Little Gems Day Nursery

Little Gems Day Nursery 64-68 Hazleton Way, Cowplain, Waterlooville, Hampshire, PO8 9BT

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 25/02/2013 Not Applicable

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early years provision

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

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This provision is good

 The owner of the provision uses her expertise to provide staff with inspiration and guidance, which enables them to reflect on most aspects of the provision, and make continuous improvement.  Staff establish good communication with parents before children start, which enables them to meet their individual needs.  Children are provided with a positive and welcoming environment, because staff know them well and have a caring and positive approach.  Children in the pre-school room are motivated and enthusiastic learners, due to the receptive and knowledgeable approach of staff.  Staff encourage open-ended thinking by respecting children's efforts and ideas, and talk aloud to help them think and control what they do.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Children in the baby room are not always provided with new and unusual activities and experiences and do not always have time and space to take part in all activities.  Staff do not regularly share the next steps for children's learning and development with parents, to strengthen continuity in children's care and education.

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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 compulsory part 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 two of the play rooms and the outside learning environment, and sampled at children's assessment records and planning documentation.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector completed a joint observation with the manager of the provision in the baby room.  The inspector held meetings with the manager and owner of the provision.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector checked evidence of suitability and qualifications of practitioners working with children, the provider's self-evaluation form and improvement plan.  The inspector took account of the views of parents and carers spoken to on the day.

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Information about the setting

Little Gems Day Nursery registered in 2012. It is a privately owned provision that is one of two nurseries registered under the same organisation. It operates from premises in Cowplain, near Waterlooville, Hampshire. The premises include four playrooms, toilets, kitchen, office/parent room and a separate sleep room. There is an area available for outside play. The provision is in receipt of funding for the provision of free early education to children aged three and four years. The provision is registered on the Early Years Register and on the compulsory part of the Childcare Register. It is open each weekday from 7.30am to 6pm throughout the year, except for bank holidays and over the Christmas period. There are 62 children on roll in the early years age range. The provision employs 12 staff, of whom 11 hold appropriate qualifications.

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

 consider ways to strengthen assessment and planning systems in the baby room to extend children's learning, for example, by providing new and unusual activities and experiences that promote exploration and link to their individual interests and developmental needs; and by keeping significant activities accessible to provide all children with time and space to take part

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

 share the next steps for children's learning and development with parents on a more regular basis to strengthen continuity in children's care and development.

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who attend

Children make good progress in relation to their developmental starting points. Staff in most group rooms provide interesting resources and activities that capture children's enthusiasm for learning. For example, children help to build obstacle courses and take part in parachute games, cooking activities and outings to local woodland areas and parks. Staff respect children's efforts and ideas. They know children well and actively respond to their individual needs. Most staff note children's individual interests, observe their achievements and use guidance to identify children's next steps for learning and how these can be achieved. Staff establish positive relationships with parents and are very receptive to the information they share about their children's development at home. Staff provide children with a good foundation for their future and starting school, because they use their knowledge of children's individual abilities to help children reach their full

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who attend

potential. Staff talk with parents at the beginning and end of each day. However, staff do not currently share assessment records with parents, although there are plans to do this regularly during termly meetings. This restricts the ongoing information sharing with parents to promote continuity in children's care and learning. Babies are beginning to imitate sounds and to communicate through listening, touching, making noises and smiling. They make movements with their arms and legs, which gradually become more controlled. For example, they use their feet to bounce up and down in a baby bouncer. Children develop good control of their movements and learn to negotiate space, as they crawl through tunnels made from large cardboard boxes. Staff take these constructions into the garden, which provide good opportunities for children to practise their physical skills. Children develop good balancing skills as they use large

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who attend

construction resources, such as real bricks, crates, lengths of piping and large tractor tyres in a designated area of the garden. Their growing sense of balance can be seen as children independently walk along and jump off planks of wood and land with both feet together. Children in the pre-school group are confident communicators. They freely exchange ideas during imaginative play, for example, as they pretend to be 'a scary lion'. During 'welcome time' they listen to others talking about a visit to a sea life centre and use a range of vocabulary to describe their own related experiences.

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who attend

Children draw and make marks, as they use a wipe board attached to a wall in the outside play area. They learn to recognise their names and some children can write their name with most letters correctly formed. Children enjoy listening to stories and looking at books on their own in the book corner. Older children are particularly interested in the identification of sounds and letters of the alphabet. They select gel letters from inside a 'witch's cauldron' and talk with staff about the sounds at the beginning, middle and end of words, which supports their developing literacy skills.

