Busy Bees Day Nursery at Letchworth

Busy Bees Nursery at Letchworth Icknield Way, Letchworth Garden City, Hertfordshire, SG6 4GY

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 22/07/2013 31/10/2012

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early years provision

This inspection: 1 Previous inspection: 1 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 1 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 1

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This provision is outstanding

 Children are extremely motivated and become deeply involved in their learning because staff provide them with uninterrupted time to play and explore. As a result, children make rapid progress in their learning and development.  Children's learning and development is closely monitored through precise assessment and includes all those involved in their learning. Consequently, the planning is sharply focused and leads to rapid development for children, taking account of their starting points.  Children show high levels of security in the nursery and excellent attachments with staff. All moves between rooms, or to new settings, are exceptionally well managed to support children's feelings of self-confidence and ensure that they thrive.  Children's health is extremely well supported because the staff introduce them to highly effective initiatives, and regular activities to explore food for good health, that promote

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This provision is outstanding

excellent physical development.  The nursery uses highly successful strategies to engage all parents in their children's learning. The partnerships established with other agencies are exemplary and help to support every child to learn and develop to the optimum level.  Staff engage in highly effective methods of performance management and professional development. They take part in regular training, including safeguarding, and complete monthly reviews of policies. Consequently, staff are motivated and knowledgeable, and children are extremely well protected.

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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 all rooms and the outside areas.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at a selection of policies, procedures and information available in the nursery.  The inspector carried out a joint observation with the manager.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke with the manager, deputy manager, childcare and curriculum advisor, staff and children at appropriate times throughout the inspection.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector reviewed a selection of children's observation and assessment development files with key persons.

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Information about the setting

Busy Bees at Letchworth was registered in 2004 and is on the Early Years Register and both the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. It operates from purpose-built premises in Letchworth Garden City, Hertfordshire. The nursery is one of 214 nursery provisions that are part of Busy Bees Day Nurseries Limited. It is accessible to all children and there are enclosed areas available for outdoor play.

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Information about the setting

The nursery employs 22 members of childcare staff as well as an administrator and a cook. Of these, 14 hold appropriate early years qualifications. The nursery opens Monday to Friday all year round with the exception of bank holidays only. Sessions are from 8am until 6pm, but the provision can accommodate early sessions from 7.30am, and a late finish to 6.30pm, where required. Children attend for a variety of sessions. There are currently 118 children attending, all of whom are in the early years age group.

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Information about the setting

The nursery provides funded early education for three- and four-year-old children. It supports a number of children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and 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:

 consider continuing to explore methods whereby extended family members can become more involved within children's care, learning and development.

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who attend

Staff in the nursery demonstrate an excellent awareness of how children learn and are extremely responsive to children's developing interests. As a result of this excellent teaching, the children are highly motivated and show an enthusiasm for learning, which results in them making rapid progress in their development. For example, when younger toddlers start to explore the marks that cars make in the sand, the member of staff skilfully observes them closely before joining them and offering them water in the sand. Children maintain focus on the activity, trying new words, pouring water from a jug, and helping to make a castle because the member of staff is extremely responsive to their needs. She waits for a signal from the children, indicating that they are ready to move on, before suggesting that they join other children for tea. This demonstrates that the individual needs of the children are given the highest priority over the general routines of

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who attend

the nursery to support the optimum progress for children. Staff plan first-hand experiences and challenges that greatly enhance children's learning and development. For example, all children engage in stimulating creative activities with a vast range of tactile and construction materials. Younger babies and toddlers tentatively explore painting on a large plastic sheet before they use their whole body to rub and smear the paint. They squeeze it between their fingers, and feel the texture between their fingers and toes. Exceptionally supportive staff ensure that such experiences, for the youngest babies, are positive because of their highly sensitive support, vocal encouragement, and close attention. Older toddlers and pre-school children use materials, such as canvasses to develop artwork to decorate the nursery. Areas for building with natural materials help children to solve problems and experiment with a range of materials. The nursery staff use

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who attend

an initiative entitled 'Imagination stations'. This is designed to use role play to develop the children's imagination and communication skills, and focuses on four key environments, 'Space', 'The home', 'The Beach' and 'Woodland'. Staff add stimulating resources and ensure that each area is equipped with flexible resources where children can explore freely and extend the play as they choose. As a result, they are actively leading their learning.

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who attend

Observation and assessment is sharply focused and builds from an initial assessment completed by staff and parents in partnership. Individual programmes for each child, that include planned 'together time', identify their next steps and their progression is tracked closely. Parents are fully involved in the learning; consultations and summary reports keep them informed. Parents complete 'at home' observations, which are added to the development files and inform the planning. Ideas for activities at home are provided to parents to enhance children's learning. Daily verbal exchange is a key part of the sharing process and enhances the close monitoring of children's learning and development. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities, or English as an additional language, receive extremely detailed and well-planned support to ensure that they make rapid progress given their starting points. The staff work closely with all agencies involved

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who attend

and devise specific programmes, using the advice and guidance provided, to support children to meet their next steps and objectives in all areas of learning and development. The manager, supported by the Busy Bees company, closely monitors the progress of all children, thereby ensuring that early intervention is used for any child, where necessary, to support learning.

