Kinderkare MCS

Kinderkare MCS Victoria Park Road, Exeter, EX2 4NU

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 19/04/2013 04/03/2009

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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 are happy at the nursery and develop good relationships with the staff and each other, which helps to build their confidence.  The manager seeks good information on children's starting points, which enables the key person to plan effectively for children's learning as soon as they start at the nursery.  Staff notice children's interests and build on these to promote learning.  The manager uses good supervision to support staff development and provides a good role model to the staff team, which improves the quality of the provision for children.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Older children are sometimes distracted and unable to concentrate on their learning when children are together for storytime because of the layout of the environment,  Staff do not always share children's next stages in learning with parents, to support learning at home further.

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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 children in the indoor and outdoor environments, and staff interaction with them.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector carried out a joint observation and evaluation of a planned activity with the manager.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke with a director of the company, the manager, staff, children and parents present during the inspection.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took account of the nursery's self-evaluation documentation and that from a parents' survey.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector checked safeguarding information and sampled documentation such as policies and procedures, and children's development records.

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Information about the setting

Kinderkare MCS re-registered under its current ownership in 2008 and is one of three privately owned day nurseries. It is situated in Magdalen Court School, an independent school in Exeter, Devon. Children have use of five rooms according to their age, including a sleep room, with associated toilet, office and kitchen facilities. The nursery has its own enclosed outdoor areas accessed directly from the playrooms. Children attending the out- of-school provision have separate accommodation and use the school playground for outside play. The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register, and on the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. There are currently 103 children on roll aged six months to five years. The nursery also provides after school care for children up to eight years and holiday care for children aged five to ten years. The nursery supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, and those learning English as

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Information about the setting

an additional language. The nursery receives funding to provide free early education to children aged three and four years. The nursery is open from 7.30am to 6pm each weekday, for 51 weeks of the year, closing between Christmas and New Year, and all Bank Holidays. The directors employ 16 members of staff to work directly with children, the manager holds an early years degree and is working towards Early Years Professional Status. Three members of staff hold a relevant qualification at level 4, seven at level 3 and two at level 2. The nursery staff are supported by head office staff, a cleaner and a cook.

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

 improve the organisation of the environment further so that all children, and particularly the older ones, can concentrate when together in a large group, such as at storytimes

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

 extend the partnership with parents so that they receive more regular updates about the plans for their children's future learning, so they can be involved with supporting these at home.

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who attend

Staff know how to plan effectively for children's development as soon as they start at the nursery because the manager seeks extensive information from parents on children's starting points for learning. Staff then make regular observations to monitor children's achievements and plan for their next stages of development. As a result, all children including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, and those learning English as an additional language, make good progress overall.

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who attend

Staff display some good general information on activities and how parents can extend them at home. They provide parents with daily feedback on what activities their children take part in and a summary of their child's learning once a term. However, when staff identify children's next stages in learning they do not automatically share this with parents. Some parents of older children comment that they would like information to be more specific so that they can be fully involved in supporting their children's learning at home.

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who attend

Children enjoy learning and acquire good skills for their next stages of development in preparation for school. Staff join in with the children's interests following their agendas and extending their learning; for example, children name shapes they make in the sand and count how many sides different shapes have. Staff encourage children to refer to books, which reinforces their understanding and promotes their awareness of where to gain information. Children demonstrate their knowledge of how to use equipment because staff use good questioning techniques to support their thinking. Children comment on the magnifying glass making things look bigger, for example.

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who attend

Staff fully support children learning English as an additional language. They use visual aids and parents say that they provide key words for staff to support their child's communication. Staff respond well to babies by interpreting their words and actions, so that they begin to link the word to its meaning. Toddlers repeat words they hear and staff engage them in simple conversations. They enjoy rhyming stories and are keen to repeat them when they finish. Older children extend their vocabulary through staff asking them the meaning of words and when they are not sure, they give good explanations with demonstrations. Consequently, children develop good language and communication skills.

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who attend

Staff encourage children to think of ideas and make predictions. For example, toddlers enjoy lifting the flaps in books to see what they might find. Children develop good physical skills, babies pull themselves up on the furniture and hold onto staff hands to give them confidence to walk. Children steer bicycles to avoid obstacles and climb showing coordination and skill. Older children confidently use scissors to cut out a desired shape and manipulate threading laces through card. Children choose to be involved in adult led activities, which staff plan from observing children's interests. This choice means children are motivated to learn and that they persevere until they have completed such activities to their own satisfaction. Concentration and perseverance are useful attributes for their eventual move to full time education.

