The Willows Day Nursery

The Willows Day Nursery 380 Redditch Road, Kings Norton, BIRMINGHAM, West Midlands, B38 8PS

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 16/04/2013 17/11/2008

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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

 Staff demonstrate good understanding of how children learn. Through effective teaching methods, such as skilful questioning during activities. Children enjoy interesting and challenging experiences, which extends their learning effectively.  Children's sense of security is promoted by the effective key person system, which helps them to form strong bonds and emotional attachments. Staff are kind, caring and attentive to what children say and do.  Relationships with parents are good with staff giving plenty of opportunities to become involved at all levels. Discussions are purposeful and impact well on the subsequent care offered and received by the children.  Children's achievements over time are effectively supported because staff accurately identify priorities through well-considered reflection. The positive actions taken provide continued and thoughtful improvement to the quality of the provision.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 There is scope to enhance the environment further by maximising the spaces and extending the variety of resources available so that babies are able to explore and move more freely and use their senses to the very optimum.  There is room to improve the opportunities for children to access additional technology resources in order to develop further skills and understanding of the world.

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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 throughout the nursery.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke with the managers, staff and children at appropriate times throughout the observations.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at documentation, including children's assessments, planning, and a selection of policies and procedures.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector also took into account the views of parents information included in the nursery's evaluations and action plans and from parents spoken to during the inspection.

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Information about the setting

The Willows Day Nursery originally opened in 1995 and moved to the current premises in 2001. It is registered with Ofsted on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. It is situated in a converted detached house in a residential area of Kings Norton, Birmingham, and is privately owned by Virdee Day Care Limited. The nursery serves the local area and is accessible to all children. It operates from six main rooms and there is a fully enclosed area available for outdoor play.

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Information about the setting

The nursery employs 14 members of childcare staff. Of these, 12 hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 2 and above. The nursery opens Monday to Friday for 52 weeks of the year. Sessions are from 7am until 6pm. Children attend for a variety of sessions. There are currently 71 children attending who are in the early years age group. The nursery provides funded early education for two-, three- and four-year-old children.

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

 refine well-planned areas to allow maximum space for babies to move and explore and provide more variety of novelty and natural resources in the environment to encourage use of all their senses

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

 incorporate more resources that children recognise into their play, such as, cameras, radios or karaoke machines, and develop use of whiteboards and photocopiers, in order to support children in exploring and acquiring skills and increasing their understanding of technology.

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who attend

Children are making significant progress in their learning and development. They are supported well by staff who have secure knowledge of how children learn. The staff's interactions and teaching techniques are positive and show their good understanding of how to engage and capture children's interests. Children's development is assessed and monitored well because staff track the impact of the experiences provided on children's learning. As a result, they ensure there is a variety of interesting activities across the seven areas of learning. Staff complete all required progress checks and assessments and share these very well with parents. This means that parents are fully aware of their child's development and are made aware of any areas where their child's progress is less than expected. This information is used well in order to gain appropriate support at an early stage so that no child gets left behind. Staff also use assessment effectively to identify

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who attend

children's next steps in learning and plan activities to enable them to make good progress. As a result, all children are progressing well and are developing good skills for their future learning, such as moving on to nursery and school.

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who attend

Children's starting points are assessed well on entry. For example, at initial visits, parents are invited to share information about their child's development. This valuable detail, such as, likes, dislikes and favourite activities, are used effectively to support the staff's observations of the children. As a result, staff learn about the children's preferences and skills and build on these to help children to settle well into the nursery. This partnership is extended further because parents complete accounts about the experiences children have enjoyed whilst they are not in nursery. Staff then use this information to plan and provide complementary activities. In addition to this, staff encourage parents to attend regular open days and workshops based in each of the rooms. These provide some wonderful opportunities to liaise with staff and to share activities with their children. As a result, children's learning is supported well, both at the setting and at home.

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who attend

Children enjoy their experiences at the nursery and are eager to engage with staff and peers. The environment is used well as children are free to select from the variety of age and stage appropriate resources on offer. In the 'plum tree' room, babies relax in cosy areas, look at books with good staff interaction or show their independence as they turn dials and lift flaps on the activity centres. However, children are less successful in using their senses to explore and investigate. This is because there are too few opportunities to access natural and novel experiences and space is hampered by lots of other equipment. Children in the 'mango tree' room are challenged by staff, as they are encouraged to walk up the steps on the small slide and down the other side. Staff are knowledgeable about the children and provide a variety of activities to support individual children. For example, for children who are less steady on their feet, staff re-arrange the room so that children

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who attend

can move between activities while holding on to tables or low-level storage .

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who attend

In the 'cherry tree' room children enjoy using the indoor and outdoor environment together. They come inside to collect magnifying glasses and dishes to take outside to help them in their hunt for bugs. They are confident and steer their own learning well making sure they tell staff to 'shhh, the worms are sleeping!'. In the 'apple/orange tree' room children enjoy a wide variety of stimulating activities. Here each member of staff is responsible for the planning and monitoring of specific areas of learning. Staff find this works well as it ensures there is equal focus on each area and works well with their individual strengths and interests. Staff extend children's learning effectively with skilful use of open-ended questions and good interaction during planned and spontaneous activities. Children are engrossed and involved as they sit for 'telling stories'. They wait patiently to share their ideas for what the story will be about, who the characters are and

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who attend

confidently answer questions from staff about what will happen next.

