Little People Bramley

Little People Bramley McLaren Fields, Lower Town Street, Bramley, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS13 3EN

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 15/05/2013 16/04/2009

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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

 The practitioners are led by a highly committed manager who works closely with a local college to provide accredited training for practitioners. She in turn is supported within a strong, wider management team. This means there is a culture of continuous reflection and improvement and children's individual needs are well met.  Practitioners closely observe children's play, assess their interests and developmental stages and carefully tailor planning to their individual needs. This means all children including those with additional educational needs and disabilities make very good progress towards the early learning goals.  The nursery develops highly effective partnerships with parents and other agencies. This means all children make good progress in their learning and development.  Management and practitioners have a good knowledge and understanding of safeguarding procedures and practice. This helps keep children safe.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 There is scope to improve the already good mentoring and supervision of practitioners to strengthen the quality of teaching further and help children to make the best possible progress.  Children's opportunities to express themselves through a range of media, such as paint, are sometimes reduced because the resources are not always freely available for children to choose for themselves. This sometimes reduces children's independence.

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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 had a tour of the nursery and discussed with the manager how the nursery operates.  The inspector spoke to parents throughout the day.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector observed children playing in the various rooms and outdoors, and examined their learning records.  The inspector conducted a joint observation with the manager of the nursery.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector talked to children, practitioners, the cook and the managers throughout the inspection.

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Information about the setting

Little People Day Nursery was registered in 2004 and is on the Early Years Register. It is situated in a converted commercial building in the Bramley area of Leeds and is managed by Little People Nursery Ltd. The nursery serves the local area and is accessible to all children. There are separate, easily accessible and fully enclosed areas available for outdoor play for each age group.

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Information about the setting

The nursery employs 27 members of childcare staff. Of these, 23 hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 2 or above, A director of the company has Early Years Professional Status. The nursery opens Monday to Friday all year round. The nursery opens from 7.30am until 6pm daily Monday to Friday and children attend for a variety of sessions. There are currently 152 children attending who are in 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. The nursery is a member of the National Day Nurseries Association and receives support for the local authority and other agencies.

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

 extend the monitoring of the already good quality of teaching more closely, to ensure all practitioners consistently encourage children to become independent and motivated learners and achieve the highest levels of attainment

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

 teach children to use and care for materials, and then trust them to do so independently so they can explore and use media and materials for their own projects.

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who attend

The nursery meets the needs of all children well. A notable feature of this nursery is that singing can be heard from all the rooms for large parts of the day. For example, babies develop their communication and language skills as they sing interesting and complicated songs. They join in enthusiastically with the actions, such as clapping and raising their arms. They shout 'hooray', despite being too young to sing the words. Practitioners sing about 'Yummy Tummy Food' as the lunch arrives. Older children develop understanding mathematical ideas, such as counting and begin to understand the structure of language as they sing number and rhyming songs.

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who attend

Practitioners know that children learn as they play and explore. They provide a stimulating environment that is well resourced. For example, two, three-year-old children, explore foam with a practitioner. A practitioner skilfully encourages them to think about how the foam feels and encourages them to use a range of tools to make marks in the foam. Another group are 'Super Heroes' and make swords from a range of construction materials. A practitioner encourages them to solve problems as they fit the construction materials together and encourages them to develop their ideas about Wood Elves. In these ways children are developing communication and language skills. They are also practising using both their hands together in a controlled way. Practitioners introduce mathematical ideas of shape and number into all such activities and into routines. This means children are also developing these skills as they play. The children use computers,

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who attend

programmable toys, cameras and video recorders. In these ways children become familiar with a range of technologies. Children are encouraged to self-register and many of the resources are clearly labelled with words and pictures. This encourages children to develop an interest in words and in letters. Practitioners help them to write their names and draw. Practitioners provide paints and brushes both indoors and outdoors. The room is divided into different areas which focus on the different areas of learning, for example, the creative area includes a range of recycled boxes and glue that children can use to make models. In this way practitioners ensure there are opportunities for children to make progress in each area of learning and children make good progress towards the early learning goals.

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who attend

The room leader and practitioners plan activities and experiences for children based on observations of what they like doing. They jot down notes in a scrap book and use these notes to help plan weekly activities. They also base some activities each week on a reading book. For example, a current favourite title about a witch, a cat and a broom provided inspiration for children and practitioners for about a six week period. The children have a learning journal that practitioners use to monitor children's rate of learning and to keep parents informed about their child's learning. These records include photographs and notes about what children have done as well as regular assessments of children's progress. This includes the formal progress check when they are between 24 and 35 months. This means parents and the nursery can work closely together to ensure children make good progress in their learning and development. It also means parents and

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who attend

practitioners can quickly identify and provide any additional support children may require. The nursery provides for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities extremely well. Children make excellent progress because practitioners understand their needs and work closely with other agencies to ensure these needs are extremely well-met. This promotes children's learning and development and will help children establish a firm basis for their future education.