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who attend

Children show great enthusiasm as they take part in 'number hunts' in the garden. This helps them learn to identify and match numbers. Staff provide good opportunities for children to learn about shape. For example, as they hide star shapes around a darkened room for children to find using torches. Children learn about the features of living things, as they stroke the nursery pet rabbits. Children in the pre-school room make good use of the computer and can independently operate simple programmes. They operate remote controlled toys and use a CD player to listen to music and dance in the home corner. Children explore and use a good range of media and materials. For example, they discover what happens when they mix different coloured paint and develop their senses as they play with shaving foam, sand, water, cornflour and modelling dough.

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

Children enjoy a positive and welcoming environment, because staff know them well and have a caring and positive approach. The provision has good procedures to help new children settle, that include optional home visits. Staff find out as much as they can from parents about young babies, so that the routines they follow are familiar and comforting. Consequently, staff effectively meet the babies' individual care needs. Staff show their pleasure in being with babies and do their best to reassure them, by giving them lots of cuddles and singing to them. This generally comforts and soothes babies and shows the positive connection they have with staff, as they smile and look at them during their play. However, babies are sometimes unsettled, because staff do not always make effective use of activity planning to vary the range of activities and resources to stimulate their play and learning. Children in the pre-school group are inspired to learn and are motivated within

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

their play. This is because staff show interest in what they say and do and provide lots of support and guidance to help them achieve their aims. Children are well behaved, cooperative and form good friendships. They play with, and alongside, others and are happy to share the resources, for example, when using the modelling dough.

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

Staff fully promote children's good health. The provision provides guidance and displays for parents about healthy eating, to help ensure children eat nutritious packed lunches. The provision offers healthy home cooked meals and snacks that include a wide variety of fresh fruit and vegetables. Children are involved in the preparation of food, which helps them to learn about healthy eating, for example, as they make soup. Staff protect children from the risk of cross infection through the implementation of a 'no shoes policy', throughout the whole provision. Children in most group rooms benefit from a well resourced environment that promotes their learning, both indoors and outside. There are plans in place to make use of new garden planters for children to grow their own vegetables and to obtain a tree house to provide them with more physical challenge. However, staff in the baby room do not always leave activities out during routine events,

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

such as snack time. This means that some children, who sleep during the morning or attend part-time, do not always have the chance to take part. Children learn develop a good awareness of difference as they see and use resources that reflect positive images.

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provision

There are very robust recruitment procedures in place to make sure that staff are suitable to work with children. The manager works closely with staff to establish safe practices and a culture of safety that staff understand and adhere to. All staff attend safeguarding training, which means they know what action to take if they are concerned about a child's welfare. Staff complete daily checks of the premises and garden, as well as comprehensive risk assessments for all outings to appropriately maintain children's security and safety. They have a good knowledge of the hazards within the premises and take appropriate action to reduce them. For example, they closely supervise children at all times, keep radiator covers well fitted and help children learn to use the garden steps and handrail safely.

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provision

The owner of the provision uses her expertise to provide staff with inspiration and guidance. This enables them to reflect on most aspects of the provision, and make continuous improvement. Each group room has a reward chart, which staff use to record parents' positive comments about their children's learning. There are clear plans for the future in place that will further enhance the provision and outcomes for children, particularly in relation to the outside play area. The manager has a pro-active approach to working with staff to identify resources they need. For example, the staff have obtained more low level furniture for the baby room to enable children to move around and access toys independently.

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provision

Partnership with parents is good. The provision makes good use of questionnaires to seek parents' views and make changes. For example, they have acted on parents' requests to introduce a daily communication book for their children, with details of activities and celebrations. In addition, they send a monthly newsletter to parents, which invite parents to share suggestions for improvement. Parents' comments show they are happy with the provision. For example, they say 'staff are so welcoming and friendly, which puts my child at ease as soon as we walk through the door'; and ' when we do the handover at the end of the day it is very thorough, which shows they know my child very well and what she has achieved'.

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The Childcare Register

The requirements for the compulsory 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 EY444262 Local authority Hampshire Inspection number 882532 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 8 Total number of places 50 Number of children on roll 62 Name of provider Little Gems Day Nursery Date of previous inspection Not applicable

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Telephone number

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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