Cottage Day

Cottage Day St. Hildas Church, Courtrai Road, LONDON, SE23 1PL

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 14/01/2013 Not Applicable

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early years provision

This inspection: 3 Previous inspection: Not Applicable 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

 Children benefit from daily opportunities to explore outdoor play. The garden area allows children to develop their physical skills and explore different weather elements to help them learn about the environment.  Staff are caring and engage with children well. This supports children's personal, social and emotional development.  Staff are aware of their weaknesses and have plans in place to address them.

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It is not yet good because

 The opportunities for very young children to develop their physical skills are hampered because of the way toys and furniture are organised.  Some experiences and activities are not stimulating and do not entice children to explore independently. Staff do not take full account of children's interests and learning styles when planning activities.  Systems to share children's progress in their learning and development and to discuss their next steps are not in place for all parents.

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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 spent time observing staff engagement with children and looked at planning and assessment methods.  The inspector spoke with staff about the setting policies and procedures.  The inspector looked at the required documentation and the settings action plan.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector reviewed the available parent's questionnaires to seek their views about the setting.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spent time in all areas of the setting and with the different age groups of children.

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Information about the setting

The Cottage Day Nursery has been operating since 1996. It registered under its current management in 2012. The nursery is situated in a residential area in Forest Hill, within the London Borough of Lewisham. It operates from a hall and room in church premises. Children have access to an enclosed outdoor play area. The nursery is open each weekday from 7.30am to 6pm for 51 weeks of the year. The nursery is closed for one week at Christmas, and public holidays. The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. There are currently 33 children on role and three- and four-year-olds receive funding for nursery education. There are 10 members of staff, of whom seven hold appropriate early years qualifications; three members of staff are working towards a qualification. The nursery supports children who have special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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must:

 ensure the key person keeps parents up-to-date with their child's progress and development and supports parents in promoting their child's development at home  use observations to understand children's interest and learning styles and use these to shape learning experiences for each child.

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

 improve the monitoring of the impact of staff training and development to ensure they offer a quality learning experience for children that continually improves

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

 support children further in strengthening and deepening their curiosity. For example, provide interesting items that enable children to explore independently and allow them to develop their ideas and thoughts

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

 review the organisation of furniture and play resources in the baby room to allow enough space for babies to move, roll, stretch and explore.

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who attend

Staff suitably implement the learning and development programme for children. They provide a suitable range of activities for children to explore. Therefore, children experience a balanced range of learning experiences that help them to make adequate progress. Staff engage with children well during play, helping them to explore new ideas or recall past experiences. For example, children enjoy role-play activities where they play alongside the adult in the home area. Children pretend to make milkshakes and remember the ingredients they used in the past. They pop pretend food into the blender and make the buzzing noise to demonstrate their awareness of real life experiences. Children also play in the 'shop'. They share out money and pretend to buy different things. They ask 'how much is this?' Some children respond, informing them 'it is 2p' demonstrating their awareness of numbers. However, some activities do not encourage children to explore and

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who attend

develop their own play ideas. Therefore, children rely heavily on the engagement of adults to help them play. This limits the opportunities for children to develop their own ideas.

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who attend

Staff observe what children can do and link this to child development milestones. They identify suitable next steps to support children in making progress. However, staff do not take enough account of children's interests and different styles of learning. As a result, children sometimes lack motivation to learn as some activities do not interest them and do not support them in exploring their interests further.

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who attend

Children are acquiring suitable skills to help them to be ready for school. They are developing independence in their self-help skills. For example, they manage their personal hygiene by being able to go to the toilet independently. Children develop their literacy skills in writing. They enjoy drawing pictures and assign meanings to their drawings. Children are beginning to write their names, forming recognisable letters. Routines throughout the day are established which helps children learn about time and sequence. Staff support children well in managing change in routines by given them prior warnings. This gives children time to finish what they are doing and minimises any frustration. Most children are articulate, demonstrating their good language and communication skills. Children talk with each other over lunch about their experiences. They are excited about the snow and talk about throwing snowballs and making a snowman.

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who attend

Younger children in the group enjoy music and have opportunities to develop this aspect of their creativity. They play instruments, exploring different sounds. Very young children enjoy joining in with actions and moving to the songs that the staff sing, learning a sense of rhythm and rhyme. Children also enjoy physical play both inside and out. They explore different equipment such as slides, wheeled toys, and large soft bricks. Children climb over, up or along equipment developing their balance and coordination.

