Brambly Hedge Forest School

Brambly Hedge Day Nursery Richards House, Crosby Road, NORTHALLERTON, North Yorkshire, DL6 1AE

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 10/06/2013 14/12/2012

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early years provision

This inspection: 2 Previous inspection: 3 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

 Staff observe and assess the children to support their individual interests and learning very well. Consequently, children are engaged and motivated in what they do. This results in, children making expected ongoing progress relevant to their starting points.  The children are settled and readily engage in the activities provided because staff know the children's different interests, needs and abilities. This is reflected in their positive behaviour, growing independence and confidence.  The partnerships formed with other professionals and early years providers is good. This results in, children's transitions being managed effectively through a shared approach to their ongoing learning and development.  The key person and staff work effectively with parents and their children. As a result, parents are very pleased with the good level of care and support provided and are well- informed about their children's ongoing learning and progress.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 There is scope to further extend the outside area for the babies and toddlers, to enhance the opportunities for them to explore more sensory and natural resources.  The opportunities for the older children to design their own nature areas, for example, extending the planting and growing areas is not yet fully explored.

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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 with the children in the playrooms and outdoor areas.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke with the manager, nominated person and staff at appropriate times throughout the inspection.  The inspector looked at children's learning journey files and planning.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at relevant records, risk assessments, attendance registers policies and procedures and the nursery's development plans.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took account of parents' views through written information and those spoken to on the day.

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Information about the setting

Brambly Hedge Day Nursery was registered in 2004. It is on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. The nursery is privately owned and managed and is situated in a converted bungalow in the town of Northallerton in North Yorkshire. The nursery serves the local area and is accessible to all children. There are enclosed areas available for outdoor play.

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Information about the setting

The nursery opens Monday to Friday all year round, except for the Christmas period and bank holidays. Sessions are from 7.30am to 6pm. Children attend for a variety of sessions. There are currently 60 children attending and all are in the early years age group. The nursery provides funded early education for two, three- and four-year-old children. The nursery employs 13 members of child care staff. All hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 2 to 6 and the manager has Early Years Professional Status. The nursery supports children who speak English as an additional language, and have special educational needs. They are members of the local Strategic Leadership Forum and the Early Years Learning Partnership.

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

 extend the good range of sensory experiences provided for the younger children to the outside, to enable them to further explore their environment using natural resources

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

 enhance the opportunities for the older children to design their own nature areas, to further their interests to explore the natural environment.

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who attend

Staff work very well with parents as children start nursery. This includes the completion of the 'All about me' form to share information with the key person of their children's needs, routines and interests. This assists staff to know children's starting points, to support their early assessment, in order to plan for their ongoing development. Staff have a good understanding of the areas of learning and provide a wide selection of purposeful activities. These enable the children to be engaged, motivated and develop their skills to make expected progress in their learning. The regular observations and assessments completed by the key person enable them to identify children's next steps in their learning. This informs the planning and includes any additional support or challenges children need. The home to nursery book and parent observation sheets enables parents to share activities they have done at home. Daily contact with their key person provides

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who attend

additional opportunities to discuss their children's learning and development and to share ideas in support of their children.

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who attend

Children are relaxed and happily come into nursery excited to meet their friends and staff. The space and provision offer children choices in what they do, this results in, them following their interests and developing their play experiences well. For example, a child using a spatula to 'shave the sheep' as this is what 'daddy does' on the farm. Staff positively engage with the children supporting their language skills, to enable them to contribute to their play and learning. This results in, the children readily sharing what they are doing and why. Children enjoy small world and role play, such as, the farm and the home kitchen where they use their imagination to act out their own life experiences. Books are used well by the children who enjoy reading with a staff member or on their own. Story sacks provide additional props to further engage the children in storytelling. Action songs and rhymes offer all the children the opportunity to take an active part. This

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who attend

results in, engaging children with English as an additional language, to learn key words and phrases. Staff provide a range of different writing tools around the nursery for the children, such as pads, clip boards and various sized chalks and pencils. Children self- register and some are starting to proudly write their names. This is effective in developing their early literacy skills. The babies and toddlers enjoy the treasure baskets, to feel the different materials and the tactile books and pictures shared with the staff. They have space to move around and pull themselves up as they start to become more mobile and gain confidence.

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who attend

Staff provide ongoing opportunities for the children to use the outside area which is an extension of the learning provided inside. Staff respond to children's choices to be outside and ensure the activities and learning experiences are planned to meet their needs. Physical activities are managed well through the range of different tools and equipment that promotes challenges for the children. This includes how they manoeuvre themselves around the track on the various peddle equipment and use the cones to make their own obstacle course. However, the range of sensory experiences provided for the younger children outside is not yet extended, to further enrich their experiences to explore different textures using more natural resources. This extends to the older children, to provide opportunities for them to design and extend the nature areas outside; to further enhance their knowledge and interest in the environment.