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

The manager and all her practitioners give high priority to the safety of children. There are comprehensive risk assessments which are checked daily. However the inspection took place following notification that a child left the building unattended. This happened when another parent entered, whilst the child's parent talked to a member of staff. The inspection found that the staff were fully aware of their responsibilities and have taken all the necessary steps to prevent this happening again. The entrance is now manned by a member of staff at busy periods and by staff in the adjacent office at other times. Parents can no longer enter the nursery using a keypad code but ring a bell. This means staff are aware there are parents in the building so they can escort them out of the building. The management has also fitted a high handle on the second set of double doors. This means children can no longer open the unlocked second door. All parents have been reminded to

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

be vigilant when entering and leaving the nursery and notices remind them of this.

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

Staff recruitment processes, induction, supervision and support for staff is very effective. Practitioners are well trained to recognise when children are upset or may be suffering abuse and know the policies and procedures to follow should this occur. This means children are safe. Because children have very strong supportive relationships with their key persons, all children are well prepared for the next stages in their learning. Support for children with special educational needs is a particular strength of this nursery. The manager and her practitioners skilfully support children's transitions both within the nursery and to other settings and school. Parents are actively involved in this process. Babies develop strong attachments with their key practitioners. This means babies are content. The children in the whole nursery are very happy. They feel safe, welcome and valued.

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

The environment is generally well organised and offers a wealth of opportunities for children to learn and develop independently, however some resources such as paints, are not easily accessible for children to access themselves. This reduces their ability to return to an activity, experiment and investigate for themselves, although practitioners will always provide resources, should children ask for them.

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

Each age group has a separate outdoor space. This ensures that older children can get vigorous exercise without endangering younger children. The outdoor space is well used. All children have regular opportunities get fresh air and exercise, and older children can choose to go outside for much of the day. Children's behaviour throughout the nursery is very good. Children consider each other's feelings. They share well and pass each other resources. This is because the practitioners are good role models, teach children about feelings from a very young age and ensure children's needs are met. Children are generally encouraged to be independent and learn to begin to take responsibility for their own safety. For example, if they are thirsty the older children pour themselves a drink.

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provision

The practitioners are led by a very committed manager. She in turn is supported within a strong, wider management team. All managers within the company meet every four to six weeks, to develop their practice, discuss policies and exchange ideas. They attend training and sometimes work at each other's sites. This enables the manager to observe how other settings run and allows her to reflect on her own practice. The practitioners hold weekly meetings in each room to review and plan activities. This culture of constant reflection and improvement ensures standards of care and teaching throughout the nursery continue to improve for children and families.

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provision

Children's progress is monitored closely by each child's key practitioner and the room leaders. Children with additional needs are also monitored by the manager who is the special educational needs coordinator (SENCO). The manager monitors practitioners' work on a daily basis and also assesses students working towards vocational qualifications within the nursery. She reinforces good practice and makes suggestions for further improvements to enable them to improve the way they work with children. She samples children's records monthly and each term reviews the progress of all individual children. This enables the manager to quickly identify any additional support children may need to help them meet learning and development targets. The nursery works very closely with a wide range of other agencies, for example, specialist teachers, autism and speech and language specialists, to provide extra support for children. The analysis of children's

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provision

progress also allows the manager to identify any extra support or training that practitioners may require. Parents are also encouraged to actively be involved with the children's learning in a variety of ways. Posters, notes from staff and leaflets encourage parents to extend children's learning at home and they are encouraged to contribute to assessments.

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provision

The manager and the company place great emphasis on ensuring the children are safe. Recruitment processes are rigorous and include an in depth selection and induction processes. This supports new staff and ensures they know how the nursery runs and enables them to develop good practice. Comprehensive risk assessments are in place. These are checked daily by the manager and by room leaders. Risk assessments are reviewed regularly. Management and staff have a very good knowledge and understanding of safeguarding issues. They know the policy and procedure to follow if they have concerns. Management ensures all staff are kept up-to-date with current guidance and have regular refresher training through in-house and external training providers. Parents and children are consulted on a regular basis to ensure their needs and views are included in the self-evaluation. For example, all policies are available for parents

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provision

in a file in the entrance lobby and key policies are displayed on a notice board. Parents are asked to comment and suggestions about these via questionnaires, a suggestion box and informal discussion. Parents make very positive comments about the care their children receive and the support they receive as families. Parents spoken to during the inspection are very confident their children are safe and very well provided for at the nursery.

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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 EY294763 Local authority Leeds Inspection number 894413

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 5 Total number of places 81 Number of children on roll 152 Name of provider Little People Private Day Nursery Ltd Date of previous inspection 16/04/2009 Telephone number 0113 255 6394

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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

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk. You may copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as you give details of the source and date of publication and do not alter the information in any way. To receive regular email alerts about new publications, including survey reports and school inspection reports, please visit our website and go to ‘Subscribe’.

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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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