Kids Planet Witney

Little Treasures Academy 13/14 Thorney Leys Park, Witney, Oxfordshire, OX28 4GE

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 01/05/2013 13/08/2009

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early years provision

This inspection: 4 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 4 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 4

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This provision is inadequate

 Children's health and well-being is compromised as there are insufficient measures to ensure the premises are fit for purpose.  Some groups of children make limited progress because staff lack sufficient understanding of effective teaching and learning to meet all the learning and development requirements. Some children's individual learning styles are not supported.  The key person system is not embedded or understood by all staff to ensure that relationships with children and parents fully meets children's individual needs.  Systems to monitor and evaluate the provision and staff practice are poor. Key weaknesses not being identified or addressed and variable care practices.  There are not always sufficient staff present in each room to ensure children's individual needs are met or good behaviour supported.

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It has the following strengths

 Staff provide a range of outdoor equipment to encourage children's physical development.  The setting works with other professionals involved in children's care, which promotes continuity between partnerships.

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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 observed activities within the nursery and interacted with the children.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke to staff at appropriate times throughout the inspection, during and after activities.  The inspector sampled policies and procedures.  The inspector spoke to available parents and looked at letters provided by parents.  The inspector carried out a joint inspection with the manager.  The inspector met with the manager and registered provider.

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Information about the setting

Little Treasures Academy opened under the present owners, Living Waters UK Limited, in 2008. It operates from premises in a small business park in Witney. The intake of children is from Witney and the surrounding villages. The accommodation consists of a series of rooms over two floors and access to the upper floor is via a flight of stairs. All children have access to an outside play area. The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and both the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. The nursery currently has 127 children attending in the early years age range. There are also 49 older children on roll up to the age of 14 years who attend on a part-time basis. The nursery is in receipt of funding for the provision of free early education for children aged three and four years. The nursery opens on weekdays from 7.30am to 6pm throughout the year, except for public holidays. Staff provide support for children with special educational

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Information about the setting

needs and/or disabilities. The nursery employs 19 staff including the manager. Of these, over half hold appropriate early years qualifications to at least level 3.

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must:

 improve staff knowledge of the learning and development requirements to ensure that each area of learning and development is implemented through planned, purposeful play and a mix of adult-led and child-initiated activities, particularly in the programme for communication and language

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must:

 ensure the premises and equipment are clean, and that staff are aware of and comply with hygiene requirements

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must:

 ensure there are sufficient staff deployed in all areas to meet the needs of the children and to promote positive behaviour

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must:

 implement an effective key person system that ensures that every child's care is tailored to meet their individual needs, offers a settled relationship for the child and builds a relationship with their parents or carers

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must:

 implement a system to monitor, coach, mentor and support staff to ensure underperformance is tackled and training needs are identified and addressed in order to improve staff knowledge and understanding of effective teaching and learning

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must:

 foster a culture of continuous improvement by developing the self-evaluation system to monitor staff performance, identify and address key weaknesses, and to include the feelings of the children and parents.

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

 support children's individual learning styles and preferences, for example, by providing as much opportunity as possible for children to move freely between indoors and outdoors.

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who attend

Children's learning and development is not effectively supported because some staff lack sufficient understanding of the seven areas of learning. Children have opportunities throughout their day to engage in activities, which are linked to the areas of learning. However, the value of these experiences is irregular, depending on the staff on duty. For example, children in the baby room wander and crawl around the room with no purpose and very little interaction from the staff to support their learning needs. Staff generally demonstrate a caring approach to supporting children. However, they are not all confident in supporting and building on children's communication and language abilities. For example, staff fail to respond and build younger children's vocabulary by modelling new words. In addition, they are not consistent in asking open questions to help children explore or to prompt children's thinking.

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who attend

Children enjoy some activities when these are structured and tailored to their interests. For example, children enjoy playing in the soft play area, exploring the sand and investigating in the garden. However, this is not consistent, as not all children benefit from sound, purposeful play to help them develop sufficiently for their next stage in their learning. This does not prepare them for the next stage of learning or support them with their transition to school.

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who attend

The nursery has a suitable range of resources and generally, these are readily available to allow for the children to make some independent choices and decisions about their play. However, children's learning opportunities are often not effectively addressed as staff are not effectively deployed to meet the needs of the children. For example, one member of staff is left with a group of children as the other staff member changes nappies. This means children are left to occupy themselves.