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who attend

Children actively take part in different number and matching games. This supports them to make decisions, such as what happens next, to develop their problem solving skills and to count objects and link these to the correct number. This extends children's confidence in their use of numbers in their daily play. Paints and different mediums and materials are readily accessible for the children to make their own creations that fully develop and extend their own ideas. The good support and learning experiences provided for all the children enables them to move onto the next stage in their learning, such as school.

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

Children are secure in their relationships formed with their key person and staff because they are caring and sensitive to the children's individual needs. As a result, children are settled and confident in their play and learning. The selection of accessible resources and equipment fully support all areas of learning for the children. These promote an interesting environment that is very welcoming to them. This results in, supporting children's ongoing interests and their growing independence effectively. Staff provide positive role models for the children in their attitude and how they behave with the children; to respect and value their contributions. Time is given to explain to them why a behaviour is not acceptable and to offer choices to distract from a situation. Staff support children to negotiate situations for themselves, such as sharing and taking turns at an activity. They praise and encourage the children in what they do, to enable them to feel

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

positive about their achievements. This approach reflects on their behaviour which is good, because children feel secure.

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

Children follow basic routines well, such as for snack time or getting ready to go outside. This effectively promotes their self-assurance very well. Parents are actively involved as their children move areas in the nursery. Children have time to settle into their new routines and develop their relationship with their new key person. The nursery staff have established positive working partnerships with the school. The transition record accompanies each child and contact with school staff and shared visits ensure children's move to school is managed effectively to support their needs and ongoing development. Staff follow guidance from other agencies, such as the sensory team and speech and language professionals, to ensure children with special educational needs receive consistent support; to promote their learning and development in an inclusive environment.

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

The provision of snacks and meals are provided by the nursery. These offer children a nutritional and balanced diet and menus are shared with parents to keep them informed about what their children have eaten. Food is prepared daily mainly from fresh ingredients that the cook sources locally. The self-service snack time enables children to independently select when they have their snack. Staff discuss with the children through activities about keeping healthy by eating foods that help you grow and to be active through physical play. This fosters children's understanding of what being healthy means to them. Information is shared with parents on the care of children when ill, to support staff to reduce cross infection. Children's personal care needs are met appropriately including nappy changing routines. These are clearly recorded in their home diary books so parents are well-informed of the times their children are changed through the day.

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

Safety is promoted through all areas of the nursery with the children. This includes helping to tidy up to make areas safe to play. Children made a lollipop person stick with the stop and go signs on. They all took turns to say when it was safe to cross the road and use the 'go' sign. This extends children's knowledge in a positive practical way about keeping safe.

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provision

The nursery's recruitment and selection procedures are secure and the manager has completed the safer recruitment training. There is positive support for staff through regular team meetings and the introduction of staff appraisals. This informs individual staff's training needs that effectively contributes to their self-development. Staff have completed regular safeguarding training to remain up-to-date on current guidelines in protecting children. This includes working in partnership with the relevant agencies in support of children. Risk assessments are monitored to minimise any incidents or accidents. All policies and procedures are reviewed to ensure these reflect current practice and requirements that are fully shared with staff and parents. Staff are deployed effectively throughout the nursery to ensure staffing ratios are maintained and children's needs are consistently supported.

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provision

The monitoring of children's progress and the teaching and learning is managed on a regular basis with the staff and manager. This provides details of each child's progress in the areas of learning. This supports staff to clearly identify where children require more support or further challenges. This enables staff to plan more focused interventions with individual children. The staff, parents, children and other partners all contribute to the nursery's development plan. This includes completing the actions raised at the last inspection. The plan identifies areas to improve and clear timescales to meet the targets set. This effectively supports continuous improvement for the staff, nursery and its provision for children.

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provision

The partnerships formed with the parents are good. Daily contact with the staff and key person ensures information is shared about their children and what they enjoyed that day. The parent's welcome pack is translated into Polish, to ensure all parents are informed about the nursery and its provision for their children. Parents are encouraged to share their children's special moments at home through the daily home diaries and observation sheets. The regular newsletters and noticeboard keep parents informed about all areas of the nursery provision. Parents give high praise about the staff and how very welcoming and supportive they are. This enables them to be secure to discuss any issues or concerns they may have. Other written comments are shared through their children's diaries and learning journals. Parents are very complimentary about the care and learning their children receive and the positive changes they see in their social development, speech and

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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 EY290726 Local authority North Yorkshire Inspection number 919045

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 50 Number of children on roll 60 Name of provider Brambly Hedge Day Nursery Partnership Date of previous inspection 14/12/2012 Telephone number 01609 771333

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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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