The Rochford Day Nursery

The Rochford Day Nursery(The Rochford Kids Club) 2-4 Ashingdon Road, Rochford, ESSEX, SS4 1NJ

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 03/05/2013 11/01/2010

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early years provision

This inspection: 1 Previous inspection: 2 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

 Children relish their time in the nursery and have many exciting opportunities to explore, play imaginatively and learn independently. There is a highly effective blend of adult-led activities and those chosen by the children.  The staff have a great understanding of how young children learn and are particularly skilled at knowing when to allow children to learn on their own, and when to intervene and provide guidance and support.  The key person system works exceptionally well to encourage children to feel welcomed and valued. Key persons work very closely with parents and carers and children benefit from very strong continuity of care.  Exceedingly high standards of cleanliness are maintained throughout the nursery and both children and staff demonstrate an extremely good understanding of effective hygiene routines.  Children's safety and security are a high priority and rigorous safeguarding policies and

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This provision is outstanding

procedures are in place to ensure this.  The clear and effective management structure promotes an exceptionally strong culture of self-improvement and valuing staff. As a result, children benefit because all staff take pride in and enjoy their work.

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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 in the indoor and outdoor learning environments, this included a joint observation with a manager.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector held discussions with the registered provider, managers, staff and children.  The inspector viewed a sample of the children's development records.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector saw evidence of suitability and qualifications of the staff, risk assessment, policies and procedures and other documentation in relation to health and safety checks.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took account of the views of parents spoken to on the day and from comments in the nursery's self-evaluation form.

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Information about the setting

Rochford Day Nursery (The Rochford Kids Club) was registered in 2001 and is on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. It operates from a converted school building in Rochford, Essex. It is privately run and managed. The nursery serves the local area and is accessible to all children. Children are cared for within five age groups and there are two fully enclosed areas available for outdoor play.

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Information about the setting

The nursery employs 21 members of childcare staff. Of these, 15 staff hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 3 or 4 and two staff that hold qualifications at level 2. The two managers hold Early Years Professional Status and another member of staff holds an early years degree. The nursery also employs a full-time cook.

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Information about the setting

The nursery opens Monday to Friday all year round. Opening times are from 7am until 6.30pm. Children attend for a variety of sessions or out of school care. There are currently 127 children attending who are within the early years age group. The nursery provides funded early education for two-, three- and four-year-old children. It supports a number of children who speak English as an additional language and children with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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

 sustain the current outstanding outcomes and raise achievement even further by: continuing to develop and enhance the quality improvement processes in the nursery and include new initiatives as they become available.

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who attend

The educational programme provides a wealth of exciting opportunities for learning. As a result, children and babies are enthusiastic, highly motivated and make outstanding gains in their learning and development. Highly stimulating activities and equipment inspire the children to use their imagination and make discoveries for themselves. In addition, innovative use is made of space and the outside areas are used extensively as extensions to the playrooms. Children are given excellent opportunities to develop their scientific, exploratory and investigative skills. They are fascinated discovering shells emerge as ice blocks begin to thaw. They tenderly water the herbs and vegetables they grow in the garden. Children show awe and wonder as they observe newly hatched chicks. With the help of books and skilful teaching they acquired a detailed understanding of the life cycle of a chicken. Children of all ages are provided with extensive opportunities to explore their

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who attend

external world through high-quality sensory experiences. They eagerly explore and describe the texture of materials, such as, shaving foam, cooked pasta and jelly crystals. Babies and toddlers enthusiastically take part in large-scale printing as they use paint on their hands and feet. Children are very excited when they use the newly refurbished sensory room and confidently explain how they can make lights change colours or create different sounds by touching pressure pads.

