Arc Nursery

Arc Nursery 39 Crosby Row, Southwark, London, SE1 3YD

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 01/03/2013 26/10/2009

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early years provision

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

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This provision is good

 There are rich, varied and imaginative experiences for children delivered by staff who have high expectations of themselves and the children, good knowledge of the areas of learning and understanding of how children learn.  Children settle quickly because the settling-in programme is specifically tailored to children's individual needs working very closely with parents.  There are good quality professional supervision and support for all staff that is based on regular observations of staff's practice. This motivates staff to seek further training to improve their knowledge, skills and professional development, which improves outcomes for children.  The excellent links with other agencies and professionals mean that children with special educational needs receive strong support to help them to make progress.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Noise levels in the preschool room at times impact on children's ability to share discussion during quieter activities.  The present checks for children age two years is not fully formalised into the nursery assessment programme.

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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

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Information about this inspection

 scheduled more frequently where Ofsted identifies a need to do so, for example where provision was previously judged 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 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  scheduled 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 observed children in the two main playrooms and the outdoor play areas.  The inspector spoke to the manager and members of staff during the day.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke to children during the day and discussed children's progress with a number of parents.  The inspector reviewed documentation and discussed children's learning with staff.

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Information about the setting

Arc Nursery was originally registered in July 2002. It was re-registered in 2009 when management of the provision was transferred to a parent-led charitable trust. The setting operates from purpose built premises in the SE1 area of Southwark. It is close to all main transport links for London. Children have access to a number of playrooms and there is also a secure enclosed garden for outdoor play. There are pets such as chipmunks, terrapins and a crab.

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Information about the setting

Operating times are between 8am and 6pm. The setting is open all year round with the exception of public holidays. A team of 25 staff work with the children. Of these, 23 hold qualifications in early years childcare. The manager holds a Foundation Degree and five members of staff are level 4 and working towards a Foundation Degree.

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Information about the setting

The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register. Children may attend full or part time sessions. There are currently 86 children on roll. The setting receives funding for provision of free early education and two-year-old funding. The setting supports children who speak English as an additional language and children with special needs and/or disabilities.

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

 improve the focus for assessing the prime areas in the progress check for children age two years of age

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

 help children's concentration and thinking by ensuring noise levels are kept to a minimum in areas where children participate in activities that require discussion, questions and answers.

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who attend

There is a welcoming smile at reception and children show eagerness to go their playrooms where they have a busy and active day with an exciting range of resources. All members of staff have a good knowledge and understanding of the Early Years Foundation Stage. They take care to acquaint themselves well with the uniqueness of children especially during the early days where staff assess the starting points for children's learning. Staff continuously seek children's opinions, thoughts and ideas and use these when planning activities to keep their interests at the forefront of their activities. This includes involving children in new projects such as the developing roof garden where they visit in small groups to talk about how they wish to use this area. All children's playrooms provide them with free access to an extensive range of resources and interesting activities. As a result, children occupy their time constantly both when inside

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who attend

and during outside play. They enjoy challenging their physical skills, climbing on a variety of apparatus as well as making their own obstacle courses. Music is a constant feature within the nursery, which helps their communication, language and confidence. Children listen to music, sing songs and rhymes with enthusiasm while playing percussion instruments. Children's excitement is evident and at times impacts on other quieter activities nearby. For example, children make choices to make biscuits from a recipe book showing they understand the purpose of print to provide information. They eagerly mix the flour, butter, sugar and knead this to make the dough. Staff explain to children the process but some questions and ideas become lost because of the sound of children's merriment in the musical activity nearby.

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who attend

Children also benefit from the nursery's reading programme. Children eagerly select books and staff read these making good use of story sacks. All children give their full attention as well as giving their views about the story of the bear and the strawberry. Staff ask children questions, which aids their critical thinking. They laugh as they realise that strawberries do not wear glasses. The nursery also supports parents by providing a range of books that they can share with their children at home, which helps to strengthen children's love of books and reading. All children begin to solve problems in their sand and water play. Staff display many posters showing different shapes and numbers.

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who attend

Babies and younger children investigate and explore new textures and objects. Staff know some children relish the experience of getting messy so staff prepare babies and toddlers in appropriate clothing so they can immerse themselves in a variety of mixtures including paints and foam. Children copy staff walking in paint trays, making marks with their feet, and then extend this by creating patterns on large sheets of paper with their hands. Children enthusiastically smear and squash the gooey mixture between their fingers. Staff enable children who are more reluctant to become involved by providing brushes and sponges. They delight in seeing the marks these produce. During the activity, the staff provide children with language to support their developing understanding, such as 'sticky' and 'squashy'. The babies clearly enjoy sitting with their key person to explore the 'treasure baskets' that contain different textured natural wooden items. These give

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who attend

children opportunities to reach, touch, grasp and handle objects, that help develop their coordination and movement as well as extend their curiosity about their play space. Staff constantly chat to babies using repetitive sounds to help them understand language. Babies benefit from space to practise and develop their crawling and walking. Children enjoy regular walks in the surrounding neighbourhood to watch the trains and cars as they show an interest in these during their play activities. Older children also benefit from visiting many places of interest within the community, which aids their understanding of diversity. For example, they visit the theatre, museums and farms. This widens children's perspective of life in their community and enables them to develop their imagination in role-play when they return to the nursery.

