Young Haymakers Nursery & Montessori School

Young Haymakers Nursery & Montessori School Kirby Farm, Foxhunt Green, Waldron, HEATHFIELD, East Sussex, TN21 0RU

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 17/05/2013 Not Applicable

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early years provision

This inspection: 1 Previous inspection: Not Applicable 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 1 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 1

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This provision is outstanding

 The staff team are highly qualified and exceptionally skilled, which means that children greatly benefit in their learning and the quality of their play.  Staff have created an exemplary learning environment with high quality materials, where children can be independent and active learners, setting their own challenges.  Staff have exceptional teaching skills and children make rapid progress due to the consistent high standard of one-to-one teaching.  The partnership with parents is extremely strong, which makes an excellent contribution to the consistency of care and support for learning.  The manager and staff have a strong, shared ethos and work together extremely well to meet the individual needs of the children, helping them to thrive.

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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 children at play indoors and outside.  The inspector did a joint observation with the manager.  The inspector spoke to parents who were present on the day.  The inspector sampled a range of documentation.

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Information about the setting

Young Haymakers Nursery & Montessori School opened in 2012 and is privately owned. The owner also runs Herstmonceux Pre-school. It operates from a purpose built building in Waldron near Heathfield, East Sussex. There is a secure enclosed outdoor play area. The nursery is open from Monday to Friday from 9am until 4pm for 48 weeks of the year and takes children from two to four years old. There are currently 34 children on roll, all of whom are in the early years age group. The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and on both the voluntary and compulsory parts of the Childcare Register. The nursery supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and supports children who speak English as an additional language. The nursery gets funding for the provision of free early education for children aged three and four years. There are six members of staff, five of whom hold appropriate early years qualifications, including two

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Information about the setting

with Early Years Professional status, and two with the Montessori International Diploma.

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

 enhance the outdoor play area by providing equipment and activities that provide physical challenges for older and more able children.

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who attend

The nursery staff have an excellent understanding of how children learn and develop. They provide a highly effective curriculum which covers all areas of learning with interesting, challenging activities. Children are consistently absorbed in play that is of excellent quality, and they make exemplary progress as a result.

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who attend

Staff have exceptional teaching skills. They listen carefully to children and show genuine interest in what they have to say. Staff use thoughtful questions to help children expand on their ideas, noting and teaching new vocabulary. For example, when a child talks about dinosaurs, staff notice his use of the word 'predator' and introduce the word 'archaeologist'. In this way, children build an extensive vocabulary. Staff have excellent skills in taking forward children's ideas. When children spontaneously start to construct a volcano, staff help them to find pictures on the computer. This helps children to decide which resources will be best to get the colours and textures accurate. As the model builds, staff show children how lava flows using vinegar and bicarbonate of soda in a controlled experiment. Children populate the model with animals and play with it as a new piece of equipment. In this way, staff skilfully expand children's activity in several areas of

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who attend

learning. They also demonstrate to children that their ideas are highly valued, which rewards their curiosity and inventiveness. Adult-led activities are also of very high quality. Every child has a thoughtfully planned one-to-one activity with their key person each week. These activities are expertly pitched to interest the child, give them success and extend their skills and abilities. Children also greatly benefit from attentive staff who suggest ideas to extend children's activities. For example, after playing with self-built vehicles for some time, staff suggest they trail them through paint, to see what the tracks look like. The children are immediately interested and direct the painting activity to encompass hand printing as well. This demonstrates the skilful blend of adult and children's ideas to create absorbing, prolonged play.

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who attend

Staff maintain excellent records of children's development, and the planning and assessment records are exemplary. Staff base the planning in children's interests and ideas. Using highly accurate and thoughtful observations of children's achievements, they devise one-to-one activities which support children through their next steps. This means that each week the curriculum is engaging children's current interests and learning needs. Children's progress through the Early Years Foundation Stage is expertly tracked so achievement gaps are quickly identified and addressed. As a result, children make excellent progress given their starting points and capabilities. Parents are closely involved in the regular detailed summary assessments, contributing their reflections on activities at home. This makes a highly effective partnership in fostering children's learning and development.