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who attend

From their individual starting points, children of all ages are making rapid progress towards the early learning goals across all areas of learning. Some children reach above the expected standards, particularly in literacy, by the time they leave the nursery to start school. Assessment is precise and sharply focussed. The dedicated and knowledgeable staff team observe what children can do and assess these observations to effectively identify children's next steps in learning. This information is then used as the foundation for future planning. This ensures that all activities are meaningful and of interest to children. There are also comprehensive monitoring and tracking documents in place to ensure that all children reach their goals. Staff demonstrate an excellent understanding of the required progress reports for children when they reach the age of two, and use their very detailed assessments of the children to conduct these. These reports are shared with

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who attend

parents enabling them to be fully involved with their child's learning. In addition, parents regularly contribute their own observations of children's learning at home and children take home activity packs to use with parents, to show what they have learned in the nursery.

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who attend

Children are extremely curious and become confident communicators. The staff are proactive in their interactions and use careful questioning to elicit articulate responses from the children. They also skilfully step back when they recognise that children need space for self-discovery and contemplation. Staff repeat words back to the children to enhance their vocabulary. Toddlers enjoy vocalising as the staff initiate conversation and reinforce their attempt to speak. Older children initiate and join in constant discussion with staff and each other. They listen, speak confidently, share humour and respond to adult suggestions. Children with English as an additional language have strong support. Staff use words in their own language during play and also read stories from dual language books. Children with special educational needs are fully integrated in the nursery. The special educational needs coordinator has a secure understanding of her role and is

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who attend

effective in meeting children's needs, through liaising with parents and other agencies.

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who attend

Children soon become independent learners as they quickly develop the skills they need in readiness for starting school. They are inspired to learn about numbers and relish taking part in problem solving activities that develop their mathematical skills. For example, children show high levels of concentration as they recognise the difference between shapes, such as, hexagons and octagons and fit them together to make interesting patterns. Literacy has a high profile in the nursery. Children are given many opportunities to write and record their activities. They write captions for display or create maps during role play. All children thoroughly enjoy the wide range of attractive books displayed. They take home books to share with their parents and some of the older children are reading fluently and with understanding.

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

Children are very settled because the nursery fosters an exceedingly strong sense of community and belonging. An excellent key person system helps children to develop extremely strong emotional bonds and secure trusting relationships with a special adult. Children's individual needs and requirements are discussed carefully and in detail with parents prior to placement. This ensures that key persons can plan routines and activities securely in tune with children's interests and capabilities right from the start. The affectionate and gentle care given by key persons enables children of all ages to develop a sense of trust and contentment. Babies and toddlers confidently make requests using sounds and gestures, such as, smiling and eagerly raising their arms when they want a cuddle. A very calm atmosphere is offered to the youngest children in the nursery and as a result they settle quickly and gain confidence separating from their parents. Children

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

develop high levels of self-esteem and confidence to prepare them well for their next stages in learning. Staff in each room prepare a detailed handover when a child is ready to move up to the next age group. This ensures staff obtain a shared understanding about the children and consistency is achieved in order to meet each child's individual needs.

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

Children behave extremely well as they play alongside each other. They are repeatedly praised for doing well, sharing and cooperating with other children. Children learn to manage their feelings and emotions very well because staff consistently show them how to do this very effectively. Themes and activities, such as, using the 'voice of the child' chart, are planned to encourage children to share their views on how well they are doing. Staff also encourage children to take on responsibilities. For example, children act as snack monitors and count how many friends are in their group, pour their drinks and make sure there is enough fruit for all.

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

Children thrive because they are developing an excellent awareness of the benefits of a healthy lifestyle. They have excellent opportunities to choose from a range of fresh fruit and vegetables and freshly cooked, nutritious meals are provided. The nursery has recently been presented with a 'Healthy Eating Gold Award' by the local council. Menus are varied, which educates the taste buds and adds to the topics of conversation at mealtimes, particularly when children talk about the food that is good for them. Staff diligently implement effective hygiene routines, such as cleaning tables before meals and wearing disposable gloves when handling food or changing nappies. Excellent hygiene is maintained in the nursery kitchen and this has been awarded five stars for food safety by an environmental health officer. There is a 'no shoe' policy throughout the indoor playrooms and this means that babies can crawl and young children play in an extremely

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

comfortable and clean environment. All staff hold first aid certificates and staff receive specialist training when they work with children with identified medical needs.

