Milton Keynes College Little Explorers Nursery

Milton Keynes College Early Years Training Nursery and Playscheme Milton Keynes College, Chaffron Way, Leadenhall, Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, MK6 5LP

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 20/08/2013 25/02/2010

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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 settle quickly and happily at the nursery and form good relationships with staff and each other.  All children progress well in their learning and development. The nursery team effectively monitors their progress and identifies their next steps of learning.  Children enjoy making choices about their play. They enjoy the activities because they are based around their interests.  Children behave very well. They play together cooperatively and develop good friendships.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 The staff are not proactive in exploring different ways to engage all parents in their children's development and learning at the nursery and at home. Inspection report: Milton Keynes College Early Years Training Nursery and Playscheme, 20/08/2013 2 of 10

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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 main play room and the outside learning environment.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector held meetings with the manager of the provision and carried out a joint observation.  The inspector looked at children's assessment records and planning documentation.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector checked evidence of suitability and qualifications of practitioners working with children, the provider's self-evaluation form and a selection of policy documents.  The inspector took account of the views of parents and carers spoken to on the day.

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Inspector

Christina Downey Inspection report: Milton Keynes College Early Years Training Nursery and Playscheme, 20/08/2013 3 of 10

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Information about the setting

Milton Keynes College Early Years Training Nursery and Playscheme registered in 1999. It operates from self-contained rooms in Milton Keynes College on the Chaffron Way Campus in Leadenhall, Milton Keynes. The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and both the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. It currently has 67 children on roll, all of whom are in the early years age group. It is open weekdays, 51 weeks of the year from 8am to 6pm, serves children whose parents are registered students at the college and is also open to the local community. The nursery supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children who speak English as an additional language. The nursery employs 16 members of staff, including a nursery manager with a National Vocational Qualification at level 5, whose responsibilities involve liaising with senior staff within the college to provide integrated early years training for

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Information about the setting

childcare students. The 15 staff members have early years qualifications or are working towards them.

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

 explore further ways to engage all parents in their children's development and learning in the nursery and at home.

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who attend

Children settle into the nursery well. The system of pre-visits for parents and children enables the key person to establish supportive relationships. Staff assess children's starting points accurately and give priority to identifying their individual needs and interests. This enables them to plan for children's future progress effectively.

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who attend

Children make good progress in their learning and development. Key staff closely monitor children's progress through observations. They evaluate children's progress and successfully identify their next steps of learning, recording findings in written six-weekly summaries. Staff exchange information about children's achievements and learning needs with parents informally on a daily basis, and provide opportunities for formal feedback meetings. This enables many parents and the staff to work consistently together. Inspection report: Milton Keynes College Early Years Training Nursery and Playscheme, 20/08/2013 4 of 10

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who attend

However, there are still some parents who do not have regular opportunities to be involved in their children's learning at nursery or to extend their learning at home. This is because staff have not fully explored different ways of sharing information with these parents.

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who attend

All staff are consistently good at promoting children's confidence and ability to take part in conversations. This successfully develops vocabulary and children make good progress. Staff have a strong understanding of the needs of children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. They work closely with parents and other professionals to share ideas and information, and implement effective support strategies. Staff support children who are learning English as an additional language well. Key staff learn a few key words as part of the settling in process; this values children's home language and supports their acquisition of English. As a result, all children make good progress in their social development and are included very well in all aspects of nursery life.

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who attend

Children enthusiastically take part in the stimulating play and activities. Staff support this participation skilfully. There is a good balance of adult-initiated and child-initiated activities. Free play sessions are suitably lengthy to allow children to persevere and follow their interests. For example, they become engrossed in creating a layout for toy cars, negotiating with support where different aspects should go. Good teaching also encourages children to explore what happens when toy cars go down the slide, what it feels like to swing in a hammock, or to negotiate bends at speed as they ride round the garden paths on bikes. The range of interesting and high quality resources stimulates children's interest and offers challenge. Children are well-motivated and confidently develop skills needed for the next stage in their learning.

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

The nursery provides a very welcoming and friendly environment. Staff build positive relationships with all children and the effective settling-in process enables children to make secure emotional attachments. All children play together well and their behaviour is good. They are confident and staff support them well with consistent boundaries and plenty of praise and encouragement. They develop good friendships and learn to take turns with popular resources. This supports their understanding of the needs of others as well as their ability to manage their own feelings.