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

Children are secure and settled and have developed warm relationships with staff. All children have a key person to help them settle and children relate well to all staff. Staff foster children's emotional development well. Those who find separation from parents difficult soon settle quickly with support and kindness of staff. Staff cuddle and talk with children to help them feel secure. Very young children sit with an adult to explore from a secure base. With very young children, staff find out about routines at home. Staff follow the routines in the setting which means care is consistent with home life. This helps children to feel secure. Children are well rested as staff follow their sleep patterns. Children sleep in a cot or on a mattress on the floor. Adults are close by to supervise their safety. Children are safe and staff use clear explanations to help develop children's understanding of how to keep themselves safe. For example, when children are using the

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

sand they are reminded to keep it low. This is so the sand does not hurt someone else should it get into their eyes. Children are well behaved in the setting and are beginning to develop respectful attitudes towards others. Staff remind children to say 'please' and 'thank you'. In addition, staff challenge and promote diversity by talking with children to develop their understanding of other people. Children gain awareness of other cultures by, for example, being given opportunities to taste different foods and meals. Staff are aware of children's special educational needs and/or disabilities and have adequate systems in place to support these children.

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

Children benefit from daily opportunities to explore the outdoor environment and develop a positive attitude towards exercise and the natural environment. They learn to dress appropriately, as they put on their coats and dress up warmly to go out into the garden. Children explore the weather elements and say the sleet feels like rain as they tilt their faces up to the falling snow. They enjoy jumping in puddles and find bits of ice. Staff ask children what it will turn into when it has melted. Children correctly inform her it will change into water, demonstrating their scientific awareness. They play on wheeled toys and there are tyres and climbing frames to help them develop their physical skills. However, indoors the organisation of furniture and toys in the baby room impacts on the space they have to do this. Toys are set out on the floor so children are unable to explore at different heights. The furniture around the edge of the room is also bulky and children

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

cannot always access toys as things are in the way. This means it is not easy for them to make choices about their play.

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

Staff promote children's health satisfactorily. The setting is suitably clean and children develop good hygiene habits as they wash their hands before eating and after using the toilet. Staff clean tables before children eat lunch. This helps to minimise the spread of infection. Children enjoy a nice range of healthy meals that are freshly prepared. Children have a choice of tomato or plain pasta and vegetables. Children show good levels of independence as they serve themselves helping them to make healthy choices. Children also enjoy fresh pineapple for dessert and lunch times are social occasions. Staff talk about having vegetables to help them grow strong. As a result, children are learning about the benefits of healthy eating.

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provision

All staff effectively promote the safety and welfare of children. They have sound knowledge of the safeguarding and welfare requirements. Staff's suitability for working with children is robustly checked. They have had the required Criminal Records Bureau check and they meet qualification requirements. Staff know how to protect children from unfamiliar adults, for example, visitors are not left alone with children. Staff demonstrate secure knowledge of child protection procedures. They are aware of the possible signs and symptoms of harm and follow the current procedures. The written safeguarding policy is an appropriate reference tool for staff to refer to. This helps to protect vulnerable children. The setting is safe and secure. Improvements are being made to the building, for example covering the radiators to minimise the risk of accidents. Staff update first aid training routinely to ensure they can deal appropriately with any accidents the children may have.

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provision

Staff are keen to improve the learning and development opportunities for children. They have recently attended training to update their knowledge about the revised Early Years Foundation Stage framework. Staff devise and review action plans to address identified weaknesses, setting goals and time frames to show how and when strategies will be implemented. For example, they plan to make improvements to the building and some aspects of working with parents. Staff have the opportunity to develop professionally through appraisals, training and team meetings. This helps them to set personal goals and share ideas with each other to develop their knowledge and skills. However, the impact of training and other professional development on their performance is not carefully monitored to ensure that it improves outcomes for children.

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provision

Staff obtain information about each child from their parents to ensure they receive care that meets their individual needs. Staff are beginning to work in partnership with other professionals to ensure continuity in children's care. They seek information from others where children need additional support in their learning and development. Staff talk with parents on a daily basis to inform them of their child's wellbeing. Written daily contact sheets also provide sufficient information about children's general day. Staff display information in the foyer area and newsletters inform parents about events in the setting. Questionnaires invite the views of parents and carers. Feedback provides some mixed responses, but in the main, parents feel their child is happy and enjoy their time at nursery. Parents have adequate information about how the setting operates through the setting's website, where policies and procedures are available. However, some parents are

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provision

not fully informed of their child's progress or of how to support or share learning from home as they do not have the opportunity to meet with staff.

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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 EY446805 Local authority Lewisham Inspection number 804135 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 8 Total number of places 40 Number of children on roll 33 Name of provider Cottage Day Ltd Date of previous inspection Not applicable Telephone number 02082917117 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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