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who attend

Staff have a comprehensive programme for child observations, learning journeys and planning, which feeds into children's goals for their next steps. The new system where staff display the written observations of their key children is working well. This is because other members of staff add their observations enabling the key person to build a bigger picture of what the children are doing and achieving. This ensures that all children have realistic yet challenging goals. Consequently, all children make good progress in their learning in relation to their starting points and some children excel in this vibrant, active environment. Children who have special/additional needs thrive because staff provide specific resources and equipment to support their personalised learning programme. As a result, they also make good progress from their starting points. The effective liaison with parents and other professionals outside of the nursery, such as speech and language

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who attend

therapists and other consultants ensure that children receive accurate, targeted support.

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who attend

Successful strategies engage all parents in their children's learning. Parents add photographs and comments to children's learning journey folders, which children and staff share. Staff forward their written observations on children to parents, which enables them to gain a picture of the activities their children enjoy. Staff also share with parents their assessments on the progress of all children. This enables staff to highlight areas where children excel and areas where more attention is required.

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

Staff and children build strong relationships from the moment they start, which fosters their personal, social and emotional development. Babies respond to the warm, affectionate and gentle care given by staff, which makes them feel safe. The settling-in process is a particular strength at the nursery because staff tailor this to children's specific needs. This starts from the initial home visit to the parents gradually leaving children whilst waiting in nearby rooms to ensure all is well. This helps children to make a secure and happy transition to nursery from home.

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

Children are learning how to keep themselves safe as they develop a clear sense of what they can and cannot do, following sensible safety rules. For example, children know they must take care to take turns when rolling down the hill on their body boards. Staff permit children to climb whilst making them aware of others on the same apparatus. Staff are good role models. They provide appropriate explanations of acceptable behaviour that helps children's cooperation with each other. Children have regular opportunities to learn about road safety when on outings and walks in the local area. Nursery staff also carry out emergency fire evacuation drills which also help children to learn how to stay calm in an emergency. A high number of staff hold suitable first aid qualifications and this means children receive the correct care for in the event of an accident.

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

Children develop healthy lifestyles as they have plenty of exercise both indoors, and in the garden. Older children confidently see to their personal hygiene and staff give those who forget gentle reminders about clean hands, especially before making biscuits or eating food. Healthy eating is a significant strength. Children are fascinated to watch cook prepare their meal, which makes them keen to participate in cooking activities that staff provide. Children help to lay tables for lunch and all children show how much they enjoy the range of freshly cooked meals and snacks. In the summer months, children help to maintain an herb and vegetable garden. Posters of different health foods in the growing areas inform children of the range of foods that contribute to their good health.

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provision

Robust safeguarding policies and procedures, which staff implement effectively, mean that children are safe within the nursery. Staff are diligent in child protection matters with many of them having recently attended safeguarding training. They know the procedures well. Likewise, procedures for vetting and assessing the suitability of staff are robust helping to promote the protection and safety of the children. The nursery management provides a thorough induction programme to all new staff so that they fully appreciate their duties and responsibilities. Risk assessments for the nursery are in place for all areas including the proposed use of the roof garden. The nursery also operates on a high ratio of staff to children to enable them to have the maximum freedom within the safe and secure environment. Staff are deployed well and provide effective supervision of the children.

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provision

The manager has set out clear operational long term planning to ensure that staff receive strong support through induction, regular supervision and appraisals. In addition, staff benefit from the observation feedback from their manager as well as team meetings to review planning. This helps them to reflect and make overall good assessments on children's ages and stages of development. Written assessments are in place for all children although the specific progress check for children age two years is still in the early stages of development. This is a broad overview of all areas of learning and does not focus on the prime areas of children's development to ensure the assessment is accurate and secure. Staff meetings enable them to reflect on their deployment as well as the use of resources. It is also an opportunity for staff to share their ideas about improvements to the nursery that feeds into the nursery's self-evaluation programme. With this knowledge,

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provision

and information from parents and children, managers complete an action plan to make improvements to the nursery. As a result, they introduce ambitious projects such as the extensive programme of outings and the development of the roof garden and the basement sensory room. All this provides children with exciting opportunities to widen their knowledge skills and experiences.

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provision

Parents receive regular newsletters and information both verbally and via emails about nursery events. All parents spoken to during the inspection confirmed their high degree of satisfaction with the service the nursery provides. They say the staff are very approachable and helpful. They participate in completing parent questionnaires and join staff and children on open days and weekend workshops.

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provision

The nursery has good partnerships with local schools, which aid children's transition. Staff occasionally visit schools, especially where children have special educational needs. The strong partnerships with other professionals who support children with additional needs are also a key strength. As a result, children receive a comprehensive learning programme that the key person and the special educational needs coordinator monitor well. This means that children make significant progress from their starting points.

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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 action. 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 EY391949 Local authority Southwark Inspection number 906480 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 5 Total number of places 59 Number of children on roll 89 Name of provider Arc Community Trustees Date of previous inspection 26/10/2009 Telephone number 02073787532

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Setting details

set out in the guidance ‘Complaints procedure: 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, which are usually the childminder’s 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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