Inspirations Nurseries and Forest School

Dolphins Day Nursery West End Lane, Horsforth, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS18 5JP

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 22/02/2013 05/03/2009

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early years provision

This inspection: 2 Previous inspection: 3 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 nursery is well organised and staff undertake thorough observations, which are reflected in the planning, so that the learning needs of every child is met and they make good progress.  Children are settled, happy and motivated in their play. They show good levels of engagement, independence and curiosity and behave well; considering the needs of others when playing together.  The staff understand how children learn and provide an extremely wide range of accessible resources to meet their interests and keep them motivated.  High regard is given to supporting children's language and literacy skills. They are becoming good communicators. Staff take effective action to extend and develop children's understanding of the world.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Staff have not yet developed robust ways for encouraging all parents to be fully involved in supporting their children's learning at home.  There is scope to further develop close working relationships with all the local schools to ensure that the transition process is smooth for all children.

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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 toured the nursery and the outside area.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at the policies and procedures, which govern the safe and efficient management of the nursery, including the changes made in line with the revised Early Years Foundation Stage.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector observed the children playing and their interaction with staff and other children.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at the planning and development files, including observations and photographs.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took account of the views of parents and children through discussion and from questionnaires, which they completed as part of the nursery's self- evaluation.

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Information about the setting

Dolphins Day Nursery was registered in 2004 and is on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. It is situated in purpose built premises, on the site of West End Primary School, in the Horsforth area of Leeds and is managed by the owner. The nursery serves the local area and is accessible to all children. It operates from three rooms in a single storey building and there is a fully enclosed area available for outdoor play.

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Information about the setting

The nursery employs 18 members of childcare staff. Of these, all hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 2 or above, including one with Early Years Professional Status and one with Qualified Teacher Status.

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Information about the setting

The nursery opens Monday to Friday, all year round. Sessions are from 7.30am until 6pm. Children attend for a variety of sessions. There are currently 85 children attending, who are in the early years age group. The nursery provides funded early education for two-, three- and four-year-old children. It supports a number of children, who speak English as an additional language and those with special needs and/or disabilities.

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

 develop further opportunities for encouraging parents to be involved in their children's learning and education, both at home and in the nursery, so that all parents are able to participate

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

 develop closer and more effective contacts with local schools to enhance and ease all children's transition into full-time education.

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who attend

Children's progress in their learning is good because the staff have a thorough understanding of how to engage their interests and support their development. They have a very good knowledge of children's starting points because they carry out initial assessment of children and combine these with the information gained from parents. This ensures that they have the information needed to build on what children already know and can do. The quality of teaching is strong and children's progress across all the areas of learning is good, particularly in their physical, personal, social and emotional development and communication and language. Children are involved in and concentrate well on their chosen activities. For example, they play with different toys outside, promoting their balance and physical strength and developing their understanding of the natural world. Staff take effective action to extend and develop children's knowledge. For

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who attend

example, they enable children to observe the development of butterflies, chicks and ducklings from eggs and to grow vegetables and flowers. This enhances children's understanding of healthy eating, while helping them to learn to show concern and care for living things.

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who attend

A love of books and language is promoted very effectively. There are excellent opportunities for children to access a wide range of books, both for stories and information. Children use the comfortable book corners independently and also enjoy sitting with staff to listen to them reading. They are confident in taking turns to contribute to stories and rhymes, predicting or discussing what is happening. They are also proud to develop their vocabulary and enjoy telling visitors about activities, which they have enjoyed in the past. All children, including those who have yet to develop their speech, are able to communicate well, such as indicating when they are hungry or want particular resources. This is due to the effective use of sign language throughout the nursery, which ensures that even babies are able to let staff know what they want or need. In addition, staff work closely with outside agencies, including speech therapists, to ensure children

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who attend

with special needs and/or disabilities gain the support, which they need to communicate. The nursery has introduced new methods for observing, monitoring and planning, so that children's learning is effectively supported. Observations of children's activities are instantly recorded in writing and through photographs and these are matched to the seven areas of learning. This information is then used to inform the weekly planning of activities to ensure that these are tailored to meet individual children's learning needs. Staff help all children to make good progress through a good balance of adult-led and child-initiated activities. All children have opportunities to independently explore simple technology, such as, a computer, camera and programmable toys and to develop mathematical concepts.

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who attend

Information about children's development and welfare is regularly exchanged with parents through daily conversations and written records. This ensures that children's interests can be fostered and information shared. Some steps have been taken to encourage parents to support their children's learning at home and to make observations of their achievements, which can be shared with staff. However, these have not been fully effective in ensuring that all children are able to benefit fully from this. Parents are also invited to parents' sessions at the nursery. These are used by staff to help parents gain an understanding of their child's early education. For example, parents have been given information about the Early Years Foundation Stage, attended literacy evenings and shown examples of the type of play experiences their children enjoy.

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who attend

The nursery is very well planned to enable children to explore and play freely. They can help themselves to an excellent range of resources, which are planned to meet the learning needs of all the children attending. All children have the opportunity to experience outside play and to investigate different materials through messy activities. Furniture is of the correct size and ensures that babies can sit safely at mealtimes, while older children have appropriate cutlery and table-ware to enable them to feed themselves. Mealtimes are pleasant social occasions when the children sit talking to their friends and eating healthy, well-prepared food. They are encouraged to develop independence by helping to set the tables, pouring their drinks and serving themselves. Children are also becoming independent in their personal care, putting on their coats and shoes. They have access to the outside area whatever the weather, as waterproof suits are available to keep

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who attend

Children are prepared well in developing the skills, which they will need when moving onto school. For example, they become independent in their personal care, confident in new situations and develop the knowledge they need to support their future learning. The nursery has excellent relationships with some of the local schools and shares information with them, so that school staff have a reliable assessment of the children's abilities and interests. However, this strength of relationship has not been developed with all local schools. Therefore, not all children attending the nursery benefit from visits between the nursery and school to help ease transition times.

