Stainsby Neighbourhood Nursery

Stainsby Neighbourhood Nursery Stainsby Road, MIDDLESBROUGH, Cleveland, TS5 4JS

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 30/08/2013 05/01/2011

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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

 Teaching is securely based on practitioner's thorough knowledge of the Early Years Foundation Stage. Staff, therefore, make good use of opportunities to promote children's learning through play and structured activities.  Children are happy and eager to learn. Their behaviour is good and they make independent choices about their play. This supports them in developing a positive attitude to school and future learning.  Children's interests and needs inform the planning and they are offered a wide variety of activities. The key person system is also used extremely well, meaning that practitioners and families can work together to promote children's learning and well- being.  Children's language and communication skills are well promoted. Children who have English as an additional language are supported in developing and extending their vocabulary and in making good progress in their overall development.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Staff's skills in asking open-ended questions are variable. This means children are not consistently encouraged to build on their rapidly developing critical and creative thinking skills.  Children do not always have sufficient opportunities to explore living things and learn about the natural world by using additional resources in the outdoors.

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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 viewed all areas of the premises and equipment and observed activities in all of the playrooms and the outside play areas.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at children's assessment records, planning documentation, evidence of suitability of staff working within the setting, the provider's self- evaluation form and a range of other documentation.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector held meetings with the manager, and spoke with staff and children throughout the inspection.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector completed a joint observation with the manager. Also took account of the views of parents spoken to on the day.

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Information about the setting

Stainsby Neighbourhood nursery was registered in 2004 and is on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. It is situated in a fully refurbished section of Whinney Banks Primary School in Middlesborough. The nursery serves the local area and is accessible to all children. It operates from three rooms and there is a fully enclosed area available for outdoor play.

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Information about the setting

The nursery employs 13 members of childcare staff. All hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 3 and above.

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Information about the setting

The nursery opens Monday to Friday all year round. Sessions are from 7.45am until 6pm. Children attend for a variety of sessions. There are currently 58 children attending who are in the early years age group. The nursery provides funded early education for two-, three- and four-year-old children. It supports a number of children who speak English as an additional language

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

 enhance staff's understanding of consistent and effective open-ended questioning, so children learn to think more creatively and critically

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

 enhance the use of the outdoors so that children have rich opportunities to investigate the natural world or observe things closely through a variety of means to help them learn to take care of living things.

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who attend

Babies and children thrive in this good quality setting and consistently demonstrate the characteristics of effective learning. Teaching is rooted in a secure knowledge of the Statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage and a comprehensive understanding of how children learn. Staff practice is good and in several instances, outstanding. As a result, children's individual needs are well met and they make consistently good progress in relation to their starting points.

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who attend

The environment is stimulating, challenging and well-equipped with a wide range of interesting and good quality resources to promote children's natural curiosity and develop their exploratory skills. For example, babies investigate mirrors, interactive toys and bottles filled with pasta, sand, rice and coloured water. They have a wonderful time as they sit, crawl and roll around in the sensory room. Older children investigate with mud water and sand as they look under logs for bugs and dig in the sand for worms. However, resources to extend children's investigation skills are limited. Children access a broad and balanced curriculum, are eager and motivated to learn and consistently demonstrate the characteristics of effective learning.

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who attend

Staff place a strong priority on helping children to acquire communication and language skills, and supporting their physical, personal, social and emotional development. This means that children gain the skills, abilities and attitudes that prepare them well for the next stage in their learning and school. All children, including young babies demonstrate high levels of independence as they confidently move around the environment to experience the exciting activities and resources on offer. For example, babies crawl rapidly towards the resources that they particularly enjoy, toddlers choose their favourite small world toys and pre-school children actively seek out a familiar story in the book area. Staff teach children to share and cooperate in their play and provide them with a wealth of opportunities to do this. For example, children work harmoniously together as they build bracelets with interlocking elephants. The effective use of a timer on the computer table

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who attend

supports children further in their understanding of taking turns and sharing fairly. Staff provide skilful and sensitive support to help children to achieve, which effectively builds their self-esteem. They consistently praise children for their achievements and use words, such as 'wow', 'good boy' and 'well done' to encourage them to persevere with tasks and gain a sense of pride in their achievements.

