The Old Bridge Nursery

The Old Bridge Nursery 1 Jubilee Place, High Street North, Shincliffe, Durham, County Durham, DH1 2NJ

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 09/07/2013 27/07/2009

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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 excited, enthusiastic and happy. They enjoy the very wide range of activities on offer, particularly in the outside environment, which challenges and stimulates them.  Relationships between children and staff are very good, therefore, fostering a strong sense of belonging and ensuring that children are confident learners. Partnerships with parents and other agencies are strong with regard to sharing a comprehensive range of information that aids staff in meeting children's care and learning needs.  Staff use their knowledge, skills and experience very effectively to ensure that children are consistently challenged to reach the next stage in their development.  Children are well protected by robust risk assessments and sensible procedures, which ensures that they are always well supervised and cared for. They develop an understanding of how to take measured risks.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 There is scope to improve resources in the nursery to further enhance children's pride in their nursery and their self-esteem.

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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 in the playrooms and the outside learning environment and carried out a joint observation with the manager of the nursery.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector held meetings with the manager and looked at children's assessment records, planning documentation, evidence of suitability of staff working in the nursery, the provider's self-evaluation form and a range of other documentation.

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Inspection activities

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

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Information about the setting

The Old Bridge Nursery was registered in 1996 on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. It is situated in self-contained premises in the Shincliffe village area of Durham. The nursery serves the local area and is accessible to all children. It operates from three rooms and there is an enclosed area available for outdoor play.

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Information about the setting

The nursery employs seven members of childcare staff. All hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 3 and above, including one with Qualified Teacher Status.

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Information about the setting

The nursery opens Monday to Friday, all year round. Sessions are from 8am until 6pm. Children attend for a variety of sessions. There are currently 42 children attending, who are in the early years age group. The nursery provides funded early education for three- and four-year-old children. It supports a number of children, who speak English as an additional language.

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

 extend the range of resources in the nursery, such as the number of tables available at lunchtime and some of the worn furniture to further enhance children's pride in their nursery and their self-esteem.

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who attend

Children are fully engaged in fruitful activity throughout the day because staff plan and provide a highly stimulating, challenging and interesting learning environment. Babies are provided with a good range of sensory experiences that encourage their natural desire to explore. They reach out excitedly when exploring in foil paper and are eager to explore the outdoor climbing frame and slide with adult support. By repeating the activity, babies gain confidence and independence and through this, staff effectively encourage them to develop their physical skills.

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who attend

Older children engage in a very good range of interactive experiences as they play with water in the garden, exploring how the water travels along the tubes, which are organised to allow the water to flow. They eagerly use scissors, glue spreaders and crinkly paper to make creative designs. Staff build young children's vocabulary exceptionally well. For example, when a child holds up an object and says 'spade', they extend this by saying 'what size spade?' Children enjoy pretend play as they use sweeping brushes to clean the floor and make a pot of tea for their friends, adding cups and saucers. Mathematical skills are also flourishing as children sing number songs and recognise which number comes next in a sequence. Staff spend time with children, helping them to solve problems when completing threading games, sort dragons into size groups or count how many digger trucks they have. Children also learn about measure and volume as they regularly take

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who attend

part in watering the garden and looking at how heavy the watering can is.

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who attend

Children's reading and early writing skills are developing very well. Older children know the initial letter in their name and most are able to write their full name with support. Toddlers recognise their own named coat peg and confidently pick out their photograph card at snack time. Overall, staff demonstrate effective teaching methods to support children's communication and language. They help children to form letters and sounds through songs, rhymes and stories and through everyday conversation. Children, who have English as an additional language are supported in building and understanding new vocabulary. They, therefore, make good progress in using English confidently and in their overall development. Toddlers join in singing time activities enthusiastically and happily choose songs, such as 'Five little frogs'. They eagerly count each number on their hands and take one away. Older children are able to predict how many are left. Older children

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who attend

listen carefully to each other at circle time as they discuss what activities they have enjoyed doing so far that day. This helps them to develop good key skills for future learning, such as concentration and turn-taking.