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

Staff are exemplary key persons for children. New children benefit from having their key person close by, explaining the new routines and helping them to settle throughout the first sessions. As a result, children soon gain confidence to explore and chat with staff and make friends with other children. Children have a very strong sense of belonging as they know their ideas for activities and plans are highly valued. Staff have created an excellent learning environment where children can be independent and direct their own play. Equipment and play materials are readily accessible to children and there is space for them to keep their models and work in progress. Materials and equipment are of excellent quality. For example, the Montessori inspired 'natural life' and mathematical equipment is very enticing to children as it is so well made. Outside, there is a garden where the whole of the curriculum is on offer. Children can take part in activities which promote their early

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

writing or enhance their understanding of lifecycles through planting and growing. A story circle of wooden seats promotes story telling and communication. There are slides and climbing frames for physical play, but they do not provide sufficient challenge for older and more able children.

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

Children benefit greatly from the healthy lifestyles the nursery promotes. Children can choose to have their snack at any time in the morning and are highly skilled at self- selection. For example, they collect their own plates and cups, help themselves to fruit, snacks and drinks, and tidy their things away afterwards. Snacks and meals are social occasions, and children enjoy sitting with their friends. Children grow a variety of food plants and take part in a wide variety of cooking activities. Water is continuously available for them to drink. Children can play outside at any time, which is very helpful for more active learners, and the nursery has have access to local woodland. Children's growth and development is extremely well fostered, as children enjoy manipulating tiny beads, or using ride-on toys to support their small and large muscle growth. Children take care of their personal hygiene very well as routines are extremely well-established.

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

Children's behaviour is extremely mature. They skilfully negotiate with each other in cooperative play and take care of each other's work. For example, when children make toys out of construction materials, they lend them to other children to play with, and they are handled with great care. Children build friendships and can identify and express their emotions very well. Staff are very consistent with any children who may need special support with their behaviour and as a result, children make rapid progress in their social skills. This means that overall, children are exceptionally well prepared for the next stage in their learning.

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provision

The owner/manager and staff team are very experienced and highly skilled. They have a very strong shared vision and values, which focus strongly on meeting the individual needs of each child. This makes them highly effective at meeting the safeguarding and welfare requirements. Staff demonstrate an exceptional knowledge and understanding of issues to do with child protection and children's welfare. They know the procedures to follow should they have concerns about the welfare of a child, showing great regard for the child's view. The manager follows a robust recruitment policy and all staff are checked as to their suitability. Staff follow recording procedures for any accidents and incidents very carefully, underpinning children's well-being. The manager continuously reflects on the provision and sets ambitious targets for improvement. She involves parents, staff and the children's views to set well-targeted action plans which are thoughtfully carried out.

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provision

For example, the manager intends to set up a parents forum to further support parents in raising and addressing their ideas for improvement. The manager has excellent methods of monitoring the work of the provision. She oversees the tracking of children's achievements to identify and address gaps in the curriculum. For example, using this method she identified that there was a gap in the provision for information and communication technology. She took immediate steps to improve the resources for this area of learning and tracked the impact on children's learning. This attention to detail means the nursery has an exemplary capacity for continuous improvement.

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provision

The manager and staff have quickly established very strong links with receiving schools. They provide excellent support for children to make the transition, particularly where children have additional needs. The manager works in partnership with the local authority and other support agencies to meet children's needs. She disseminates her best practice and brings new ideas to the nursery. For example, she is shortly to set up a new language group within the nursery using a local authority model. Parents have exemplary opportunities to be involved in the nursery. They contribute their skills by running high quality activities with children. They also respond to nursery initiatives, providing maps of their journey to nursery for a pirate map project. Parents value the informative newsletter and appreciate the advice and support on ideas for play at home. Staff work very closely with parents to meet children's individual needs. Staff use highly effective methods to

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provision

engage parents in their child's learning and development at the nursery. This means they forge an excellent partnership in support of the 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 EY455605 Local authority East Sussex Inspection number 893893 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 2 - 8 Total number of places 20 Number of children on roll 34 Name of provider Young Haymakers Limited Date of previous inspection not applicable Telephone number 01323 832 549

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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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