The Old Fire Station Children's NurseryOfsted inspection, 29 Nov 2012

The Old Fire Station Childrens Nursery 69 Albion Street, Birmingham, West Midlands, B1 3EA

p.1

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 29/11/2012 15/05/2012

p.1

early years provision

This inspection: 4 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 4 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 4

p.1

This provision is inadequate

 There is a risk to children's and staff's safety as there is not an effective method of communication in place between the two buildings used.  Children are not always protected from the risk of cross-infection as some areas of the premises are not always cleaned effectively. Staff do not follow agreed policies and procedures to ensure children's good health and safety or security of the premises.  Staff working with the younger children do not have a robust working knowledge of the Early Years Foundation Stage or the prime and specific areas of learning to enable them to plan activities effectively to meet children's learning and development needs.  There is conflict within the staff teams and as a result staff do not work together to foster continual improvement and a feeling of mutual respect for each other.  Partnerships with parents and other professionals are not fostered to ensure continuity

p.1

This provision is inadequate

of care and learning or to ease transition processes when children move to school.

p.1

It has the following strengths

 Children in the pre-school room enjoy activities which are stimulating, interesting and help them prepare for school.  Children's dietary needs are met through healthy, home-cooked meals and snacks.

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 all playrooms.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector held ongoing meetings with the registered person, the manager, the deputy and staff.

p.2

Inspection activities

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

p.2

Information about the setting

The Old Fire Station Childrens Nursery opened in 1997. It is registered on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. It operates from 10 rooms in a grade II listed building in the Jewellery Quarter, Hockley, Birmingham. It is managed by a private provider. The nursery does not have access to an outside play area. The nursery serves the local and wider commuter area and is accessible to all children.

p.2

Information about the setting

The nursery employs nine members of childcare staff, all of whom hold appropriate early years qualifications. It opens Monday to Friday all year round. Sessions are from 7.30am until 6pm. Children attend for a variety of sessions. There are currently 53 children on roll. The nursery provides funded early education for three- and four-year-olds. It supports children who speak English as an additional language and children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. The nursery receives support from the local authority.

p.3

must:

 ensure premises are secure at all times and that staff have the ability to call for help and assistance in an emergency if they need to do so  promote the good health of children and prevent the spread of infection by ensuring that toilets are checked frequently, washing is dried away from the children, feeding bottles are stored correctly, and with regard to the freezing of children's food in the baby room  develop staff's knowledge of the Early Years Foundation Stage areas of learning, observation, planning and assessment to ensure that younger children access a wide range of activities which will move them forward and enable them to make progress  develop effective partnerships both with parents and other professionals to ensure that children are consistently cared for, parents are involved in their child's learning and children's individual needs are routinely met  foster a culture of mutual support, teamwork and continuous improvement which

p.3

must:

encourages confidential discussions of sensitive issues.

p.3

who attend

Children generally have an enjoyable time in this setting. However, their learning experiences differ as the quality of practice is variable between rooms. Staff working with the younger children are not knowledgeable about the Early Years Foundation Stage. They do not fully understand the prime and specific areas of learning which children need to access to help them to develop. Although, younger children in the toddler room do experience resources to help them learn, they are not used or extended effectively to ensure that good progress is made. Planning is in place but it is not effectively linked to observations or assessments to move children forward to reach the next steps in their learning and development. For example, communication and language is not always extended and some activities are not age appropriate. This results in children become easily bored and disinterested. Children in the pre-school room have a very different

p.3

who attend

experience. They are able to access a range of interesting resources and activities which cover all areas of learning. Staff plan effectively and use observation well to ensure that children's learning objectives are met. Parents are not fully involved in their child's learning. They have not been informed of the changes to the Early Years Foundation Stage and their display board still shows the old areas of learning.

p.4

who attend

Staff in the baby room are mindful when new children start that they need re-assurance and support and offer cuddles and hugs to help children to settle. They are beginning to recognise children's interests and provide some activities to develop these, such as treasure baskets with shiny objects. However, children's learning and development is not fully promoted because staff allow their personal differences to interfere with their working practise. In other respects staff help two-year-olds to stick shiny paper as they decorate snowflakes, carefully explaining how much glue to use. Children in the pre-school make angels using glitter, cotton wool and sequin off-cuts. They draw their own faces on the angels and staff help them to count how many eyes and mouths they have and put them in the right place. They explore ice, know that it feels cold and learn that it melts when you add hot water to it. Children's physical development is supported in all areas.

