Linden Tree Nursery School

Baby Room Nursery 195 Lavender Hill, LONDON, SW11 5TB

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 08/03/2013 12/07/2010

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early years provision

This inspection: 3 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 3 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 3

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This provision is satisfactory

 Children are relaxed and happy because they have warm relationships with staff who know them well.  The nursery values the views of parents and responds readily to their suggestions to improve the provision.  Children behave well because staff manage their behaviour consistently and effectively.  Staff attend a range of courses to develop their skills and improve outcomes for children.

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It is not yet good because

 Risk assessments are not sufficiently robust in the baby room.  There is no improvement plan to prioritise areas for development of the provision to drive improvement well.  Progress checks have not been carried out for children aged between two and three years of age.  There are weaknesses in the programme for literacy in regard to encouraging children to use their early writing skills and to develop a love of books.

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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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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 carried out a joint observation with the manager.  The inspector observed interaction between staff and children.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke to parents, staff and children and took their views into account during the inspection.  The inspector examined planning and assessment records.  The inspector had a discussion with the manager and sampled documentation.

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Information about the setting

Baby Room Nursery has been registered since April 2007 and is one of four nurseries run by Baby Room Nurseries Ltd. The nursery operates from the ground and lower ground floor of a large Victorian premises located in the London borough of Wandsworth. All children share access to a secure enclosed outdoor play area. The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and both the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. There are currently 36 children in the early years age range on roll. The nursery supports children who are learning English as an additional language. The nursery offers funded places to children aged three and four years. The nursery is open Monday to Friday from 8am to 6.30pm for 51 weeks of the year. There are nine members of staff, including manager and deputy; of these, eight staff hold relevant early years qualifications.

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must:

 carry out progress checks on children between the ages of two and three years of age and provide parents with a written summary of a child's progress in the prime areas of learning.

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must:

 ensure that risk assessments identify aspects of the environment that need to be checked regularly, particularly in the baby room.

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

 provide opportunities for children to practise their early writing and mathematics skills in meaningful contexts, such as during their pretend play

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

 develop an effective improvement plan to identify clear priorities for development of the nursery.

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who attend

Staff have sound knowledge of how children learn and develop and plan a variety of activities across the required areas of learning. They know the children well and meet their needs sufficiently by using different teaching methods. Children's learning is enriched by visits from dance and music teachers, and by puppet and mask-makers. There is a suitable balance between child-initiated and adult-led activities.

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who attend

Staff sing action songs with babies and toddlers, so that children hear new vocabulary, to help them find their own voices and learn to say words. Staff say the names of numbers on electronic toys as children press buttons. Babies enjoy looking at books and mimic the names of familiar objects seen in pictures. However, the book corner available to children aged between two and three years have a poor range of books. This prevents children from learning to love books as a basis for fully engaging with literacy for their future lives.

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who attend

Toddlers enjoy dressing up in hats and talk to staff about their invented stories. While playing, staff encourage children's language development by asking suitable questions. Older children interact with a rhyming story and occasionally show their knowledge of words that sound the same. They draw pictures and make some marks on the writing table. There are missed opportunities for children to practise their early writing skills in meaningful situations, such as during their pretend play. Children learn to sort and count as they play with colourful dinosaurs as staff teach children colour and number names. Children learn to listen and respond as they sit quietly during group times. These activities help children to develop some useful skills for school.

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who attend

The outdoor environment is well-resourced and promotes a range of physical skills. For example, children climb on frames, slide, ride on wheeled toys, and throw and catch balls. The canopy area is used for children under two years of age to crawl and move in different ways on a variety of apparatus suited to their needs.

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who attend

Overall, staff maintain sufficient information on how children develop by carrying out regular observations and reviewing children's work. They use this information to plan children's next steps for learning. However, they have not carried out the required progress checks for children aged between two to three years, in order to provide the written report to parents. Staff teach children who learn English as an additional language by learning key words in a child's home language. They also use gestures and visual resources to develop children's communication skills suitably.