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

Children build good relationships and demonstrate a sense of belonging. Staff encourage children to include those who are new to the nursery. The more able children are eager to provide support to others, all of which promotes their personal social and emotional development. Staff also reinforce kind acts with praise, so children gain a good understanding of expectations. Children develop a good awareness of changes in the routine and older children begin to understand about time because staff use good systems to inform children of changes. Staff exchange good information with parents on children's individual needs and babies' routines, which helps to promote their well-being.

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

A good key person system ensures children have a special adult who knows them well. They provide strong support to aid children's transfer to the next room or school. For example, the new key person visits them in their room to start to build a relationship. The child then makes gradual visits to their new room with their current key person until they feel secure. Parents comment on their children being confident to go to school because of their positive experience at the nursery.

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

Children use a good range of resources indoors and outside. This variety encourages them to make their own decisions about what to do. All children have direct access from their room into an enclosed outside area. This means they can all have daily use of the garden where resources are appropriate to their stages of development. However, children in the pre-school room are occasionally distracted while using the book area. This is because staff position it by the entrance to the garden, so children are unable to give their full attention to their learning, particularly when staff read stories to a group of older children. Staff organise visitors to the nursery to provide some real experiences to support their learning, for examples zoo animals and the police.

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

Children develop good practice as part of a healthy lifestyle. Older children choose when to have a snack and know to wash their hands first. They help themselves to their beakers of drink and there are extra cups and a jug of water always available. Staff ensure that babies and young children have regular drinks. Children develop a good awareness of healthy eating through the provision of freshly cooked nutritious meals and snacks, as well as celebrating international foods. All children enjoy being outside, babies crawl safely around on the soft surfacing and enthusiastically dig in the mud. Staff promote children's involvement and responsibility by encouraging them to manage age-appropriate tasks. This also promotes their awareness of managing risks and keeping themselves safe. Older children know to use suitable scissors or knives at the table. When staff ask why they use a sign to indicate they have washed the floor children comment that it is so they know to

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provision

The management team members have a good awareness of their responsibilities to meet the welfare and safeguarding requirements. Senior staff each take a particular responsibility, such as fire marshal, health and safety officer and special educational needs coordinator. They attend training for their particular role so that they can support other staff. All staff attend first aid and safeguarding training, so that they have a good awareness of signs and symptoms that indicate children's welfare is at risk, and the procedures to follow to help keep children safe. The management team reports all incidents to the Local Safeguarding Children Board and Ofsted, as required, so these can be investigated if children are thought to be at risk.

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provision

There have been recent changes to staff and new personnel receive a good induction programme to check they know how to implement the nursery's policies and procedures. Staff take responsibility for carrying out good daily risk assessment checks on their rooms and the garden. All required documentation is in place to help safeguard children and promote their welfare.

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provision

The manager provides a highly positive role model for staff. She carries out regular observations of the staff and feeds back to them immediately to enhance teaching skills. Staff receive training to build on their good practice, such as identifying the characteristics of effective teaching and learning. The manager provides in-house training for senior staff to support them in supervising their individual rooms on a daily basis. The manager involves all users in the self-evaluation process, to ensure they continually reflect on their practice and set good actions for continuous development. They display the results of their parents' survey with how they intend to address any weaknesses. Head office staff provide effective support to enable the manager to make changes that are specific to the setting.

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provision

Staff are aware of their responsibilities in meeting the learning and development requirements and provide parents with progress checks for children when they are aged between two and three years, as required. Good partnerships with parents and other early years settings sharing care have a strong impact on children's learning and well-being. Staff make written and/or verbal contact with other such settings to arrange visits and exchange information.

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provision

Parents know who their child's key person is and comment on finding the staff very approachable. Several parents particularly mention their trust in the manager because she is knowledgeable, listens to their comments and acts accordingly to improve practice. Overall, they receive good information about the provision as a whole from the notice boards, newsletters, e-mails, daily feedback and parents' evening.

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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 EY372013 Local authority Devon Inspection number 913216 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 8 Total number of places 120 Number of children on roll 103 Name of provider Kinderkare Day Nurseries Ltd Date of previous inspection 04/03/2009 Telephone number 01392 494919

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Setting details

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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