p.4

who attend

Babies enjoy rocking on a horse or sliding down small slides. Two-year-olds dig in the sand and fill containers to make a 'birthday cake'. They can climb, ride bicycles and kick balls with ease. Children in pre-school thoroughly enjoy playing a game of hide and seek. Staff make dens from material for them to hide behind or underneath and they laugh as they wait for one of their friends to count to 20 before they run to find them.

p.4

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

Children's welfare and well-being are not effectively supported. Although systems to ensure the safety of the premises have recently been updated, there is no method of communication between the baby rooms and the main building. As a result, there is a risk to the safety of both children and staff because the environment is not always kept fully secure to prevent intruders. Children are not always protected from the risk of cross- infection. Some areas of the premises, such as the pre-school toilets, are not always cleaned effectively and at times used toilet paper is left on the floor and toilets are not flushed. Washing is dried in the sleep room next to sleeping babies and staff in the baby room freeze food in an unhygienic ice box instead of returning it to the kitchen. Feeding bottles are stored without tops and staff fail to dispose of these when they become old and discoloured.

p.4

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

A key person system is in place and parents are aware of who their child's key person is. The key person gains information from parents before children start regarding routines and parental preferences. This information is used to help children to settle. Systems to help children to move from the setting to school are not in place. As a result, children are not supported in preparing for the transition to the next stage in their education.

p.4

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

Children enjoy healthy, home-cooked meals, such as savoury rice, sweet potato and lentil curry, and cheese, potato and roasted onion pie. These are prepared on the premises by an experienced and qualified cook. The nursery offers mainly vegetarian food although parents are able to request meat options should they prefer them for their children. Dietary requirements and allergies are recognised and all staff working in the setting, including agency staff, are made aware of them. Older children learn about keeping healthy through books a 'dog' doctor looks after a family who are unhealthy. They know that they have to wash their hands using soap and water to get rid of germs. They look at each other's tonsils and talk about sore throats and learn the importance of not sharing brushes and combs.

p.5

provision

The leaders and managers in the setting do not have an adequate understanding of the safeguarding and welfare and the learning and development requirements of the revised Early Years Foundation Stage. This has resulted in poor monitoring of staff practice across areas of the nursery. For example, ineffective staff practice in some areas of the nursery does not promote children's good health and safety. This is particularly evident in the baby room with regard to sleep arrangements and the storage of food and bottles. In other respects, children's welfare is appropriately safeguarded. Staff have an awareness of child protection procedures and are aware of their roles and responsibilities in referring any concerns to protect the children in their care. The registered provider is currently updating recruitment procedures to ensure that the staff he employs are suitable for the position. Partnership with parents is poor. Parents' views on the setting are not sought and they are

p.5

provision

not fully included in their child's learning and development to promote and further children's learning at home and at the nursery. However, parents are pleased with the setting and comments received are positive. They say that staff are friendly and that children are happy. Partnerships with other professionals and schools that children will move to are not in place to support children and ensure that their individual needs are met.

p.5

provision

Although, the provider is experienced and has run nurseries for several years, the senior management team has only been in place for a few weeks. During this time there has been major contention and issues with some of the existing staff who are unhappy with the changes that have been made. There are notable rifts between some staff members, the registered provider and the managers. As a result, standards in the setting have fallen while the provider, manager and deputy try to resolve the staffing issues. Consequently, not enough attention has been given to ensuring the health and safety requirements are being met. However, they are all motivated and willing to put in the required time needed to turn the setting around again and improve the outcomes for the children and recognise some of the areas to be developed. Appraisals have recently been introduced and are currently being used to identify further areas for improvement and staff training needs.

p.5

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.6

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.6

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.6

Setting details

Unique reference number 228975 Local authority Birmingham Inspection number 893953

p.7

Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 54 Number of children on roll 53 Name of provider Bucklemount Ltd. Date of previous inspection 15/05/2012 Telephone number 0121 603 0003

p.7

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.7

Type of provision

For the purposes of this inspection the following definitions apply:

p.7

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.7

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.7

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.7

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.7

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