisals and supervision have not always been effective in the past at addressing staffing issues but new measures are in place to improve this in the future.

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provision

Partnership with parents is generally positive, with daily interaction, daily diaries and regular newsletters. However, staff are unaware of which children attend other settings as this information is not maintained, therefore links with other settings children attend can not be formed in order to further meet children's individual needs, unless as in the past, the other setting have made contact with them.

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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 EY307860 Local authority Somerset Inspection number 892591

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 5 Total number of places 40 Number of children on roll 35 Name of provider Northover House Day Nursery Date of previous inspection 02/06/2009 Telephone number 01935 840244

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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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