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

Children play in warm and welcoming surroundings throughout the nursery. Each of the rooms are generally well-resourced and set out with good use of the equipment supporting children's learning and development further. However, there is scope to maximise opportunities for children to learn about the world of technology through enhancing their use of resources, such as, taking their own photographs, photocopying their pictures, making recordings of their voices and using programmable toys. There are many brightly coloured displays and notices which include photographs of the children and their families, and a wealth of useful information about the nursery and early years practice which are written in several languages. These show how well the nursery respect and value diversity which helps children and their families to feel a strong sense of belonging. In addition to this, the examples of the children's pictures and paintings which

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

decorate their surroundings help children to reflect on their successes and this supports their self-confidence and self-awareness well.

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

The key person system is effective in meeting children's individual needs. This means that children feel safe and secure and the close bonds formed with staff promote good levels of well-being. Children's care routines are adhered to and a clear exchange of regular information between parents and staff ensures that changing needs are consistently met. Transitions within the nursery are effective because current information is gathered and children enjoy quality time spent with new key persons and within their next room before a permanent move. As a result, children appear very comfortable in their surroundings and build relationships with the kind and caring staff.

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

Children are showing good awareness of their own and others' safety. They are encouraged to tidy-up when they have finished and to take care of the resources and equipment. This practice supports the nursery's risk assessments and helps children to manage their surroundings to ensure safety and minimise hazards. The staff are good role models and use consistent strategies and age- and stage-appropriate explanations to provide children with a clear knowledge of acceptable behaviour. Children receive gentle reminders during play so that they clearly understand expectations and how to conduct themselves appropriately.

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

Children are developing good independent self-care skills. Some use the toilet with confidence and ask for help if needed, while those in nappies are taken care of effectively. At snack and mealtimes, children select and take turns to serve their food and pour drinks, with a member of staff at hand to help. Children enjoy sitting together sharing stories and daily news as they eat their nutritious meals. These opportunities help children to make good choices and promote children's understanding of their own health and dietary needs. The outdoor and physical opportunities help children to understand the importance of fresh air and exercise. The physical development co-ordinator enthusiastically helps to plan and monitor this provision across the nursery to ensure each child receives a beneficial programme to support all children's development. Outside children are fully involved as they embark on their 'space mission'. Children 'fly' through the sky and up into

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

space to visit the planets and make sure they have their space suits done up and that it is safe before they get out of the rockets. They negotiate around one another developing further physical skills as they walk over the cobbles and on through the obstacle course. There is very good use of space outside with varied zones for different types of play which are easily accessed and provide good opportunities for children to explore and investigate at their own pace.

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

There are currently no children at the nursery who have special educational needs and/or disabilities or who speak English as an additional language. Although, staff are very focussed on ensuring that all children are valued in the nursery and adapt practice to meet their individual needs effectively. They maintain a good level of communication with parents and actively seek advice and guidance from other professionals in order to gain knowledge and skills to ensure all children's needs are met. Staff recognise diversity as a strength and are happy to celebrate festivals and events to promote children's understanding of different cultures. Staff create an environment that is welcoming, safe and stimulating, where children enjoy their learning and grow in confidence. Every child, from the youngest to the oldest and of differing abilities, receives a happy and enjoyable early years experience that secures their future learning and ensures they are ready for

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provision

The welcoming environment provides children with space to relax, unwind and have fun. Staff share information very effectively with parents and other providers and valuable information is given to future providers or teachers so that individual learning can be continued. These partnerships are well established and ensure smooth transitions. In addition to this, there are good communication links with other settings that children attend in parallel with the nursery. Staff actively share details of children's individual needs, skills and characteristics in order to enhance children's learning and development in consistent and complementary ways. For example, they work closely with other professionals such as, local family support teams and are very involved in referral processes ensuring all families get the support they need.

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provision

Children learn and develop well and are kept healthy and safe. This is because staff have very good understanding of their responsibilities in meeting the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage. There is a broad range of well- written and effective policies in place to support the management of the nursery and staff's clear knowledge demonstrates a significant level of understanding of the procedures to follow. For example, children are protected because staff are alert to any issues of concern and respond in a timely and appropriate manner. This is a particular area in which the nursery have greatly improved following some issues since their last inspection. In addition to this, they have robust procedures in place with regard to assessing risks within their nursery, making referrals and notifying Ofsted of incidents.

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provision

There are clear recruitment and vetting systems in place to ensure all people working with the children are suitable to do so. Performance management systems are effective with staff identifying suitable training. Staff cascade information from training and early years events to extend team knowledge and skills. In addition to this, managers monitor the impact of this shared knowledge to ensure their professional development is secure and to continually improve the provision for children. Staff are fully aware of the importance of assessing and monitoring the planning and delivery of the educational programmes and seek advice and guidance effectively. For example, they work well with other local providers and their local authority advisory team to share ideas and identify best practice and use quality audits as a welcome support. Regular staff meetings are held to reflect and share ideas to adapt practice where they feel necessary. The valued opinions of

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provision

parents and other childcare professionals are collated and used to complete self-- evaluations and action plans. As a result, the nursery is focussed on the priorities for development, such as, embedding knowledge and skills gained from training events and research. This is in order to continue to improve the nursery for the benefit of children and their families.

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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 EY270031 Local authority Birmingham Inspection number 907944

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 85 Number of children on roll 71 Name of provider Virdee Daycare Limited Date of previous inspection 17/11/2008 Telephone number 0121 458 2828

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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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