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who attend

Staff are skilled in the way they support children to develop their communication and language skills. They provide a running commentary as children play, to role model language and extend their vocabulary. For example, as children play in the water, staff introduce words, such as, 'heavy', 'full', and 'pouring' as toddlers fill buckets to pour in the mud. Babies are encouraged to communicate by attentive staff who recognise the sounds they make and repeat them back so that they begin to learn the art of 'two-way' conversation. However, although some staff demonstrate good questioning skills, some staff do not allow children sufficient time to consider their answer and develop these critical and creative thinking skills. Children who speak English as an additional language are expertly supported through gestures, facial expressions, pictures and visual clues. Furthermore, staff work in partnership with parents to learn key words in children's home

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who attend

language to support their understanding of English. Children are given a wealth of opportunities to listen and talk to each other for a variety of purposes to meet their individual development needs. For example, they are encouraged to share news about their home and family at circle time, participate in regular story and singing sessions. Staff use a phonics programme effectively to teach pre-school children to tune into, listen to and talk about sounds. Older children are beginning to understand initial sounds and link sounds to the letters in their name. These repeated daily activities have a significant impact on the development of children's literacy skills.

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who attend

Staff provide children with many opportunities to develop their physical skills, both indoors and outdoors. For example, good quality, low-level units in the baby rooms enable children to pull themselves up to a standing position safely and cruise along furniture. Older children develop their large muscle control and coordination as they ride wheeled toys, throw balls into a basket and use large climbing equipment. Babies and young children develop their finer hand movements as they turn the pages of a book, push buttons on interactive toys and complete simple inset jigsaws. Pre-school children and toddlers fill and empty containers with water and sand, thread beads and make marks with chalk, pens, crayons, pencils, sponges and paintbrushes.

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who attend

The effective observations and assessments on children ensure that children's needs are clearly identified and this information is used to inform future planning. Consequently, they are provided with stimulating and challenging experiences. For example, children learn about capacity as they explore 'full' and 'empty' when they play in the water. Children's progress is effectively tracked through a continuous assessment of their achievements. This helps staff to support them to make good progress in their learning and development, as their unique needs are recognised and planned for. In addition, any gaps in learning are quickly identified and appropriate interventions are sought to enable all children to achieve to their full potential. Children's learning journal records contain a wide range of information, including photographs, observations and examples of their work. They are well-presented and 'parent friendly' and are a lovely record to share with

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who attend

parents as evidence of children's achievements and progress. Home links and good information sharing with parents are also included in this process. This provides staff with a clear picture of what children can do and can accurately assess their needs and the next steps necessary for their continued development. Staff value parents input and share information about how they can help their child's learning through simple activities at home. Parents are given information about their children's learning through daily verbal feedback, regular written summaries of children's progress and opportunities to review children's learning journal records.

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

The key person system is effective and well embedded which helps children form secure, emotional attachments and provides a strong base for their personal, social and emotional development. Staff greet children and welcome them into the room which ensures that they feel valued and cared for. A warm and caring environment is created in which children are supported by the consistent routines and the effective, trusting relationships with their key person. Babies are looked after by loving, caring staff who intuitively understand their individuality and respond quickly to their physical and emotional needs. Children select resources independently and learn to plan and initiate their own learning as they explore the good quality resources and activities provided. Children have their own tray to store their possessions and, as a result they develop a strong sense of belonging.

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

Staff encourage children to do things for themselves as well as ensuring they are close by to support children if they need help. Babies and children are happy, content and well- settled in the setting because staff have a thorough understanding of their needs through information provided by parents on entry to the setting. Photographs of babies and children's families are displayed in all rooms to help children with the settling-in process and enable staff to talk to them about significant people in their lives. Effective systems are in place to support children as they move rooms, such as discussions with new key persons, sharing children's developmental progress reports and settling-in visits. Consequently, children experience continuity and consistency of care and learning.