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who attend

Parents learn about their child's progress by attending regular reviews with staff. They review development folders and exchange their observations of their children with staff. This exchange provides some opportunities for parents to be involved in their child's learning.

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

Children settle sufficiently well because staff provide routines and activities that reflect children's interests and needs. Children play freely and happily because they have secure relationships with staff. Overall, staff teach children to behave in safe ways. For instance, children hold the handrail as they walk down the stairs, and tidy up toys from the floor, as shown. Older children wash their hands, with adult reminders at appropriate times. Children are beginning to learn to put on their coats, assisted by staff. Staff help younger children to manage their personal care. Children make independent selections from labelled, easily accessible resources. Generally, the nursery is resourced and organised well with the exception of the sparsely furnished book area in the room for two to three-year-olds.

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

Children eat nutritious meals and healthy snacks. Staff ensure that special dietary needs of the children are catered for. Staff encourage children to develop healthy lifestyles by taking them outside each day for fresh air and exercise on a variety of equipment.

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

Children are sufficiently prepared for the move to school. For example, staff arrange for school children, who previously attended the setting, to visit to talk with children about school life. Children spend time in their new group rooms before moving permanently, so that they get used to staff and some routines, settling well as a result.

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

Staff are calm and patient with children and manage their behaviour effectively. They motivate children to behave well by using praise. Staff talk to children to explain why certain behaviour is unacceptable and offer suitable alternatives. Children learn about other cultures through discussion and celebration of special events. For example, they celebrate Chinese New Year by carrying out different craft activities.

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provision

Overall, the leadership and management have a suitable understanding of the learning and development requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. A qualified teacher among the staff group takes lead responsibility for the monitoring of planning and assessment. This has led to consistent quality. It also enables the nursery to identify any children who are underachieving and to devise ways to close gaps in achievement. This means the systems are in place to provide parents with the required short written summary of their children's learning. Management spend time in group rooms to observe staff practice and this provides a certain level of quality assurance.

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provision

Staff receive support and advice through regular supervision. This supervision also helps to identify any areas of underperformance so that appropriate goals are set to improve performance. Staff are given good opportunities to attend a variety of courses because their training needs are identified through yearly appraisals. For example, all staff attended a behaviour management course which led to improvements through consistent and effective practice.

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provision

The inspection was brought forward because of a recent reported incident. The inspection found that at an earlier date a baby had fallen through loose slats of a cot due to a manufacturing fault. The provider had taken appropriate action by seeking treatment for the baby and by notifying relevant persons. The provider contacted the manufacturer who repaired and reinforced the security of the cots. The manufacturer has agreed to carry out annual maintenance visits on the cots. Although the nursery's periodic risk assessments cover cot checks, daily checks carried out by staff do not. This presents a degree of risk to children's safety. There are examples of staff practice that show they keep children safe. Staff to child ratios are met. Staff wear gloves and aprons when changing babies' nappies to avoid cross infection. Staff are suitably vetted for their roles and this check helps to protect children from harm. Generally, policies and most procedures are understood and

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provision

implemented by staff and this supports children's safety, so children play in safety.

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provision

The nursery leadership and management have reflected on provision and identified areas for development. However, these areas have not been prioritised into an effective improvement plan. Previous recommendations have been met: for example, resources are now accessible to children, which supports independence. Staff work effectively with the early years department of the local authority, in relation to use of courses to enhance their skills. Parents contribute to their child's learning and to the development of the provision. For instance, through distributed questionnaires, parents suggested that children should have more choice at meal times so that they could select their favourite meals.

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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 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 EY346428 Local authority Wandsworth Inspection number 904571 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 5 Total number of places 33 Number of children on roll 36 Name of provider Baby Room Nurseries Ltd Date of previous inspection 12/07/2010 Telephone number 0207 228 8277

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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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