Serendipitys Day Nursery and Pre-school

Serendipitys Day Nursery & Pre- School 32 Nottingham Road, BINGHAM, Nottinghamshire, NG13 8AT

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 15/05/2013 09/06/2011

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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 take part in a wide range of hands-on learning experiences and parents are provided with clear opportunities to become involved in their children's learning. This enables each child to achieve to their full potential.  Children's independence is effectively promoted as they are encouraged to learn important self-care skills. This begins in the baby room with younger children learning to feed themselves and ends in the pre-school room where older children begin to serve their own meals.  The effective management team are committed to the ongoing development of the setting. They use a robust process of self-evaluation and through their new highly effective monitoring system, they continually enhance the provision for all children.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Younger children's language, communication and critical thinking skills are not always maximised. This is because some staff do not always allow children enough time to think about what they have been asked and to then reply with their own answers.  Sometimes, older children's concentration and contribution during some adult-led activities are not always fully maximised because the size of the group is too large.

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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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Inspection activities

 The inspector observed activities and care practices within each playroom and the outside areas.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke with children and staff in each room and she held a meeting with the manager and registered provider. She also took into account the views of parents and carers spoken to during the inspection.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at relevant documentation including observational assessments, policies, the settings self-evaluation and information used to assess the suitability of staff.  The inspector completed a joint observation with the manager.

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Information about the setting

Serendipitys Day Nursery & Pre-School was registered in 2008 and is on the Early Years Register. It is a privately run and is part of a group of four nurseries. The nursery operates from a converted bungalow in the centre of Bingham, Nottinghamshire and there is a fully enclosed area available for outdoor play. Children are cared in different rooms according to age and ability.

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Information about the setting

The nursery employs 18 members of childcare staff. Of these, one member of staff has Qualified Teacher Status and 13 members of staff hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 3. The nursery opens Monday to Friday all year round, closing for bank holidays only. Sessions are from 7.15am until 6pm. Children attend for a variety of sessions. There are currently 118 children attending who are in the early years age group. The nursery provides funded early education for three- and four-year-old children and supports a number of 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:

 extend younger children's communication, language and critical thinking skills by giving them 'thinking time', for example, wait for them to think about what they want to say and to put their thoughts into words

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

 increase opportunities for older children to more effectively contribute and concentrate during adult-led activities by grouping them into smaller sized groups.

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who attend

Children engage and participate in a wide range of interesting, hands-on learning experiences. Individualised planning completed by a child's key person results in each child's next steps for learning being identified and planned for. Further learning opportunities are also continually provided because staff follow children's interest. This ensures all children are continually engaged in purposeful play experiences, which meet their needs. Ongoing observational assessments are used to assess the progress children make from their unique starting points. Staff and management monitor these to ensure every child is achieving to their full potential within all areas of learning. Parents receive termly progress reports on children's development and clear information in a newsletter which is specific to their child's room. This information enables parents to be part of their child's learning. Staff work closely with parents and outside agencies to support and

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who attend

integrate children with special educational needs and/or disabilities into the setting. This results in these children receiving targeted supported through individual education plans, which helps them to move forward in their development.

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who attend

Children are cared for in different rooms according to their age, ability and individual needs. When children are due to move up to their next room, staff work closely with parents to ensure children's specific needs are met. For example, staff are aware that a child is going through a period of change at home and it is decided that they should not move up to the next age group at the current time to minimise any further stress this child may face. This shows how the setting carefully considers the whole child when making changes, to ensure they are fully emotionally, socially and developmentally ready for any move. Each room is well resourced with developmentally appropriate toys and resources, which are stored to provide children with easy access.

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who attend

Younger babies enjoy exploring and investigating as they use their senses when touching and feeling shredded paper. Older babies have fun learning to share and take turns during a planned baking activity. They enjoy developing their physical skills as they mix and then roll the mixture out, with some children becoming enthralled with the feel of the mixture when it gets onto their hands. When the activity is finished, staff note that children are still interested as they remain seated at the table. Staff quickly respond to children's continued interest as they provide each child with a clean bowl and spoon, which enables them to re-enact the activity. Toddlers in the two- to three-year-old room have great fun exploring and making marks and patterns in the shaving foam. An interesting range of activities are also well set out for children to freely access with staff deploying themselves effectively to support children's engagement and learning. As staff sit at each activity this

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who attend

encourages children to actively engage in these experiences. Most children are developing into confident communicators as they chat to their peers and staff. However, on some occasions younger children's language, communication and critical thinking skills are not always fully maximised. This is because staff sometimes do not always allow enough time for children to think about what they have been asked and to formulate and reply with their own answers.

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who attend

As children grow and develop, so does the structure and organisation of the daily routine. Therefore, children in pre-school receive more focused and adult-led activities, which prepares them well for when they start at school. During an adult-led activity staff question children well to encourage them to identify different shapes and numbers. However, grouping of older children is sometimes not fully effective to maximise all children's concentration and contribution. For example, during some adult-led activities all children's interest is not fully sustained as they have to wait too long or they are unable to fully see the resources because the size of the group is too large. Children's independence with their health and self-care skills is also enhanced as they move through the nursery. For example, babies are encouraged to learn to feed themselves, with toddlers starting the process of serving some of their own meals. This is more actively promoted and

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who attend

encouraged with pre-school children as they choose and serve more of their own meals. This helps children to decide how much or little they require to meet their needs. All children engage in outdoor play opportunities both in the secure outdoor play areas and during walks and trips around the local area. This provides children with opportunities to engage in the local community as well as promoting their physical skills.

