Busy Bees Day Nursery at Darlington

Busy Bees Day Nursery at Darlington 19 Newton Lane, Darlington, County Durham, DL3 9EX

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 09/08/2013 16/09/2008

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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 with special educational needs and/or disabilities are effectively supported in their learning through the use of robust baseline information and strong parent partnerships. As a consequence, they make appropriate progress towards the early learning goals.  Transition arrangements are excellent and robustly administered. As a consequence, parents feel secure when leaving their child and children settle into their new environment quickly and confidently.  Children are happy, motivated and eager to learn. They demonstrate high levels of confidence because staff provide good resources and a very effective learning environment.  Self-evaluation is embedded and used effectively to monitor and review how the nursery promotes children's learning. This ensures that there is continuous improvement in teaching and children's outcomes.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Staff development is accurately identified but is not always effectively managed. As a consequence, not all staff are receiving training directly linked to their individual learning needs, in order to most benefit children.

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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 and looked at a sample of children's learning journals and operational files consisting of policies, risk assessments, parental contributions, staff qualifications and suitability documentation.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector held a meeting with the nursery manager and completed a joint observation with the manager in the pre-school room.  The inspector spoke to and took account of the views of parents during the visit.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector held discussions with the manager, deputy manager, special educational needs coordinator, staff, children and the nursery's Curriculum Adviser throughout the visit.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector reviewed children's assessment records, planning documentation and the systems for recording and monitoring children's progress and transitions.

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Information about the setting

Busy Bees Day Nursery at Darlington was initially part of the Just Learning chain of nurseries when it was registered in 1996. Just Learning was sold to Busy Bees Holdings Ltd in August 2012. The nursery is situated in the residential area of Cockerton West in Darlington. The nursery opens five days a week all year round excluding bank holidays and serves the local and surrounding area. Sessions are from 7.30am until 6pm. Children attend for a variety of sessions. There are currently 98 children on roll. Of these 29 children receive funding for nursery education.

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Information about the setting

The setting supports children, who speak English as an additional language and children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. There are 21 members of staff working with children of whom, 19 have an appropriate qualification. Three staff hold Early Years Professional Status. The setting also employs separate ancillary staff. There is an enclosed outdoor play area, with separate play areas for babies and children aged two and three years of age. The nursery receives support from the Local Authority.

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Information about the setting

The Nursery additionally offers places for children aged between six and eight years, before and after school and during school holidays. This provision is registered on the Early Years Register and the Childcare and Voluntary Childcare Register. Children occupying these places share the same facilities as children in the early years age range but have their own activity room.

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

 revisit the training and development system to see how it could be improved to better target individual staff training needs in relation to accurate assessment of children's learning.

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who attend

Children's progress is good, especially in personal, social and emotional development, communication and language and physical development. This is because the vast majority of staff have a secure knowledge and understanding of how to engage children's interest and extend their learning. Staff have good knowledge and understanding of the Early Years Foundation Stage, which means they are confident in helping children to learn effectively. High quality planning and organisation of the learning environment ensures that all children are happy, motivated and suitably challenged. This was evidenced by some excellent examples of exploratory and investigative play. For example, a group of two-year-old children were invited to take part in an outside activity, where they would be making marks using paint. When they went to collect their paint pots they found the liquid inside them frozen. On closer investigation they found small plastic creatures embedded in

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who attend

the ice. Great excitement sprang from this revelation. Children began to talk to each other and seek out an adult, who could explain this to them and help them to extract the creatures. The member of staff leading the activity encouraged children's thinking and development of language. She did this by asking questions like 'what do you think happened, how did the creatures get in there?' and 'how will we get them out?' Children used language like 'I'm cold' and 'it's stuck' when they were holding the ice. Children's communication and language is very well developed through activities like reading stories and as part of self-initiated play. During a story session a child was observed sitting separately from the group, reading a book to herself. In a sing song voice she sang 'where are you'? as she turned the pages looking for the missing animal. The member of staff reading to the larger group asked the child questions about her book. Teaching was good

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who attend

because she extended her learning by asking the child 'where has he gone' and 'what time is it, do you think he has gone home for his lunch'? In another activity a much younger child was encouraged to select and handle natural and man-made objects from a basket. As the child played the member of staff talked to her about what the objects looked like and what they felt like in her hands, on her face and on her legs. She moved her soft piece of material across her own face describing for the child what it felt like. The child very quickly joined in the game, smiling and laughing as she copied the member of staff's behaviour. In all of these activities children were given time to think about their responses and opportunities to explore and investigate. Staff interventions were timely ensuring that children didn't lose interest because they were left too long with a problem they were unable to solve without support.