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who attend

Children's physical development is aided exceptionally well as they have access to a range of superb outside play experiences. Staff use the woodland exceptionally well to support children's learning. Children talk with enthusiasm about activities they have completed outdoors, ranging from building dens, to camp fires, to looking for the dragon in the dragon tree. They come back to nursery from these sessions animated and staff use this enthusiasm to encourage them to make books about their experiences, which they read time and time again both independently and at group times. Children also develop a breadth of physical skills in the garden as they balance on beams and hop over obstacle courses. Furthermore, they learn to catch and throw and participate in exciting games. The outside environment is extremely stimulating. For example, as well as enhancing children's physical play, there are opportunities to dig, plant, grow and care for herbs,

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who attend

strawberries and tomatoes. This provides them with interesting opportunities to explore the world they live in and is further enhanced and supported by their exemplary use of the local community and environment.

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who attend

Staff rigorously observe, assess and monitor each child's development. They make detailed observations across all areas of learning and identify children's individual next steps, which are used very effectively to plan future activities. This ensures that children's emerging needs are followed up swiftly and accurately. Staff also record children's self- initiated play and use their interests as a basis for their planning. Each child has a key person, who ensures that all activities are tailored to meet their individual next steps. The key person also regularly records and reviews their progress. This ensures all children are making good progress and that any concerns are promptly followed up. Children's starting points on entry to the nursery include parents' views about what they can do. As a result, staff have a very secure baseline in place from which to measure children's progress. Staff work extremely well in partnerships with parents and other professionals to identify

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who attend

realistic, yet challenging targets. They regularly review children's progress and discuss any concerns promptly. Therefore, all children are encouraged to reach their full potential and develop necessary skills in readiness for school.

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who attend

Parents are provided with a vast array of opportunities to be involved in their children's ongoing learning and development. For example, parents are invited to regular review meetings and receive yearly summaries and reports. Shared home and nursery dairies for all the children are highly effective in sharing their progress. The majority of parents add photographs and comments about their child's achievements from home. Staff use these extremely well in their monitoring of children's progress and this helps them to plan more accurately for the children's interests as well as their next steps.

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

Children are assisted in making a smooth move from home to nursery, as a result of a highly effective key person system and settling-in process. Individual, introductory sessions are offered to allow children to get used to being away from their carers. Parents are given plenty of opportunity to raise questions as they sit with staff to complete initial paperwork, such as 'All about me' sheets. This enables them to give the nursery lots of information about their child, including any special requirements, likes and dislikes. This means that staff effectively identify children's individual needs and plan activities that they enjoy.

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

Children build strong relationships as staff provide genuine warmth and affection. They show an interest in the children, listening attentively and swiftly meeting their personal needs. This enables children to feel safe and secure, giving them the confidence to develop their independence and explore the environment. Consequently, children are happy to engage in play and develop skills for future learning as they are relaxed and comfortable. Babies snuggle in when listening to a story and enjoy a cuddle as they doze off to sleep. Older children talk confidently to staff, engaging them in discussion after looking outside about the different types of clouds and how this links to the rain forest. Children of all ages show a strong sense of belonging in the nursery. Even babies are able to indicate what resources they want to play with, as all tubs have a picture on them to show what they contain. Older children help to tidy away toys before mealtimes. They

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

develop their social skills as they sit together at mealtimes. However, there is scope to improve some of the resources, so there are more tables available at lunchtime and that worn furniture is replaced to further enhance children's pride in their nursery and their self-esteem.