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

Staff work closely with the child and their family, developing effective lines of communication to ensure children's individuality is respected and met. Each child is assigned a key person, which enables them to develop a close emotional bond and attachment to a specific person while they are cared for at nursery. Babies are held while being bottle fed, which effectively meets their emotional needs as they receive comfort and reassurance with the close contact of staff. Children relate well to staff and look to them for support when they are faced with situations which are unfamiliar to them. This helps children to develop confidence as they develop their social skills. Babies and younger children enjoy watching others playing and then they move to play alongside their peers. As children progress to toddlers and pre-school they begin to engage in more cooperative play as they develop good social skills. Positive re-enforcement provided by staff creates a

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

nurturing environment in which children behave well.

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

Children's awareness of health and safety is effectively promoted through the daily routine, well-planned activities and people of interest visiting the setting. For example, visits from the local fire service help to develop children's awareness of how to stay safe on bonfire night and visits from the local police promote children's awareness of stranger danger. Activities planned around topics like 'Healthy Body, Happy Me' and trips to a dairy farm, help children to learn about why it is important for them to be active and to eat healthy foods. Children adopt good health and hygiene practices during the daily routine and they benefit from nutritious meals which are freshly prepared on the premises each day to meet their dietary requirements. Daily indoor and outdoor play opportunities, which includes the use of an on site soft play area, provide children with lots of opportunities to be active and to develop their physical skills.

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

Partnership working with other settings and outside agencies is good. When children move to a new setting or school, a progress report is completed on the child and shared with their new provision. This provides them with clear information on children's starting points which enables them to continue to promote children's learning. Transition arrangements with local schools are also good, with the child's new teacher gathering further information on their needs and abilities through visits to the nursery. Information is also shared with other providers and outside agencies where the care is shared, enabling everyone to work closely together to continue to support each child's ongoing development.

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provision

The registered provider has a small chain of nurseries and they, therefore, have some very clear procedures, which are shared between their nurseries to support the effective delivery of the Statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage. The reintroduction of a more experienced manager who previously ran one of their other nurseries, has created a stronger management team which is driving the nursery forward in their commitment to provide a higher quality provision. The manager has introduced more sharply and highly focused monitoring systems, which are continually developing staff's practice and skills. This is creating a dedicated, motivated staff team, where everyone is working together to improve standards of care and learning for all children. The nursery's comprehensive system of self-evaluation, which involves the views of all users, effectively monitors the whole provision and now includes the educational

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provision

programmes. This leads to the clear identification of targets for future development and it also ensures every child is achieving to their full potential. As some of the staff are new and the manager has only recently been brought back to oversee the running of the nursery, some of these targets have yet to be fully embedded in practice. Therefore, although the staff are striving to have an outstanding provision, children are currently benefitting from a good standard of care and learning.

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provision

The qualified, experienced staff team provide children with a warm, caring environment, which enables each child to feel secure and well cared for. Clear recruitment, vetting and induction procedures are followed to ensure the suitability of the staff team who work with children. Staff's ongoing suitability is promoted through strong performance management systems, including the use of regular supervisions and staff appraisals. This results in staff continually developing their practice through constructive feedback offered by the manager. The manager also regularly pops into each room during the course of the day to role model effective practice and to offer assistance and support where needed. This is one example of how the manager has a good overview of the nursery, enabling her to continually drive improvements forward. Staff implement the nursery's good policies and procedures to ensure the safety and welfare of children is maintained. For example, the

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provision

setting and outside area are securely maintained and staff follow clear outings procedures to keep children safe at all times. Improvements to the security of the outside area and increased safety checks have enhanced children's safety during outside play. Supervision of children is good and staff continually risk assess all areas to ensure potential hazards are identified and minimised. The nursery has an effective child protection policy, which includes the procedure to follow if allegations are made against a member of staff. The manager and staff have secure knowledge of these procedures to ensure children are safeguarded at all times.

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provision

Partnership working with parents, carers and outside agencies is good, which results in inclusion of all children. Comprehensive information is continually shared and exchanged between staff and parents to ensure children's specific needs are met. Parents receive detailed feedback on their children's daily care through informative discussions. A photographic slideshow is displayed in each room, which gives parents a real insight into the range of activities and play experiences their children have engaged in each day. Parents speak very highly about the setting, the staff and the care and learning their children receive. They use words like 'fantastic', 'open and honest relationships' and 'very good information' when describing the nursery. Overall, children's care and learning needs are effectively met as the nursery provides them with a firm foundation for their continued learning and development.

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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 253399 Local authority Nottinghamshire Inspection number 916894

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 5 Total number of places 64 Number of children on roll 118 Name of provider Serendipitys (Day Nursery) Child Care Services Ltd Date of previous inspection 09/06/2011 Telephone number 01949 836730 or

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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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