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who attend

Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities are effectively supported in their learning and make good progress. Their programmes for personal, social and emotional development, communication and language and physical development are particularly well developed across the nursery. Children are physically very able at all ages. Staff encourage children to take managed risks during indoor and outdoor play activities. At meal times there is a range of cutlery and drinking cups for children to choose from. Staff know their children's development needs well and encourage them to try a more advanced cup, or a knife and fork rather than a spoon. This provides opportunities for independence, which promotes children's next steps in learning.

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who attend

Regular assessment takes place and records are detailed. Information from assessments is used to plan for children's next steps in learning. Progress and development is regularly shared with parents and their comments and suggestions are recorded in their child's learning journal and on activity planning documents. Parents are encouraged to contribute to their child's learning journal. Progress is evaluated and recorded using a centralised data recording system. However, some less experienced staff miss opportunities to cross- reference what children know, understand and can do during assessments. This has the potential to lead to inaccurate reporting of children's progress. There is an effective key person system in place, which supports children's learning and promotes parental engagement and partnership working.

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who attend

The nursery is well resourced for both indoor and outdoor activities. All children are provided with a stimulating environment in which to play and learn. For example, the newly revamped baby rooms have been exceptionally well planned. There are separate areas for visual and physical stimulation and a tranquil space for quiet play and sleep times. In both of these areas there are sufficient natural and man-made resources, which appropriately reflect the atmosphere and function of the room. The decor and use of space and resources effectively stimulates the interest and involvement of small babies and very young children. In all other rooms resources and the environment appropriately reflect the age range and interests of children who use them. There are areas for accessing quieter activities like reading books, using computers and resting or chatting with a friend. There is space to investigate and explore using technology and opportunities

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who attend

to get involved in imaginative play or doing art and craft activities like painting, model making and baking. Children have access to tools for making marks during child-initiated and staff-led activities across all areas of learning. All resources are accessible. Children demonstrate their independence by selecting resources from different places in the room and when excusing themselves from staff-led activities to go to the toilet or to wash their hands.

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

The nursery provides a very nurturing environment. All staff are extremely effective in developing secure emotional attachments in all children. They deliver activities, which encourage independence, resulting in confident children demonstrating strong investigative and exploratory behaviour during play. Relationships are excellent. Staff are respectful and demonstrate appropriate modelling behaviour in their relationships with children and with each other. The nursery behaviour policy is very comprehensive and is effectively and appropriately administered by all staff. Children know and understand what is acceptable behaviour in a range of situations. They cooperate well with staff and each other and are courteous and supportive to each other during play activities.

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

Children's health and development is routinely fostered through well planned exciting and stimulating activities. Children are encouraged to manage their own risks when undertaking activities, like scrambling up and along the large outdoor climbing frame. Staff talk to children during activities, discussing with them things like the impact of not playing safely, or not covering up or coming inside during very hot spells. The nursery has a system whereby children are brought inside if the temperature reaches a very high level. Temperature gauges are provided to enable staff to make professionals decisions about children's welfare both inside and outside during hot and unusually cold weather.

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

Each age range has its own excellent outdoor play area, where all staff encourage independence. Staff provide a secure and stimulating environment with challenging activities, which encourage children to investigate and explore safely. Safeguarding, health and safety and children's welfare are extremely well managed by staff and are particular strengths of the nursery. Children are encouraged to manage their own risks and do so very competently. All staff are aware of the nursery's welfare and safeguarding policies and their role in managing the safety, security and interests of children. The management team robustly evaluate the effectiveness of safe practices on a regular basis. This provides staff with the support they need to make accurate judgements about children's well-being and the confidence to share any concerns.

