Seedlings Day Nursery

Banana Moon Day Nursery The Annex, Bowthorpe Hall, Bowthorpe Hall Road, NORWICH, Norfolk, NR5 9AA

p.1

Inspection date

Previous inspection date 23/08/2013 Not Applicable

p.1

early years provision

This inspection: 2 Previous inspection: Not Applicable 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

p.1

This provision is good

 Accurate assessments and regular progress reviews enable staff to effectively identify areas of learning and development where children may benefit from additional support.  Children who speak English as an additional language are well supported and make good progress, as their first language is fully valued by the nursery.  Caring staff work well in partnership with parents to ensure that children's individual needs are met and their routines are consistently followed.  Good behaviour is promoted and praised by staff, who provide clear and consistent boundaries. Consequently, children behave well and show they feel safe in the environment.  The management team and staff show a strong commitment to continued improvement of the nursery provision for all children. Accurate self-evaluation identifies priorities and effectively targets areas for development.

p.1

It is not yet outstanding because

 Opportunities to enhance children's knowledge and understanding could be further developed, by giving children more time to think and develop their ideas in response to questions.  The planning systems in the baby room are not always effective in ensuring that all staff members understand children's next steps, resulting in a few missed opportunities to fully develop children's learning.

p.1

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

p.2

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.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector observed care routines and activities in the baby room and pre-school room, the outside learning environment and children having their snack.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke with the nursery owner, manager, deputy manager and staff at appropriate times throughout the day.

p.2

Inspection activities

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

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at documentation, including children's records, learning and development information, staff records and policies and procedures.

p.2

Inspection activities

 The inspector jointly observed activities in the outside area with the manager of the setting.

p.2

Information about the setting

Banana Moon Day Nursery was registered in 2013 on the Early Years Register. It operates from a purposefully renovated premises in the Bowthorpe area of Norwich. It is privately owned, operated under a franchise organisation. The nursery serves the local area and is accessible to all children. Children use three main play rooms and there is a fully enclosed outside area within the main garden of the premises. The nursery employs six members of childcare staff. All staff members hold or are working towards appropriate early years qualifications at level 2 and 3, including the manager who holds Early Years Professional Status. The nursery opens Monday to Friday, from 7.30am until 6.30pm all year round, except bank holidays and a week at Christmas. Children may attend for a variety of sessions. The nursery supports children who speak English as an additional language and provides funded early education for three- and four-year-old children.

p.3

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

 share good practice amongst staff members to ensure that all practitioners understand how to skilfully ask questions, giving children time to think and share their ideas

p.3

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

 evaluate the use of children's identified next steps in learning in the baby room, so that new staff are able to quickly understand these, so they can consistently provide focused support during activities.

p.3

who attend

Banana Moon Day Nursery provides a welcoming and friendly environment. The recently renovated building has been well planned to provide light and airy rooms, creating a calm environment for children to play and learn. A good range of resources are appropriately displayed at low levels to provide children with opportunities to follow their interests by selecting their own activities. For example, younger children enjoy discovering their reflections in the low level mirrors, while older children happily share books in the comfortable story area. The new sensory room excites children's curiosity as they explore interesting patterns and baskets of natural objects. The outdoor areas offer children space and freedom to explore their surroundings using a selection of well-planned activities to maintain children's motivation for learning. Staff have a very good understanding of how to promote positive relationships as they

p.3

who attend

encourage children to take turns and share. As a result, children interact and play happily alongside each other. Staff support children's self-esteem by quickly praising their attempts to share and socialise with their peers. Children develop a good knowledge of the world around them by making their own discoveries through active play with water, sand and messy materials. Older children excitedly help to fill up different coloured bottles with water while staff enthusiastically join in with their play, asking questions to encourage children to find out if the water changes colour. Younger children show great delight during messy play activities, where they use their senses to explore new textures. Teaching is good; there is a team of committed staff members, who have a clear understanding of how children learn. They model new skills while providing useful explanations to help children to understand new concepts and make links in their learning.

p.4

who attend

However, on a few occasions children are not given enough time to fully develop their thinking and talk about their own ideas because staff members provide an answer or explanation for children too quickly.

p.4

who attend

Older children are prepared for the next stage in their learning by taking part in group activities, where they join in with adults to practise greetings in different languages. They also learn about rhyme and rhythm by joining in with favourite songs. Members of staff lead group teaching sessions, where they effectively help children to listen and learn about books and stories. For example, children listen carefully to a story about dinosaurs, they respond well to questions, learning to anticipate what will happen next. Opportunities for children to develop their literacy skills are good. Staff enthusiastically share books with children in their cosy story tent, where they teach them about illustrations and words. They motivate children to enjoy developing their reading and writing skills by helping them to create their own books based on children's favourite topics and interests. Children learn to count as adults spontaneously show them how to say number names in order during

p.4

who attend

their play. As a result, children have a range of opportunities for mathematical development and are supported to develop their understanding and counting skills.

p.4

who attend

The support given to children with English as an additional language is good as staff work very well with parents to gather information and find out how they can support their child at nursery. Staff members ask children's parents to teach them important words from their child's first language and use them regularly with the child to help them to develop their understanding. Well-qualified staff regularly observe children and document their learning in thorough developmental records. The detailed information gathered from parents when children start at the nursery give staff a clear picture of each child's individual learning needs and interests. This information is used to plan appropriate next steps for children to enable them to progress their learning. Regular progress reviews of each child's development are shared with parents and enable the child's key person to identify any area where a child needs additional support. Staff working with older children have a clear

p.4

who attend

understanding of children's next steps and use these to inform their daily planning of activities. However, a change in staff working with younger children has resulted in some staff members, who are not fully aware of each child's next steps. This means that on some occasions the activities provided for younger children are not as sharply focused on meeting each child's needs as they could be.