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who attend

All children investigate early technology throughout the nursery. The pre-school children show their high levels of confidence and strong skills when they use the interactive white board independently. They show that they appreciate the work of other children when they praise each other and they happily take turns, often with no reminder needed by the staff. Staff recognise the different levels of challenge needed for individual children and they skilfully offer programmes that enable all children to achieve, yet have some challenge. All children enjoy music and singing. Staff are highly skilled at observing activities that take place and they gently extend children's chosen play and foster their enthusiasm. For example, when children explore the hoops in the garden a staff member suggests that they add more to them to make a line to jump through. This game quickly develops and many children join the group counting loudly as they jump in and out of the

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who attend

hoops. This line of jumping and marching children evolves into adding musical instruments and marching around the garden singing 'The Grand Old Duke of York'. Such encompassing activities foster children's learning across all areas of learning and are significantly led and developed by children. The nursery operates a scheme called 'Kindermusik' to enhance children's full engagement with music and singing, thus fostering rapid communication and language. Children can take packs home to extend the activity into the home and further assist with the high level of involvement of parents. Each day staff plan literacy and numeracy sessions and 'chatterboxes' are used to engage children in speaking and listening activities. 'Chatterboxes' are boxes made by children and filled with special items from their home to share and talk about. Children are seen to use an extremely broad vocabulary as they describe the special items and talk about why they

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who attend

are significant to them. Such excellent shared sessions bring about rapid development of language and foster exceptional self-esteem and confidence. Children show that they are well motivated and very eager to join in; they consistently demonstrate excellent characteristics of effective learning. Staff are particularly supportive and as a result the children confidently display their knowledge, solve problems, and initiate activities. This means that they are practising in preparation for new learning within any new setting, such as school.

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

The key persons in this nursery are particularly attentive and form excellent relationships with children and families and, as a result, children form close bonds and attachments with them. Each child has a second key person, working alongside the main key person, and this helps to reinforce the stability for children. The managers complete audits throughout the day to make sure that the deployment of staff is managed in the best possible manner to meet the needs of all children. Each child and parent is introduced to the nursery at their own pace. There is a very clear induction booklet that is used to closely monitor and record the first five sessions that children attend, and provides extensive information to parents. This adds to the close bonds made between the key person, child and family and underpins the relationship.

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

Staff model excellent social behaviour for children and offer them frequent praise throughout the day. Children understand that they are respected as individuals because there are extremely effective methods used to seek and acknowledge their views. For example, the staff complete questionnaires with children that ask, 'what is your favourite place here?' and, 'who do you like to be with here?', and then create displays of children's thoughts and views. In the baby room there are laminated books that focus on emotions and feelings, which babies return to, time and again, to view. Each room displays 'our values' with photographs of children and focusing on being kind to others. When children leave the nursery to move to school, they take part in a 'Graduation ceremony', which is filmed and viewed by all children attending. All children learn about the world around them and become aware of the culture and lives of each other. A vast number of

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

celebrations are explored by all children, from the youngest baby to the pre-school children, with books, signs, songs and music from all over the world enjoyed. Staff work extremely closely with all parents to learn as much as they can about children's family and culture. These highly effective methods all help children to understand their feelings and know that they are valued.

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

Children show excellent self-care skills and develop a very secure understanding of healthy eating. They are very well nourished. The on-site cook delivers an exciting menu that is freshly prepared, and which accommodates every child's specific need. For example, the cook provides a meal for the youngest babies each day which closely follows the foods that parents request during weaning. Children take part in the initiative 'cooking with me' where they carry out regular cooking that includes fresh fruit salad. Staff members skilfully incorporate new learning into such activities and offer children time to practise emergent knowledge. For example, children talk about halves and quarters as they cut fruits for a fruit salad, and they make observations about what they are seeing and doing exploring new language. Children in the pre-school make a choice about what they would like to eat, at lunch time, from the serving table, and return to their place carrying their plate.

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

Such methods promote independence and prepare children for their next stage in learning and when they move on to school. Free movement between the indoor and outdoor environment, within the bounds of the weather policy (for safety in the sun) means that children develop excellent physical health. In addition, children eagerly take part in the active programme 'wake and shake' each day where they explore physical movement and talk about how hard their heart is beating after exercise.