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

Parental engagement is excellent. The nursery provides excellent opportunities for parents to access information and guidance on safeguarding children and health and safety during the day and via the website. Partnership working is embedded in the relationship between home and nursery and staff and parents have very good confidential relationships, which support children's safeguarding and welfare. For example, parents were invited to attend a paediatric first aid training course organised by the nursery. Transitions are very robust and flexible. Parents feel extremely comforted by the nursery's transition processes and children settle into their new situation very quickly. The communication between staff and the management team is highly effective and relationships are strong and respectful. The key person system is extremely effective. All key staff know their children and their parents well. The relationships they foster provide a very good basis for helping to keep

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

The nursery has a very comprehensive child induction and transition system, which staff use very effectively to develop children's confidence and to support their ongoing learning. Staff are knowledgeable about the importance of creating a secure foundation, with accurate starting points. When a child is being inducted into the nursery staff use children's achievements at home to inform their practice and to populate their settling-in plan. For induction and transition from room to room, staff maintain a link between key persons and home using a record called the 'First 5 Sessions'. This ensures that continuity of practice is maintained as children move from room to room. It also helps them to form secure attachments with their next key person.

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provision

Leadership and management of the nursery is strong because the management team has a clear vision and strives to provide a quality service to its children and parents.

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provision

Staff meet with managers regularly for staff meetings, drop-in support surgeries and training and development sessions. There is a comprehensive appraisal system, which is supported by regular supervision. For example, there are structured opportunities for staff to confidentially and privately discuss personal issues, professional concerns and feedback their self-evaluation of their own practice and performance. As a consequence, the management team know their staff well and have a good knowledge and understanding of their training needs. All staff attend training sessions irrespective of their existing knowledge and level of expertise. However, the management team have not sufficiently differentiated between experienced and less experienced staff in their staff development planning. As a consequence, experienced staff sometimes receive training, which is not reflective of their specific development needs. While interventions for less experienced

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provision

staff are not sufficiently targeted to benefit children and improve practice in a timely manner.

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provision

Managing safeguarding, health and safety and the welfare of children are a strength of the nursery management team. Recruitment and vetting of staff is very comprehensive and there are robust systems in place for following up any concerns. Staff induction is rigorous. There is a comprehensive policy and procedure working file, which staff adhere to and implement in their practice. Risk assessments are carried out regularly and there is a comprehensive policy to support measures to safeguard children. Children are well protected because staff understand their responsibilities for safeguarding and know who to report any concerns to.

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provision

Parent's views and wishes are proactively sought using a very comprehensive communication and information sharing system. Every parent receives a printed nursery brochure, which includes all the information they might need to access the nursery. The website is excellent and provides interactive opportunities for parents to access information and communicate with the nursery, both during and outside opening hours. There is a pay online service and a request a call back service, so that working parents can make contact to fit in with their work patterns.

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provision

There is a very effective child-induction process, which is comprehensive and supports the child and parents through the first few weeks of starting nursery or moving rooms. For example, parents meet with their child's key person for an update after the first month. This is followed up by a second meeting after 3 months. At this point parents complete a satisfaction survey, which the management team use to inform and shape their service. The nursery has a data management system, which they use to identify children's progress across the seven area of learning and to monitor the educational programme. This information is shared with parents at formal and informal meetings on a regular basis. Partnerships with external agencies are effective and productive. This ensures that additional support is actively sought and provided for all children in a timely manner.

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provision

Through self-evaluation staff and management team continue to improve the standard of care and education in the nursery. Strengths and areas for improvement are accurately identified and targets for further improvement are realistic and achievable. Parents, children, staff and outside agencies contribute to the self-evaluation process, thereby, ensuring that continuous improvement is informed by all partners.

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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 301131 Local authority Darlington Inspection number 867293

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 89 Number of children on roll 98 Name of provider Just Learning Ltd Date of previous inspection 16/09/2008 Telephone number 01325 460440

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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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