Arnold House Day Nursery

Arnold House Day Nursery Mansfield Road, Daybrook, Arnold, Nottinghamshire, NG5 6HW

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 22/04/2013 08/01/2009

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early years provision

This inspection: 2 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 2 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 2

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This provision is good

 Children behave well and are confident because staff provide clear guidance about what is acceptable behaviour and consistently praise and acknowledge their achievements.  Children form secure emotional attachments with their key person because staff work closely with all parents, gathering clear information about each child. This results in children feeling settled and confident in their surroundings.  Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and their families are very well supported by staff to reach their full potential in this fully inclusive nursery.  Partnerships with parents is strong. Staff and parents communicate very well, which helps children's continuity of learning and care.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 The indoor and outdoor area is not sufficiently rich in print to fully support children's early literacy skills so they can learn about words.  Some staff are not always confident about how to extend children's learning during activities, particularly when they talk with and question children.

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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 completed a joint observation with the manager.  The inspector spoke to the manager at appropriate times throughout the inspection.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took account of the views of parents and children spoken to on the day.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at children's assessment records, planning documentation, evidence of suitability of staff working within the setting, and a range of other documentation.

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Information about the setting

Arnold House Day Nursery was registered in 1999. It is on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. It is situated in purpose- built premises in the Daybrook area of Nottingham, and is managed by Bear Care Day Nurseries. The nursery serves the local area and is accessible to all children. It operates from a large detached property and there is a fully enclosed area available for outdoor play.

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Information about the setting

The nursery employs 19 members of childcare staff. Of these, 15 hold appropriate early years qualifications. One member of staff holds the Early Years Professional Status. The nursery opens Monday to Friday all year round. Sessions are from 7.30am until 6pm. Children attend for a variety of sessions. There are currently 76 children attending. The nursery provides funded early education for two-, three- and four-year-old children. It supports 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:

 increase some staff's understanding of how to extend and provide more challenge for children in order to ensure consistently high quality learning experiences, with particular regard to questioning

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

 develop further the indoor and outdoor area by creating an environment rich in print where children can learn about words, by using names, labelling, signs and posters.

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who attend

Staff at the nursery have a good understanding of the seven areas of learning and plan a balanced curriculum based on interests children show in their play. Key person groups allow staff to form close bonds with their key children and ensure their individual learning needs are well targeted. Staff know the children well and undertake thorough observations. They use this information effectively in order to plan challenging experiences for individuals and groups of children. Consequently, they make good progress in their learning. Staff are knowledgeable about each child's stage of development and correctly identify the developmental age bands for each child. Staff demonstrate a good awareness of the progress check at age two. They understand how to involve parents in the process, so that they can share what they know about children's learning.

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who attend

Toys and resources are presented at children's height which means they can make independent choices in their play. Resources supporting all areas of learning are very well represented in the playrooms. Children's communication, language and literacy are mostly promoted well across all areas of the nursery. They enjoy easy access to a broad range of books and reading materials which are available both indoors and outside. Very young children enjoy the experience of sharing stories with staff. Older children engage in group story time. They are familiar with the book and 'read' the story alongside the key person. However, labelling and signs around the indoor and outdoor areas are not so fully utilised. As a result, children have fewer opportunities in the environment to learn about and recognise words. Children's understanding of mathematics is effectively promoted because staff introduce counting and size language as they play both indoors and out. For

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who attend

example, children recognise that anything can be counted as they count the children who are staying for lunch and count the fingers on a handprint. In addition, children learn about size, as a member of staff comments, 'I'm too big to fit in there' when a child beckons her to sit in a tyre.

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who attend

Babies' creativity is well promoted. They explore and experiment with glue, spreaders, paper and glitter. Older children are widely encouraged to freely express themselves as the children have access to a broad range of art and craft resources which they access independently. Children enjoy being outside in the fresh air, they balance on the milk crates and dig in the sand tray. The 'tuff spot' provides a 'bug scape' where the children can search for and discover bugs; this supports their understanding of the natural world. Physical development is fostered very well by staff as children climb, jump, slide and roll in the dedicated large soft play area and ball pool. Babies become deeply involved as their curiosity is aroused by playing with shavings and trucks. They smile and copy the staff as they drizzle the shavings on their heads. All children are excited, enthusiastic and very engaged in their play. Older children explore and investigate in the sensory room; they

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who attend

develop their technology skills as they use the torches to create light beams. Most staff use good open-ended questions and running commentary to extend and re-shape activities. However, a few staff are not confident in their understanding of how to extend children's learning experiences. Nonetheless, because they are fully supported and guided by other staff, children still receive worthwhile learning experiences which enables them to make good progress. All children are mostly challenged well through their activities and are well prepared for the next stage in their learning.

