Playfield Nursery

Playfield Nursery St Alphage Church Hall, Playfield Road, EDGWARE, Middlesex, HA8 0DF

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 13/05/2013 22/09/2008

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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 staff team are well established and are committed to providing an enabling environment that supports children to make the best possible progress in their early development.  Staff make effective use of small group times to develop children's confidence in communication and enabling children to focus quietly on their learning.  A well-established key person system helps children to form secure attachments and this promotes their well-being effectively. Good care experiences have a positive impact on children's all-round development and well-being.  The manager oversees and supports staff well, encouraging them to access further training to support their professional development.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Opportunities for children to be able to choose toys and resources independently are not extensive.  Staff do not always provide children with mark making resources outside to support their early writing skills.

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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 spent the majority of inspection time observing the children in the nursery as they played.  The inspector sampled children's information and development records.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector had discussions with the provider/manager throughout the visit. Safeguarding was discussed and a sample of the policies viewed.  The inspector discussed the nursery with a sample of parents  The inspector and manager completed a joint observation together.

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Information about the setting

Playfield Nursery registered in 2008 and is privately owned. It operates from St Alphage Church hall in Edgware, in the London Borough of Barnet. All children have access to a secure outdoor play area. The nursery is open from 9.15am to 12.15pm on a Monday and Friday and 9.15am to 2.15pm on a Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, term time only. The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. There are currently 40 children in the early years age range on roll. The nursery provides funded early education for two-, three- and four-year- old children. There are 7 members of staff, all of whom hold appropriate early years qualifications.

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

 extend children's interest by ensuring more toys and resources are accessible to enable children to explore fully and use the resources in a variety of ways

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

 provide a range of writing resources in outdoor play to particularly support children who learn effectively in the outdoor environment.

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who attend

The whole staff team have a good understanding of the Early Years Foundation Stage, they are confident in delivering the curriculum and support children's learning well. Staff have developed their understanding of observing children's progress and have effective planning systems in place to ensure children's individual needs are provided for. Children's individual learning profiles are maintained well and contain information from parents on their starting points, an initial settling in assessment by the key person and tracking documents to support future plans for each child.

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who attend

Staff set up the play room in the morning and ensure there is a broad range of interesting activities which promote all areas of learning. Children arrive, and after saying goodbye to their parent or carer, explore the environment and settle down with their choice of play. Children thoroughly enjoy the creative area where they can choose various materials to make sticking pictures. They spend time at the threading developing their fine hand control as they thread the lace, enjoy imaginative play with the cars and have great fun building high towers with the construction toys.

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who attend

Children are well supported in the acquisition of language and communication skills because staff listen perceptively to them and skilfully ask questions during tasks to improve learning. Staff have had training on innovative ways to support children in small group times and build these sessions into the nursery routine. Staff plan these small group sessions based on children's needs, with a focus to support children in developing their confidence to interact with their friends and adults. Other small group activities are planned such as 'maths time' and this is aimed at the children moving onto school. Children thoroughly enjoy these sessions and take part in activities to increase their knowledge and understanding of numbers and counting.

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who attend

Children move freely between the indoor playroom and the garden for most of the morning and they thoroughly enjoy time outside. The nursery makes effective use of a small grassy area and a paved area where children can ride the tricycles. Children learn about the outdoor environment as they take part in digging and planting activities, learning about the importance of caring for the plants everyday. However, staff do not ensure the garden is always set up with writing materials to support children who learn more effectively playing in the outdoors.

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who attend

Children who speak English as an additional language are supported well as staff use key words in their home language to help children settle. The environment contains print to support children's emerging reading development and reflects some other languages. There are effective systems to support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Parents have regular opportunities to meet with staff to discuss their children's achievements and progress.

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

The key person system is embedded into the staff practice and results in good relationships being established with parents from early on and helping children to settle quickly. The nursery staff also takes part in home visits prior to children starting and this offers extra support to deepen these partnerships. As a result, children develop close relationships with their key person to receive lots of reassurance in their early days.

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

Children's personal social and emotional development is fostered well; children have formed some good friendships and play well together. The older children show kindness as they are very protective towards the younger children, holding their hands to guide them around the room. Children are developing a good understanding of sharing and taking turns. For example, the children thoroughly enjoy using the computer where they use the touch screen to make pictures and all children wait patiently for their turn. Staff manage children's behaviour well and use positive strategies to deal with any minor issues that may occur.

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

Staff record and know children's specific health, dietary needs and allergies. They teach children about healthy lifestyles. Consequently, children follow good hygiene practices, using disposable hand towels when washing and drying their hands before snack or after toileting. Children's independence with their self-help skills are flourishing as they choose when they would like their snack and actively take part in preparing their own snack and pouring their drinks. For example, children excitedly joined in with making their own sandwiches and choosing what filling they would like.

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

The environment is stimulating, well resourced and welcoming. Staff make sure a broad range of resources are available to cover all areas of learning. However, they do not extend opportunities for children to make free choices in their play. For example, by providing more low level storage where more toys could be more freely available.

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

Children's safety and well-being is given high priority as they play in a safe and secure environment. Staff are vigilant and supervise the children very well. Gentle reminders from staff help children to understand about keeping themselves safe as they play and use a variety of equipment. The nursery has effective security systems in place and any visitors need to ring the doorbell and show their identification before entering the nursery. The nursery entrance is securely monitored during drop off and picking up times to ensure no child leaves unnoticed.

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provision

The manager and staff fully understand the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage. All staff understand and implement the clear policies and procedures consistently. Staff have developed their knowledge of safeguarding from attending training. They understand their responsibilities to report any concerns they have to the appropriate named person and Local Safeguarding Children Board. Most staff hold a first aid qualification which means that they are able to respond to children's needs appropriately in the event of any emergency occurring. Rigorous recruitment and vetting procedures are in place to check the suitability of all adults employed by the setting. Comprehensive risk assessments cover all aspects of the premises and outings.

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provision

The registered provider/manager is committed to continually monitoring the nursery and how staff are working. She recognises and values the importance of self-evaluation and takes advice from the Early Years team and the link person from the local children's centre. She implements action plans over a period of time. All previous recommendations from the last inspection have been successfully addressed. Staff are enthusiastic to continually up-date their professional development and this has a positive impact on the setting. This demonstrates the staff team are willing to continually develop the service.

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provision

Partnerships with parents is embedded into the nursery ethos. Management and staff places value in ensuring that parents develop a sense of belonging to the setting and can contribute to the well-being of their children. Parents are provided with a range of information to ensure they are well informed about how the provision operates. They are kept informed about their child's progress, achievements and daily experiences. Parents are welcomed into the nursery when they drop off their child in the morning and when they collect them later on. Parents settle their child into an activity and are welcome to stay longer if their child is unsettled. With parental consent, staff often video new children as they play. The film is shown to parents to reassure them that their child is settling. Comments from parents indicate they are very happy with the service provided. The nursery is very much part of the community. They share good relationships with the local

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provision

children's centre, schools and other professionals, which supports children's continuity of care and transitions well.

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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 EY369098 Local authority Barnet Inspection number 911606 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 2 - 5 Total number of places 30 Number of children on roll 40 Name of provider Loris Gurnah Date of previous inspection 22/09/2008 Telephone number 07717103730

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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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