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

Children understand how to keep themselves safe as they learn road safety skills on the regular outings in the community. They behave very well and show a very good understanding of what is expected of them. Children sit quietly to listen at circle time and share resources happily. They also develop a good understanding of the importance of physical exercise and a healthy diet. Children discuss the food at snack time and then during a 'zumba' session understand the need to warm up and cool down; talking about how their heart is beating fast and now it is slower. This also further develops a range of co-ordination skills and children have an understanding of movement to rhythm. Older children follow hygienic hand washing procedures and delight in demonstrating that they know where to put their used tissues. Such routines help to minimise the risks of cross- infection. All children have daily access to fresh air and exercise in the outdoor area, which

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

supports children's physical and good health.

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

Children move around their room safely, enjoying the freedom to select from the wide range of resources that are easily accessible to them. They benefit from the thoughtful layout, which includes designated areas for rest or active play. Children are able to meet their physical needs for relaxation as they can curl up on the large cushions in the book area when they are tired. Babies have a room, where they can rest undisturbed. This is constantly monitored to ensure their well-being as they sleep. Staff also support children as they move onto school, making records available for reception teachers and inviting them to visit the children at nursery. This helps children to prepare for the move to formal education.

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provision

The nursery is led by an enthusiastic and highly motivated management team. They share a desire to provide top quality care and have recruited positive and enthusiastic staff, who also share this vision. Consequently, from the most senior to the most junior, all staff are dedicated to meeting the needs of the children, who attend. Management have a robust understanding of their responsibility in meeting the Early Years Foundation Stage learning and development requirements. Highly successful team work ensures that children's well- being is efficiently prioritised and the positive atmosphere contributes to a nursery that is warm and welcoming. A comprehensive range of policies and procedures are in place to assist in the smooth running of the nursery. These are regularly reviewed to ensure that they continually meet the latest requirements and are in line with current best practice. The manager also regularly monitors the delivery of the educational programmes and

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provision

routine care practices, including monitoring children's files. This enables her and the staff team to monitor the progress of individual groups of children in specific areas of learning. This helps to ensure that all staff are following the policies in practice and providing effective teaching to help children to progress.

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provision

All recommendations from the last inspection have been successfully addressed. For instance, the staff have created a homely area within the baby room for young children. Also, detailed risk assessments are in place to ensure children are safe. The nursery uses quality assurance and self-evaluation very effectively to identify all areas for improvement and comprehensive action plans are in place to bring about continual development. Staff take ownership for these actions and managers record their progress to ensure that it is completed. Parents' comments are highly valued. They are sent regular questionnaires, asking for their opinions on the quality of the nursery and what it provides. In addition, staff ask parents questions for their views and comments. As a result, parents report that they are extremely happy with the nursery. They positively comment on the excellent range of activities that stimulate their children's interests and the friendliness and

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provision

Children's safety is given the highest priority. Staffing ratios are always met ensuring that children receive plenty of attention. All staff hold relevant qualifications and key staff have attended specialised safeguarding training. This is shared at staff meetings to ensure that all staff understand the signs and symptoms, which may indicate abuse and know how to report any concerns. Any child, who has an accident is given first aid by a qualified staff member. For those with medical needs, a full and detailed plan is put together to ensure that staff are able to respond promptly and efficiently. Parents are further reassured of their children's well-being and safety through the rigorous policies and procedures for the recruitment and selection of staff. Performance management is well managed in the nursery and staff training needs are identified through effective supervision and appraisals. The environment is fully risk assessed and all external doors are secure with

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provision

Partnerships with parents and other early years professionals are a clear strength of the nursery. Parents are warmly welcomed into the nursery and are comfortable talking to staff, who show a genuine interest in their children. They are kept very well informed about activities through comprehensive newsletters and daily diaries which the parents highly value. They are encouraged to share their own observations of their children's progress. The nursery works extremely well with other agencies, such as health professionals. This ensures that all children receive support in line with their unique needs.

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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 314188 Local authority Durham Inspection number 871953

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 27 Number of children on roll 42 Name of provider Mr Howard & Mrs Claire Walmsley Partnership Date of previous inspection 27/07/2009 Telephone number 0191 3831782

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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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