Circus Day Nursery Ltd

Circus Day Nursery Ltd Pittville Circus Road, CHELTENHAM, Gloucestershire, GL52 2PZ

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 13/02/2013 17/12/2008

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early years provision

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

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This provision is satisfactory

 Staff promote all learning areas generally well through providing a wide range of activities and varied resources. As a result all children make at least suitable progress.  Most children develop confidence and happily engage with staff.  Staff provide children with a nutritious diet which helps them learn about healthy lifestyles.  Partnerships with parents and with other agencies are strong; parents and children's views are taken into account to help drive improvement.

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It is not yet good because

 The development of secure attachment between babies and their main carer is not promoted well enough.  Not all staff understand their roles in emergency evacuations and these are not carried out sufficiently thoroughly to ensure children's safety, should such a situation arise.  The policy for medicine administration is inconsistent with the requirements of the Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage.

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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

 Two inspectors undertook this inspection and had discussions with the manager and deputy manager.

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Inspection activities

 The inspectors observed children's activities, including mealtimes, and staff interaction with them..

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Inspection activities

 The inspectors reviewed a selection of relevant documentation including some policies and procedures.  The inspectors spoke to parents .

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Information about the setting

Circus Day Nursery was opened in 1997 and registered with Ofsted in 2001. It is situated in a house in Pittville, a residential area close to Cheltenham town centre. Children attend from all areas of the town and surrounding areas. The nursery has a driveway so that children may be delivered and collected away from the main road. The nursery is open from Monday to Friday between 8am and 6pm. There is an enclosed garden to the rear of the house for outside play. The nursery receives funding for the provision of free early education to children aged three and four years. Care is organised over four floors, with each floor organised to provide care for a particular age group of children. Access to the nursery for children under two years is down a flight of stairs and may involve internal stairs, depending on the age of the child. Children over two years enter the nursery by a flight of stairs up to the front door and may also need to negotiate internal stairs

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Information about the setting

depending on the age of the child. The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register All children on roll are in the early years age group only. The nursery can support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. The nursery employs 42 staff in total. These include the management team, kitchen staff and lunchtime cover. Of the 42 staff, 21 hold relevant qualifications and a further two hold Early Years Professional Status.

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must:

 implement a policy for the administration of medication, which takes account of the requirement that: all medicines must only be administered to a child where written permission and instructions have been obtained from the child's parent.

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must:

 improve the key person system so that it provides individual care to babies in ways that help to build security and attachment between the key person and the baby effectively

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must:

 ensure that all staff understand their roles and responsibilities in the event of fire or any other emergency

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

 enhance children's learning about safety by making sure they have regular opportunities to practise the written evacuation procedures.

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who attend

Most children are provided with a wide range of indoor and outdoor play-based activities that strongly support their individual learning and development needs. The flexible childcare programme enables children to make choices in their activities that reflect their current interests and skills. A satisfactory balance exists between the care and educational provision, ensuring that staff support most children's all-round needs well.

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who attend

Staff regularly use a satisfactory range of assessment methods to create an accurate picture of each child's progress over time. Assessments carried out by staff are used appropriately to identify each child's current learning needs and to plan relevant activities tthat support the next steps in their learning. For example, to further three-year-old's understanding of numbers, staff plan for children to learn to sing number rhymes.

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who attend

Comprehensive parental involvement policies result in ample opportunities for parents to contribute to the nursery in ways that help children. Flexible attendance arrangements enable new children to begin to build relationships with their key persons from the start. However, for babies care patterns are less consistent, so that good emotional bonds with their key person are not built up immediately from entry. Staff encourage parents and children to bring favourite toys from home that help children settle into new routines. Useful opportunities exist for parents to complete questionnaires that help staff understand, and effectively provide for, each child's individual learning and developmental needs.

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who attend

Throughout the daily routine, engaging opportunities are provided that nurture most children's progress well in all areas of learning. Personal and social development is well provided for as children and parents are greeted on arrival and made to feel welcome. The key group system enables most children to receive close attention from their key worker and to play in consistent groups of children that help them build friendships.

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who attend

Children's communication and language development is satisfactorily supported in play activities that help to increase their vocabulary and understanding. For example, children decide what materials are needed to lay a picnic table, eat the food, and clear away afterwards. Staff sing songs with children to increase their awareness of rhyming words and talk to babies during feed times to promote their reassurance. Exciting indoor and outdoor facilities enable children to develop their physical skills each day. Indoors, a ball- pool enables children to use their bodies to effectively explore space around them. Outdoors, a well-organised garden, that includes a covered area, enables children of all ages to enjoy a wide variety of physical activities that encourage them to be active and curious.

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who attend

Books are used effectively in every room to form the foundation of children's literacy development. Both child-led and adult-led activities enable children to explore early reading and writing that help children understand that words have meaning. For example, children's own artwork is thoughtfully labelled, recording their opinions of characters in stories, and then displayed around the nursery. Such activities help children gain useful skills for their eventual move to school. Children's knowledge of the world is thoroughly promoted by caring for pets that provides them with an awareness of living creatures. Staff provide children with stimulating activities that encourage them to think. For example, handling and observing how pasta changes when it is put in water.

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who attend

Long-standing partnerships between key persons and local primary schools mean that children's move to school is well supported. Reception teachers visit children in the childcare centre to build relationships that help them settle as they move to school. The useful transfer of developmental records helps reception teachers to understand children's individual needs and prepare to meet them on their arrival in school.