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

Children's understanding of safety is promoted significantly. They learn to take risks within a safe environment where they climb and balance on equipment, such as stacks of tyres in the garden, or in the indoor physical play room. Regular practise of road safety takes place, and emergency evacuation routines enhance children's understanding further. Children complete risk assessments of the premises. They carry clip boards with pictures of possible hazards and visit every room in the nursery and each garden area. Children point out to staff the dough on the floor or electrical leads in the office, before discussing how and why an area is, or is not, safe. This practical method fully enhances children's own first-hand experience and awareness of personal safety. Staff use a planned programme entitled 'seamless transitions' wherein they plan specific activities for children leaving to go to school which will ensure that they are prepared for the new school

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

routines. When moving between rooms the key person completes a detailed handover document for the new key person. This ensures that children's learning is promoted to the optimum level. As a result of these steps, all children are extremely well prepared for school or a move to another room in the nursery.

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provision

The management team have very high expectations for the quality of care that is offered to children and families. Regular and robust reviews of all paperwork and procedures take place to ensure that all requirements of the Statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage are met. The nursery works very closely with the Busy Bees company teams, the local advisory team, and the National Day Nursery Association to ensure that the audits completed by them help to focus the nursery practice and drive towards continued improvement. This inspection was raised by Ofsted as a result of a notification made to them by the nursery with regard to a practice issue relating to safeguarding. Arrangements to safeguard children within the setting are particularly robust. All staff have safeguarding training and it is reviewed at every team meeting each month. There are extremely clearly mapped procedures for monitoring any safeguarding concern within

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provision

the nursery, and the designated officers attend and cascade advanced level training to all staff. Managers closely monitor all staff actions and implement procedures that closely follow those required by the Local Safeguarding Children Board and the requirements of their registration. This area of practice is particularly detailed with close contact with the local authority designated officer, and the Busy Bees regional manager, maintained. As part of the safeguarding procedures there are extremely thorough recruitment and suitability checks which include a 10-week detailed induction and probationary period for new staff. New staff spend time with a mentor and must complete a detailed induction document demonstrating their understanding of all policies and procedures. As a result, the nursery ensures that children are completely protected.

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provision

Staff create an environment that is stimulating where children engage in active learning. The environment is especially safe and monitored by closed-circuit television. External doors are kept locked; parents ring the doorbell and are admitted by staff members. These measures demonstrate the high regard that the nursery has for the security and safety of the children. The nursery benefits from a health and safety designated person, and close links with the Busy Bees company for further advice. They complete extremely thorough risk assessments, which cover all areas of the premises as well as any outings that take place. Each day the management team make detailed records of all children and staff present. They organise staffing deployment carefully in order to meet the required ratios and in addition, move extra staff in areas to support the welfare of children. Management staff have a clear overview of what is taking place in all areas, at all times,

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provision

through constant monitoring throughout the day. Hence, children's welfare and well-being is shown to be of the utmost priority.

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provision

High-quality professional supervision is provided each month, with sharply focused evaluations of the impact of staffs' practice, which identify staffs' strengths or areas to develop and an action plan for training. Where required, and arising from direct observation, a programme of support and intense training is planned. Every staff member takes part in detailed appraisals where they 'score' themselves on a broad range of work areas. These methods feed directly to a targeted programme of professional development for the already first-rate staff members. Extremely thorough reflective practice includes input from all members of the management team, staff, parents and carers, and children. Each room has its own improvement action plan that have a direct link to the overall action plans, self-evaluation plans, and overall strategic plan operated by the nursery. Parents become highly involved in the practice of the nursery. For instance, a parent

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provision

liaison group meets every three months. Parents join action committees, such as that for the development of the outdoor play area, and play a full role in the ongoing improvement of the nursery. They complete 'room assessments' and offer their opinion on a range of issues related to the nursery; these are collated and used to develop improvement plans for the staff and rooms. As a result of these clearly embedded methods of working with parents, their feedback helps to drive the continuous methods that maintain the high levels of achievement. Events for parents are well supported, such as Mother's Day events, and a recent Father's Day breakfast which proved popular. However, the nursery are continually looking to further develop the involvement of extended families, which may play a major role in children's care, into the nursery to enhance the care and learning further. The extremely close work with all other agencies involved with children means

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provision

that children's needs are quickly identified and extremely well met. For example, the staff work extremely closely with many external advisors and agencies, and take part in works that will significantly enhance children's learning and development both in the nursery and when they move to new placements. The dedication seen in reflecting on excellent practice and continuing to improve all aspects of the nursery shows that there is a strong drive to maintain the high levels of achievements. Children are exceptionally secure, thoroughly enjoy their play and learning, and are confident and self-assured. Consequently, children embark on their learning career ready to seek out new experiences and learn.

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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 EY289914 Local authority Hertfordshire Inspection number 923839

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 104 Number of children on roll 118 Name of provider Busy Bees Day Nurseries Limited Date of previous inspection 31/10/2012 Telephone number 01462 683761

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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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