p.4

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

Staff establish good partnership with parents; they find out about each child's individual needs before they start attending the nursery and work hard to follow their routines for sleep and meal times. For example, younger children are rocked or soothed to sleep by caring staff according to parents' wishes. Staff are observant to children's needs and have a nurturing approach; they quickly attend to children's care needs and comfort them with cuddles. The well-planned environment enables staff to effectively meet the emotional and physical needs of younger children in their care. For example, a large comfortable seating area and calm, cosy sleep room provides staff with suitable spaces to comfort children when they are tired or upset. The focus on meeting individual needs helps children to develop their emotional well-being by developing bonds with staff that care for them.

p.5

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

New children visit the nursery with their parents for settling-in sessions. The allocation of a key person enables each child to develop a secure bond with a member of staff. The recent change of staff in the room for younger children has resulted in a change of key person for some children. However, this change is being managed to ensure that children are cared for by familiar staff members, who understand the children's routines. Children feel secure with the small staff team, who work hard to meet their needs and develop caring relationships. Staff help children to settle in quickly to the family environment as described by parents. Parents talk positively about how their children enjoy attending the nursery. Staff are very thorough when sharing information at the end of each session, discussing each child's food preferences and sleep patterns with their parents. This supports the development of consistent routines, helping children to feel secure and

p.5

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

parents to feel confident about the care their child receives. Staff work well together to share information about children's needs when a child makes the transition to a new room. Staff have a good understanding of the importance of partnership working. Plans are in place to develop links with local schools to continue to provide consistent experiences, enabling a smooth transition when children leave the nursery and start school.

p.5

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

Care practices in the nursery are well thought out, with a specific area to change nappies where staff attend to children's individual needs with care. Staff help children to feel calm and content as they sing songs and smile during nappies changes and provide each child with their own labelled draw in which to keep their belongings. Hygiene practices are very thorough with a separate kitchen, where healthy food is provided for children. Children learn ways to keep themselves healthy by members of staff, who encourage them to wash their hands independently before eating. Children learn to make their own choices by deciding what to eat from a range of healthy food and learn about where food comes from; they grow their own vegetables in the outside area and try them for their snack.

p.5

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

Opportunities for regular exercise are regularly available, babies learn to pull themselves up to standing and enjoy holding hands with staff members while they learn to take their first steps. They enjoy crawling and walking around the grassed outdoor area, where they explore a range of equipment to promote their large muscle control. Staff support children in their explorations as they learn to balance and move with coordination. Older children develop their physical skills by regularly using the outdoor equipment, where they learn to jump, climb and slide.

p.5

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

Good behaviour is clearly promoted by all staff, who provide positive role models to help children to learn how to follow rules and interact positively with their peers. Staff remind children about how to sit sensibly during their snack and model how to share with their friends. Children are quickly praised for positive behaviour and as a result, children behave well and play happily alongside each other. Staff link children's developing knowledge of keeping themselves safe to favourite stories about fire fighters, for example, by helping children create their own book about what to do if they hear the fire alarm.

p.6

provision

The nursery is led by an enthusiastic team, who are fully committed to providing high quality care and learning experiences for all children. The owner of the nursery is fully involved in the daily running of the nursery, while the well-qualified manager clearly understands how children learn and is fully committed to providing a good level of care for all children. The manager regularly monitors planning and assessment procedures to identify any individuals or group of children that may need additional support. As a result, advice is sought and appropriate interventions are planned to ensure that all children are able to make good progress with their learning.

p.6

provision

The manager clearly understands the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. The management team have attended essential safeguarding training and as a result, have effectively trained staff members to ensure they have a clear understanding of how to recognise and report any child protection concern. Clear recruitment systems are in place to ensure all staff, who work with children, are suitable to do so. These measures help to protect children from harm and neglect. The owner and manager are meticulous in ensuring that health and safety procedures are followed. A secure entry system is used to prevent unauthorised access to the building. Staff are thorough when following hygiene procedures and assessing risks. This ensures that children are kept safe from harm. Effective accident and medication records are kept and shared with parents, which supports the safety of children and the management of the

p.6

provision

setting. The performance of each member of staff is monitored through regular supervision meetings and annual reviews to ensure that they fully understand their roles and responsibilities. Staff are encouraged to develop their knowledge through training courses and to reflect on their practice and share their strengths, leading to a well- qualified and motivated team. A system of peer observation enables staff members to develop their ability to enhance children's learning and development. Members of staff have planned opportunities to watch how their colleagues interact with children, discuss good practice and areas for further development.

p.6

provision

The setting has a good capacity to improve because the owner and management team are committed to developing the quality of the nursery for all children and their families. Many improvements have been made to the nursery since it opened. The manager is able to be reflective and talk about how the nursery will improve experiences for children. Self- evaluation takes account of parents' and children's views and uses this feedback to inform plans for development. All staff are motivated to continually improve the quality of learning and development by contributing to the self-evaluation process. The ongoing rigorous review of all aspects of provision has enabled the management team to bring about many improvements to the nursery since it opened.

p.6

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.

p.8

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.

p.8

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.

p.9

Setting details

Unique reference number EY454180 Local authority Norfolk Inspection number 908007

p.9

Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 5 Total number of places 36 Number of children on roll 29 Name of provider ARK Ventures UK Ltd T/A Banana Moon Day Nursery Date of previous inspection not applicable Telephone number 01603 734734

p.9

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.

p.9

Type of provision

For the purposes of this inspection the following definitions apply:

p.9

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.

p.9

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.

p.9

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.

p.10

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,

p.10

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’.

p.11

Type of provision

T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk

p.11