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

Staff plans to meet each child's individual needs are appropriate overall. This inspection was brought forward as a result of concerns raised to Ofsted. The inspection has found that these were largely unfounded. Staff are deployed appropriately. They offer play and care routines that help build each child's confidence over time. The key person system helps staff to create relaxed relationships that are generally supportive of children and parents. Key persons encourage most children in their play so that opportunities for learning are maximised. For example, a key person praised a child who recognised herself in a mirror, and another for her persistence in hanging up a dress on a coat hanger. Key persons monitor each child's progress steadily, document it in their 'learning journeys' and share it with parents, so they are kept informed of their children's progress. However, very young babies do not consistently receive most attention from their key worker in order to

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

The compliance with required staff-child ratios consistently enables good supervision levels that support children throughout the day. Well-developed opportunities for play, eating and rrest ensure that staff accommodate most children's all-round needs.

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

Staff promote healthy lifestyles through daily routines. For example, children wash their hands at appropriate times to ensure good health and hygiene. In all weathers, children play outside and enjoy fresh air. Children are positively encouraged in a "Stretch and Grow" workshop to enjoy exercise and to keep fit. Each day, children enjoy health, freshly cooked nutritious meals, that take account of their individual needs.

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

Child-sized toilets and hand basins are close to playrooms and enable children's self-care skills to be thoroughly promoted. Staff adequately help children to dress themselves so that they gain skills in getting ready for outdoor play. Staff promote high standards of hygiene in the premises. The building is cleaned at the end of each day, toys are washed each week and 'deep cleaned' at the end of terms to minimise the risk of infection.

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

There are ample resources that enable children to enjoy and be fully absorbed in both indoor and outdoor play activities. Indoors, resources are in a good condition and are stored in child-level, open containers that enable children at all stages of development to choose what they want to play with. Babies independently reach into treasure baskets for bricks and rattles, and older children gather construction materials and toy animals to lay them out on the floor. A sensory room offers challenging opportunities for children to explore learning through touch, smell, sight, hearing and taste. Outdoors, a range of larger resources that include tyres, netting and boxes are provided that enable children to build dens and to solve problems.

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provision

The management provides all staff with a clear safeguarding policy and exact procedures to follow that are designed to keep children safe. A designated member of staff is responsible for safeguarding and ensures that all staff are knowledgeable and up-to-date in their child protection practices. Monitoring arrangements for staff performance identify when additional training is needed, so that relevant courses are undertaken, for example, to ensure that new ssafeguarding requirements are understood. A closed-circuit television camera means all visitors are checked before entry, which keeps the premises secure, protecting children's safety.

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provision

Thorough risk assessments are carried out and recorded by staff each day in each room, and are designed to protect children by preventing accidents from happening. Risk assessments are also undertaken by staff before outings which helps them take steps to keep children safe. Rigorous staff checks are up-to-date and ensure that all staff are cleared as suitable people to work with young children. Staff hold a range of appropriate qualifications that equip them to carry out their work with young children effectively, including sufficient staff with relevant first aid certificates.

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provision

The medication policies and procedures do not fully comply with current requirements. The requirement that prescription and non-prescription medicine must only be administered when written permission for that particular medicine has been obtained from the child's parent or carer is breached; however, no children have come to harm as a result. Management display emergency evacuation procedures and exit points for each room. Evacuation procedures do not form part of induction, however, so new staff do not all know their individual roles and responsibilities if they have not taken part in a practice. Although practices take place these do not involve actual evacuation of the building and, given the building is several storeys high, this does not support children in learning about how to leave the building safely, as well as possible.

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provision

Learning and development requirements are adequately planned across both child-led and adult-led play activities that satisfactorily meet the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. Staff regularly use assessments and listen to each child's own ideas about their learning to indicate the next relevant stage. The careful monitoring of children's progress enables the two-year-old checks and ongoing assessment that support children's moves to school to be accurately undertaken.

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provision

All concerned contribute to the nursery's evaluation systems. There are useful discussions between staff and parents about current childcare practices and these help identify targets for improvement. For example, staff identified how a deeper understanding of parents' views concerning their child would improve professional partnerships and develop appropriate learning opportunities for children.

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provision

A strong parent partnership underpins effective communications between staff and parents. The management team develops this liaison through use of a varied range of media, including a website, and social media networks, so parents are fully informed about all aspects of the childcare. Many parents support the nursery in practical ways, such as by providing scrap materials for modelling, coming to talk to children about their work and celebrating their cultures. For example, a parent volunteered to read a story in Spanish and another parent shared the festival of Divali. Many parents attended a training session on the importance of children's creative development, so they understand how to support children's learning at home in this area.

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provision

Focused partnerships exist with other professionals that are intentionally designed to support children's learning and development. Links with local primary schools help children be prepared for their move on to school. Professional training provided by the local authority helps to keep staff current in their practice. Speech therapy and behaviour guidance agencies provide specialist services to children as required. Visits from local fire and police services build community relationships that help to keep children safe.

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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 101756 Local authority Gloucestershire Inspection number 901375 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 8 Total number of places 119 Number of children on roll 163 Name of provider Circus Day Nursery Ltd Date of previous inspection 17/12/2008 Telephone number 01242 253222

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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

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’.

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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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