Little Spring Wonders Daycare Nursery

Little Spring Wonders Daycare Nursery 18 High Street, Great Baddow, CHELMSFORD, CM2 7HQ

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 11/03/2013 25/10/2011

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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

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This provision is inadequate

 Children are put at risk because staff do not comply with safeguarding requirements and follow the safeguarding procedures to ensure children are fully protected.  Staff do not make effective use of assessing risks with regard to safeguarding in order to keep children safe.  Children do not always have sufficient opportunities to practise early writing skills in meaningful situations, such as role play.  Opportunities for children to use a range of stimulating resources are limited and this sometimes restricts their ability to move and join materials in a variety ways.

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It has the following strengths

 Staff are effective practitioners because they attend a range of courses to hone their skills in order to enhance children's learning.  Children engage well with aspects of literacy because there is a wide range of books available for them to enjoy.

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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 spoke with the manager and the provider and examined documentation.  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.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector carried out a joint observation with the manager of an adult-led activity.

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Information about the setting

The Little Spring Wonders Daycare Nursery was registered in 2011 on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. It is situated in the Great Baddow area of Chelmsford and is privately managed. The nursery serves the local area and is accessible to all children. It operates from purpose-built premises and there are three enclosed areas available for outdoor play.

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Information about the setting

The nursery employs 14 members of childcare staff. Of these, nine hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 3, including one with Early Years Professional Status and one with Qualified Teacher Status. The remaining staff hold appropriate qualifications at level 4 and level 5.

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Information about the setting

The nursery opens Monday to Friday all year round, except for one week's closure at Christmas. Sessions are from 7am until 7pm. Children attend for a variety of sessions. There are currently 84 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 children with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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must:

 ensure that all agencies with statutory responsibilities are informed without delay of any concerns about children's safety or welfare

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must:

 ensure the policy and procedures are implemented so that children are fully safeguarded.

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

 develop the educational programme for literacy further by: providing opportunities for children to explore making marks in a range of activities, such as making lists or writing down messages in role play

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

 make a range of resources available to children so that they can experiment in using and joining them in different ways in order for them to explore and develop their imagination.

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who attend

Staff plan sufficiently to meet the learning and development needs of children. They offer a balance of adult-led and child-initiated activities. As a result, children make steady progress towards the early learning goals. Staff know children's individual stages of development because they assess them through regular observations and collect samples of their work. This enables staff to plan next steps for children's learning appropriately. The progress check for children at age two is suitably completed. This means staff are able to identify when early intervention may be needed to ensure that children receive the appropriate support.

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who attend

Staff make use of appropriate opportunities to help children to count, such as asking them to count how many are in a queue. Older children learn useful skills for school during sessions run by the teacher. They follow instructions during group games and learn about letters and their sounds by relating them to a favourite object. They also learn through a structured scheme. Children enjoy drawing and writing in designated writing areas. However, there are fewer opportunities for children to practise their early writing skills in a range of different situations. For example, in role play so that children can experiment with writing. This supports their growing understanding that the marks they make have meaning. Younger children enjoy a range of sensory experiences, such as observing changing colours and shapes in lava lamps. Staff help children's language skills by describing the different forms they see.

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who attend

Younger children operate simple electronic toys and older children operate simple computer programmes with adult support. They enjoy exploring the properties of sand and water in trays with different everyday items. Staff encourage children's communication and thinking skills as they ask open questions about events in a story. Children enjoy browsing through a wide range of books and enjoy interacting with stories read to them by staff. Children benefit from the use of several spacious outdoor areas, equipped with a range of equipment to promote children's physical skills. They climb, balance, run, throw and catch using a variety of resources. Children make good use of a wide range of resources. However, many of these are of fixed purpose and do not enable children to use, move and combine materials in different ways.