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who attend

Overall, planning, observations and assessments show that children make suitable progress in their learning. Parents speak positively about the welcoming staff. They comment on the friendly verbal feedback they receive for their children. This keeps them informed of important information, for example, what their children have eaten and their sleep times. However, systems to encourage parental involvement in children's learning are basic. This is due to the inconsistent gathering of information from parents about children's developmental abilities when they first start. This minimises the effectiveness of staff planning and the amount of progress children make in relation to their starting points. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities benefit from suitable support. The special needs co-ordinator puts in place individual education plans for children, which in turn supports their learning and development.

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

Young children's well-being is not adequately supported. Although the nursery operates a key person system, it is not effectively maintained or sufficiently imbedded. Consequently, care practices are variable, which reduces the ability of staff to meet the needs of the children. For example, staff fail to comfort their key children when they are distressed, regardless of the children holding up their arms to them. This has a detrimental effect on their children's self-confidence and their feelings of security.

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

Children's health is put at risk as the staff in the various rooms of the nursery do not always keep areas suitably clean. Rigorous cleaning procedures are not in place, which leads to highchairs being dirty and embedded with food from previous mealtimes. Staff do not follow the nursery's policies and procedures to prevent the spread of infection. This means that rugs and toys are clearly not routinely cleaned. They are soiled and unhygienic, with ground in dirt. Both the lack of cleanliness and staff's failure to follow nursery policies puts children at risk of cross infection.

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

Children gain some understanding of hygiene routines as all children are encouraged to wash their hands after playing in the garden or before mealtimes. Staff explain to them why this is necessary and this gives the children an understanding of how they can promote their health. Mealtimes are social occasions within the pre-school and toddler room; however, children in the baby room lack the stimulation of communication during these social group times. Staff record and follow children's dietary requirements and offer suitable alternatives to meet their needs.

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

Staff throughout the nursery use clear and mostly consistent strategies to promote children's understanding of acceptable behaviour. Children receive a suitable amount of praise and pre-school children behave well and show kindness to each other. However, poor staff deployment in the toddler room has a negative impact on behaviour management. This results in staff failing to notice some disagreements between children and not intervening to prevent these incidents from escalating as they are comforting other children. As a result, some children's learning is hindered.

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

Most staff demonstrate a suitable understanding of how to assess and minimise risks to children's safety and suitable written risk assessments are in place. Children's physical development is supported by the varied range of outdoor equipment and indoor soft play area. Children move with skill and coordination as they confidently balance on climbing equipment and enjoy exploring within the ball pools. All children have opportunities to explore outside; however, free flow play to the outdoor area is not actively encouraged. As a result, children who learn best when outside do not always have the opportunities to do so.

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provision

There are poor systems in place to monitor the overall provision. Leadership and management is weak and as a result, management are unaware of the inadequate daily practices of staff and inconsistencies within the setting. Although the nursery has suitable levels of qualified staff, they are not deployed effectively to meet the safety and learning needs of all the children attending. In addition, children's health is consistently at risk due to the lack of hygiene within the setting, especially in relation to floor, toys and resources.

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provision

Safeguarding responsibilities are adequately met. Staff demonstrate a sufficient understanding of current child protection procedures and are aware of the reporting procedure to follow if they have a concern about a child. The child protection policy meets requirements and staff including the manager, have attended child protection training. This enables each member of staff to have an up-to-date knowledge of safeguarding issues. A mobile phone and camera policy has been enforced and staff are monitored at all times to ensure they abide with the policy. The nursery follows clear procedures for the recruitment and vetting of staff to ensure the suitability of those in regular contact with the children. Systems are in place to monitor staff; however, these are not secure in recognising or addressing inconsistencies in staff practice, which has a detrimental effect on children's care and learning overall.

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provision

Partnerships with parents and professionals are suitability maintained. The nursery work well with schools and other agencies involved in children's care. This provides continuity and consistency in the children's care. Parents comment that their children are happy and they are pleased with the care and service the nursery provides.

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provision

An evaluation of the provision has been started; however, the current approach has failed to identify significant areas in need of improvement. In addition, gathering and analysis of evidence about the effectiveness of the early years provision lacks rigour. This demonstrates the management and staff of the nursery are not sufficiently ambitious about improving practice to enhance outcomes for children.

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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 EY387298 Local authority Oxfordshire Inspection number 913224 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 8 Total number of places 96 Number of children on roll 127 Name of provider Living Waters UK Limited Date of previous inspection 13/08/2009 Telephone number 01993700123

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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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