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

Staff deploy themselves extremely well to ensure that all children benefit from secure attachments and the key person process enables staff to develop a close relationship with both the child and his or her parents. All the children, who attend regularly are comfortable with the staff and ask them for help if they are worried or have concerns. The settling-in process is well established and led by parents' wishes and children's needs, with parental visits encouraged. A settling-in form is completed with information gained from both staff and parents. This is used to identify children's developmental starting points. All the children show confidence within the nursery and are learning to be caring towards the younger children, who they join together with at the start or end of each day.

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

Babies settle well because staff have an excellent understanding of their individual needs, likes and routines. They ensure babies have continuity of care as at least two staff have close relationships with each child. Babies' early investigative and curiosity skills are promoted effectively and they have opportunities to investigate natural resources. For example, they show great interest in messy activities, such as paint and gloop, and also enjoy singing and the sounds of the musical instruments.

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

Staff understand the importance of good hygiene practices and ensure that these are followed. Babies are changed regularly and staff ensure children's noses are wiped as needed and that their hands are washed before food. Babies go to sleep happily, with staff close-by to help them to settle. They also enjoy going into the outside area where they are able to use large equipment to develop their physical skills in the fresh air.

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

The toddlers and pre-school children have a very good awareness of healthy practices as they wipes their noses and wash their hands after personal care and before food, usually without being reminded. Children enjoy healthy nutritious meals provided by the nursery and develop independence as they serve themselves food and pour their own drinks. Fruit is available for snack, with milk or water. Children also enjoy the occasional treat during birthday celebrations or when carrying out baking activities. All children are developing a positive attitude and understanding of healthy eating. This is also promoted through the planting, harvesting and cooking of vegetables, which they have grown in the small garden area and planters.

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

Children within the nursery learn to behave well and understand that boundaries are there for their safety and to protect them. They share and take turns and often support each other during activities, in order to solve problems. For example, they sit together at the computer, discussing how their games are progressing and what to do if they wish to change the discs. Staff provide encouragement and model good manners. Also, the children are polite to both staff and each other.

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

Transition within the nursery from the baby room through to the other playrooms is managed very well, with staff joining the children on their visits to give them confidence and support. Parents are also invited to attend these introductory visits if they wish to do so. The room moves run smoothly because babies are familiar with the new rooms and the children and so they settle well.

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provision

Staff have a secure knowledge and understanding of safeguarding issues and know the procedure to follow if they have concerns. Parents are made aware of the role and responsibility of the staff to protect all the children in their care. For example, staff check the identity of all visitors and ensure that only authorised persons have access to the nursery. Comprehensive risk assessments are in place and regularly reviewed. These identify hazards and the appropriate steps to take to minimise risk and keep children safe and secure. Safety considerations include the location of the nursery within the grounds of the school and its proximity to the nearby woodland. This area is also used by children to develop their physical skills and understanding of the world and strict supervision ensures that children enjoy this facility safely, even though it is open the public. The whole environment is welcoming, safe and stimulating and children enjoy their learning and grow

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provision

All the nursery staff work hard to provide high quality care and learning opportunities. They are well qualified or working towards qualifications, in order to further enhance the service, which they provide. Robust systems are in place for the employment and induction of new staff. Also, ongoing appraisals and supervision ensure that they continue to carry-out their role well.

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provision

Self-evaluation is used effectively to identify areas for improvement, which can be included in the action plan, while also recognising the strengths of the setting. Parents are consulted on a regular basis to ensure that their views are included and they know their views are valued. As a result of the evaluation, staff have undertaken training to implement the new Early Years Foundation Stage and have introduced a more effective method of recording progress and development. Children's progress is tracked effectively to ensure that they are making good progress in line with their peer group and support is provided to help narrow the gap if necessary. Staff have also developed a clear method for carrying out the progress check for children aged two years. This has been used to discuss children's progress with parents, before being passed to the child's health visitor. Plans for the future include the development of a garden, with vegetables and fruit trees,

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provision

to further develop children's knowledge of the natural world and the need for a healthy diet. Staff are also keen to develop ideas from Forest School practice to make more use of the nearby woodland.

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provision

Staff work closely with other professionals to support children when the needs arises. Good relationships with the local children's centre have helped the nursery to develop very good links with other agencies, while attendance at the local provider meetings have resulted in more effective exchanges of information among carers. Staff have experience of caring for children with special needs and/or disabilities and take great delight in their achievements and progress.

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provision

Parents' views are sought through discussion, questionnaires and daily diaries and those spoken to during the inspection expressed great satisfaction with the care their children receive. They enjoy looking at their child's development folders and seeing their art work and photographs displayed on the walls.

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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 EY296509 Local authority Leeds Inspection number 905987

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 5 Total number of places 55 Number of children on roll 85 Name of provider Dolphins Day Nursery Date of previous inspection 05/03/2009 Telephone number 0113 2585800

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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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