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who attend

Staff support children who have special educational needs and/or disabilities by linking with a range of community health professionals for advice and support. They advise on individual education plans and activities to promote children's learning and development so that they make progress according to their starting points. Staff help children who are learning English as an additional language by learning and displaying key words in a child's home language to support communication skills. Parents contribute to their child's learning sufficiently. They share special home achievements of their child on 'wow' sheets, and let staff know about children's interests and skills when they first arrive at the setting. Parents are kept informed of their child's development by attending regular parents' evenings and through daily discussion.

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

Although children appear to be settled and secure, their feelings of safety are compromised because children are not safeguarded effectively. Each child has a key person to enable them to build bonds and attachments to support them and provide continuity of care. Staff find out from parents about their child's individual needs and together they complete 'all about me' forms. This enables staff to know about each child's likes, dislikes and interests and plan accordingly.

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

Children show some awareness of how to behave safely. For example, they practise the fire drill so that they know what to do in an emergency. Children understand about hygiene routines. They wash their hands at appropriate times, supported by staff where needed. Children develop some healthy habits by taking daily exercise and fresh air in the garden. They also eat a range of healthy snacks and meals. Staff cater for special dietary needs of children. Staff organise visits from teachers of local schools who get to know the children so that they are prepared for, and settle readily in school. Children spend time in group rooms within the setting before moving up so that they get used to new environments and routines.

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

Behaviour is managed fairly and consistently. Staff use praise to motivate the children to behave well and explain why certain behaviour is not acceptable. They offer the children suitable alternatives and use a calm approach. Children understand that people are different because they read stories about disability, and they discuss and celebrate special events, such as Chinese New Year.

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provision

Safeguarding is inadequate because the provider failed to comply with the safeguarding and welfare requirements. A recent incident occurred where a child left the setting under unsafe conditions. Staff did not follow the safeguarding procedure correctly and this is a breach of requirements. This is also a breach of requirements for both parts of the Childcare Register. Risk assessments and safeguarding procedures relating to this matter have now been drawn up and provide some safety measures to ensure children are safe.

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provision

Staff are suitably vetted for their roles because the recruitment procedure is sufficient. They are supervised regularly and management offer support and training where any issues of underperformance are identified. Training is of high priority to the setting and staff needs are identified readily through yearly appraisals. They attend a wide variety of courses, such as behaviour management, which has led to consistent staff practice.

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provision

Management reflect on the provision appropriately and have set suitable goals to develop the provision. For instance, they plan to refine planning and assessment so that it is more efficient in its purpose. Previous recommendations have been met, such as use of open questions to encourage children's thinking skills. The provider and manager have a sound understanding of the learning and development requirements to ensure children make progress. Management carry out random sampling of development records and plans and this supports the monitoring system. They also spend time in group rooms to observe staff practice and this gives insight into quality standards. Management have put appropriate plans in place to monitor planning and assessment. This involves a member of staff taking the lead by reviewing all plans and assessment records for children to ensure consistency. This helps to identify any gaps in children's learning.

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provision

Parents contribute to their child's learning through appropriate opportunities. They expressed satisfaction with the setting at the time of inspection. Management seek their views and act on their ideas to improve the provision for children. For instance, parents suggested adding more variety to menus, which was put into place and this led to more enjoyable meals for children. Staff have developed partnerships with community health professionals in order to support children's learning and development so that they make progress.

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The Childcare Register

The requirements for the compulsory part of the Childcare Register are

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actions)

The requirements for the voluntary part of the Childcare Register are

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To meet the requirements of the Childcare Register the provider must:

 ensure children receiving childcare are kept safe from harm (Welfare of the children being cared for) (both parts of the Childcare Register)  implement a written statement of procedures to be followed for the protection of children, intended to safeguard the children being cared for from abuse or neglect (Arrangements for safeguarding children) (both parts of the Childcare Register).  take action as specified above (Welfare of the children being cared for)  take action as specified above (Arrangements for safeguarding children).

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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 EY426303 Local authority Essex Inspection number 907728

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 8 Total number of places 61 Number of children on roll 84 Name of provider Little Spring Wonders Daycare Nursery Limited Date of previous inspection 25/10/2011 Telephone number 01245 477773

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Type of provision

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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