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

The good quality and attractive resources are stored at child-height and children can make their own choices. For example they run inside to collect more toy cars for their game and this promotes good levels of involvement and cooperative play. The large garden provides a stimulating play environment and children are able to choose to play indoors or outside. Staff successfully encourage all the children to be physically active and to develop confidence using physical play equipment, such as the climbing frame.

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

Staff deployment is good and the children are consistently supervised well. Systems for Inspection report: Milton Keynes College Early Years Training Nursery and Playscheme, 20/08/2013 5 of 10

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

monitoring sleeping babies and younger children are effective. Children learn to be independent. They learn to manage their own safety, for example, through gentle reminders about staying safe. Consistent hygiene routines give clear messages to children about the importance of hand washing, for example, which they do independently. They talk about how they feel hot after they have been running about and develop a good awareness of the importance of healthy lifestyles. Children benefit from a balanced diet and the nutritious home-cooked food at the nursery. Children's social skills are promoted well at meal and snack times. They sit around tables together with staff, take part in conversations and develop valuable skills as they pour their own drinks. There are attractively displayed photographs in the entrance hall and informative displays, for example healthy eating choices and the curriculum. The cloakroom area provides personal

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

space for all children and effectively supports their, and their families' sense of belonging. Children are carefully prepared for transitions both within the nursery and when they leave to go to school. They are confident learners and well prepared for future education.

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provision

The manager maintains a good overview of the curriculum and all staff demonstrate a strong understanding of their responsibility to meet the Statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage requirements. The manager spends a good amount of time in the room with staff and children and monitors the quality of practice effectively. This is reinforced by more formal monitoring systems such as tracking children's progress. The observation, assessment and planning system is effective in helping all children to make good progress. Self-evaluation is thorough and used effectively to create focused improvement plans. Ideas for the garden project, for example, are shared with parents and aim to further improve children's learning outdoors. Staff benefit from regular supervision meetings and annual appraisals. These contribute well to their professional development. Training needs are monitored carefully and staff successfully develop their

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provision

qualification levels. A varied programme of in-house training further supports staff skills.

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provision

The nursery team meets the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation stage very well. Record keeping is consistently good and helps ensure children's safety and well-being. For example, medication records are rigorous. Risk assessments help maintain overall safety, and good adult to child ratios and effective staff deployment also contribute well to the safe management of the provision. As a result a safe and stimulating environment where children feel confident and secure is maintained. The staff have a good understanding of their responsibilities to safeguard children in their care and have attended suitable training. The good partnership with the college in which the nursery is based makes an effective contribution to the quality of care and education offered. The nursery maintains good partnerships with outside professionals and other providers such as the local children's centre. These have a

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provision

significant impact on children's progress. Parents benefit from the wide range of information they receive as well as from the welcoming, respectful and supportive Inspection report: Milton Keynes College Early Years Training Nursery and Playscheme, 20/08/2013 6 of 10

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provision

relationships established with all the staff.

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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 Inspection report: Milton Keynes College Early Years Training Nursery and Playscheme, 20/08/2013 7 of 10

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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. Inspection report: Milton Keynes College Early Years Training Nursery and Playscheme, 20/08/2013 8 of 10

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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 141847 Local authority Milton Keynes Inspection number 841498 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 8 Total number of places 60 Number of children on roll 92 Name of provider Milton Keynes College Date of previous inspection 25/02/2010 Telephone number 01908 684462

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Setting details

set out in the guidance ‘Complaints procedure: raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted’, which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk. If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk.

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Type of provision

For the purposes of this inspection the following definitions apply:

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Type of provision

Full-time provision is that which operates for more than three hours. These are usually known as nurseries, nursery schools and pre-schools and must deliver the Early Years Foundation Stage. They are registered on the Early Years Register and pay the higher fee for registration.

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Type of provision

Sessional provision operates for more than two hours but does not exceed three hours in any one day. These are usually known as pre-schools, kindergartens or nursery schools Inspection report: Milton Keynes College Early Years Training Nursery and Playscheme, 20/08/2013 9 of 10

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Type of provision

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. Inspection report: Milton Keynes College Early Years Training Nursery and Playscheme, 20/08/2013 10 of 10

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Type of provision

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, safeguarding and child protection.

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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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