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

Children develop an extremely positive attitude towards physical exercise and playing in the fresh air. There is natural 'free-flow' for them as they are provided with superb opportunities to choose to play between the indoor and outside areas during each session. They have extensive opportunities to be active and master new skills as they learn to pedal tricycles or climb the steps of the low-level apparatus. Staff offer plenty of encouragement while providing children with lots of opportunities and space to take safe risks under very close supervision. Children show very clearly that they feel entirely safe in the nursery; parents and staff express no concerns about safety. The staff consistently draw children's attention to safety routines, such as putting on sun lotion and wearing sun hats before anyone goes out to play. Children say they know that staff do this, 'so that our skin does not burn in the hot sun'.

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provision

The leadership and management of the nursery is inspirational and shows a real passion for ensuring that children access high quality early years experiences. There is a strong determination by all to put the children first. The managers are proactive in implementing changes to improve practice. They have sharpened the systems used to check children's progress and how well the nursery is performing. The higher expectations for children mean that more are exceeding expectations for their age. A variety of methods of self- evaluation have been carried out. Children and parents are actively involved in their process. The staff team are very motivated and consistently evaluate their work to identify strengths and areas they wish to develop. As a result, activity planning is regularly reviewed to ensure that educational programmes are enthusiastically developed with fresh ideas. The staff are committed to their ongoing professional development and are very

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provision

keen to attend training to further their knowledge and qualifications. The nursery managers recognise that there is scope to develop the expertise of staff and drive the quality improvement processes even more, by involving the nursery in new initiatives from early years research projects, as they become available.

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provision

Since the last inspection significant improvements have been made to the premises to provide more child-centred play environments with easy access to outdoors. The playrooms are also continuously redecorated so they remain very bright, clean and welcoming. Each day the staff meticulously check that the play rooms and outdoor area are safe and clean before use. Fire procedures are clearly displayed and the children regularly practise fire drills to ensure they can quickly and calmly evacuate the building in the event of an emergency. The staff are extremely vigilant about the security of the children. There is a secure entry system to ensure that no unauthorised person is allowed access. There are very reliable arrangements to collect the children attending the out of school club from their primary schools each afternoon. Staff have a very secure understanding of safeguarding issues. All the staff have completed the relevant

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provision

background checks to confirm they are suitable to work with children. There are robust procedures in place to ensure that child protection concerns are dealt with appropriately and staff have confidence in their ability to record and refer information if necessary.

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provision

All the required documentation is maintained to a consistently high standard. A systematically organised operational file has been developed that is securely linked to the requirements of the Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage. It is meticulously reviewed, which contributes to children's health, safety and well-being. The high quality, comprehensive policies and procedures are shared with parents, which mean they are fully informed about the nursery and the care their children receive. The registered provider and the managers are fully aware of the need to inform Ofsted of significant events. The inspection took place following notification of an accident when a child slipped and fell in the outdoor area. The staff are fully aware of their responsibilities. They took prompt action to ensure that parents were informed and appropriate medical treatment was quickly obtained. A full and thorough review of this event has been carried

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provision

out to minimise the likelihood of an accident of this nature reoccurring. The managers have rigorously checked that the nursery meets all legal requirements, such as maintaining high staff to child ratios at all times and making sure that all outdoor equipment is of good quality and meets the required safety standards.

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provision

The excellent partnership with parents and carers contributes significantly to the children's well-being and progress. Extremely effective communication systems are in place. Parents are kept fully informed about the children's learning experiences through notices, newsletters, home-link diaries and verbal dialogue each day. Regular reports and contact with staff at consultation evenings ensure that achievements and targets for learning are continuously shared. The parents rate the nursery very highly. They are extremely eager to express how delighted they are with the progress their children make and commend the care, love and attention shown by the staff. The management and staff have also worked tirelessly to develop extremely good partnerships with local schools and other agencies involved with the children. This ensures that there is a shared and collaborative approach to promoting children's learning and development and there are seamless transitions on to

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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 402557 Local authority Essex Inspection number 917105

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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 127 Name of provider Michael Bradley Date of previous inspection 11/01/2010 Telephone number 01702549549

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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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