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who attend

Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities are fully included in the nursery and given good support by staff. The nursery liaises effectively with external agencies or services to ensure children receive any additional support they may need. An effective use of sign language supports some children in their language development and helps other children to communicate with one another if language is delayed. Staff have high aspirations and activities are relevant and appropriately challenging for the children. As a result, all children are included and helped to reach their full potential while at the nursery.

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who attend

Key persons carry out an initial assessment of children with the parents on entry, to enable them to set children's starting points in their learning. Parents receive regular daily feedback and more detailed, 'Well Done' written reports showing them what their children have achieved. Parents are encouraged to write comments about children's achievements at home on the 'Wow' apples and these are displayed on a tree on the wall. This supports continuity of care.

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

Children are happy and content in this welcoming and friendly nursery. They show that they feel safe and secure because they happily separate from their parents. Key persons work hard to establish close relationships with parents before their child starts by gathering a good range of informative detail about the child's learning and development, and care needs. Allocated time is carefully implemented providing opportunities for staff to discuss and record in detail children's overall needs and starting points with parents. Not only does this support parents in learning about their child's own development but also helps the key person plan play for the individual children. As a result, children settle quickly and have built up strong attachments and relationships with their key person. This enables them to develop a positive attitude to their learning and a strong sense of belonging. This means that children are confident and have high levels of self-esteem.

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

Colourful displays of children's artwork, posters and photographs create a welcoming and stimulating environment, which helps all children have a sense of belonging.

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

Children are learning self-help skills well. For example, pre-school children wash and dry their hands independently for snack. They choose their own cups and sit together socially for snack time. Children enjoy nutritious homemade food, such as pasta bolognaise, followed by cake or yogurt and fresh fruit. Children are active and have access to fresh air daily as they enjoy the outside environment. Children develop their independence and confidence as they choose their activities and help to tidy up so that they know where the toys belong. They cooperate very well together in their play and have very happy and friendly relationships with each other and with staff. Behaviour is excellent and staff consistently offer praise and encouragement for good behaviour. Children feel safe and secure in the nursery as adults are always on hand for reassurance. This close supervision helps to give children a good sense of well-being. Practitioners promote an awareness of

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

safety issues during play activities. For example, they remind children not to climb on chairs or they might fall. Regular fire drills consolidate children's understanding of staying safe. The nursery places a strong emphasis on helping children with transition and they ensure children are well prepared as they progress from room to room and then on to big school. When children move on to another early years setting, staff share summary documents to ensure children experience a smooth transition.

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provision

The safeguarding of children is good. Staff have a secure understanding of their role and responsibility to protect children. They are confident and knowledgeable of what to do should they have any concerns regarding a child in their care. Regular training keeps them up to date with current policies and procedures. A clearly written policy covers requirements of the Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage, such as the action that is taken regarding the use of mobile phones and cameras in the nursery. The educational programmes are closely monitored within each room to ensure children are provided with a varied and challenging range of activities and experiences in the indoor and outdoor environment. The manager also spends time in each room to observe and assess staff performance. This enables the manager to check how well staff are performing and identify any training needs. There is scope to further enhance this support

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provision

with regard to questioning techniques in activities. She offers support, as well as being open to listening to staff suggestions and ideas for any changes.

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provision

The organisation has robust procedures to ensure that suitable members of staff are recruited and retained. Regular risk assessments are completed by staff on all areas where children have access to minimise hazards to them. The manager monitors risk assessments weekly. As a result, staff create a safe and secure environment for children. There is a good range of policies, procedures and records, including effective accident and medication records, which effectively support the safety of the children and the management of the setting. Management and staff work very effectively together to reflect on and evaluate all aspects of the provision. They undertake self-evaluation of their activities and the opportunities that they offer. This includes comments and suggestions from parents. The nursery is currently focusing on developing opportunities for babies to make marks in every session to improve learning for all children.

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provision

Parents spoken to are positive in their comments and value the service that is offered. A wealth of information is displayed around the nursery, such as facts about learning and development, photographs of children's key person and the staff team, as well as colourful artwork by children. Parents receive a comprehensive welcome pack when their child starts at the nursery. Children who have special educational needs and/or disabilities, are supported because the nursery staff welcome the involvement from any other agencies who are involved with them. This partnership working contributes to a consistent approach for 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 253203 Local authority Nottinghamshire Inspection number 908658

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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 76 Name of provider Janet Barbara Budden Date of previous inspection 08/01/2009 Telephone number 0115 9666123

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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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