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

Staff help children manage their behaviour as they explain about sharing, distract children with other resources and talk about feelings. They consistently praise positive behaviour by using words, such as 'clever boy' and 'what good listening', and showing children the 'thumbs up' sign. Staff respond to minor disagreements sensitively and calmly and encourage children to talk about what has happened and what they can do to resolve the situation. This helps children to become aware of the effect their actions have on others. Through effective daily reminders, staff reinforce the behavioural expectations, such as using tools safely and tidying up resources so that they do not fall. Staff provide consistent and clear boundaries to promote children's positive behaviour and, as a result, their behaviour is good. They sit appropriately during meal times, are polite and ask for things nicely as they respond with 'please' and 'thank you'. Children demonstrate a helpful and

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

caring attitude to each other and staff.

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

Children learn about keeping themselves safe as staff teach them the safety rules as they walk to and from the outdoor environment and the consideration of younger children in the setting. They are encouraged to manage their own risks outdoors as they use large climbing equipment and crawl along a structure they make from bricks. Staff effectively teach children about health and hygiene as they role model good practice and support them with daily routines. For example, staff effectively support younger children with hand washing routines as they draw their attention to the sequence pictures on the wall and role model what they need to do. Children enjoy a variety of nutritious snacks and meals, including fresh fruit and vegetables. Children are aware of the need to eat healthy foods to make their bodies grow and give them energy. They independently access fresh drinking water and explain that the hot weather and running around has made them

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

thirsty. During term time children go to the school dining room for their lunch. This prepares them for the move form nursery to school. Children have daily access to outdoor play to access regular fresh air and exercise and the provision of quiet, cosy areas within the indoor environment give children opportunities to rest and relax. As a result, children's health and hygiene is successfully promoted, which in turn has a positive impact on their physical and emotional well-being.

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provision

The manager together with senior managers, the staff team and local authority Quality Assurance Framework Officer has worked incredibly hard to develop practice since the last inspection. There is an effective self-evaluation system in place which includes contributions from staff, parents and children. For example, children are able to effectively air their views through group time when staff talk about how they feel. As a result, staff can talk to children about the reasons behind their thoughts and subsequently make appropriate changes. Priorities for improvement are clearly identified through the effective self-evaluation process and consistent monitoring of the environment. These are well documented on detailed, separate action plans for the whole nursery. Staff constantly evaluate their practice and the environment to ensure they continue to improve, as they strive to provide the best possible care and education for all children.

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provision

The manager takes overall responsibility for monitoring the educational programmes to ensure children access activities and experiences that cover all areas of learning. She effectively uses her knowledge and skills to guide staff in their practice and support them with the organisation of areas of continuous provision. All staff are passionate and fully committed to their work and the service they provide, and this is reflected in their enthusiasm and the enjoyment they demonstrate when interacting with the children. In addition, because they are so dedicated and genuinely love working with children, they often give up their own time to develop the environment to ensure it is maintained to a good standard at all times. As a result of thorough systems in place to monitor the quality of teaching, such as appraisals and general observations, practice is consistently good.

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provision

The manager ensures that all staff have ample opportunities for further training, which is discussed at appraisal meetings, and that any mandatory training is updated as required. The manager monitors planning, observation and assessment to ensure that children's progress is accurately recorded and key persons plan effectively for the next steps in their learning. She regularly reviews children's learning journal records and successfully supports staff in their implementation if needed.

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provision

Staff have a good knowledge and understanding of how to protect and safeguard children and policies and procedures are known by all staff and implemented consistently. They have all attended safeguarding training and are fully aware of what to do and who to contact if there are any safeguarding concerns. Risks are managed effectively and daily checks of the environment ensure that children can learn and play in complete safety. The vigilance of staff, consistent supervision of children and extensive security systems, such as keypad locks on doors and the use of safety gates, are effective. These ensure that children are kept safe from unwanted visitors and cannot leave the premises without an adult. A secure password system is in place for adults collecting children who are unknown by staff. The consistent monitoring of staff and children attending each day ensures that ratios are met at all times and children's needs are effectively promoted. Accidents and

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provision

existing injuries are recorded in detail and shared with and signed by parents to meet the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage. The robust recruitment and induction systems ensure that staff skills are valued and children are cared for by a safe and knowledgeable staff team.

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provision

Partnerships with parents and other early years providers are strong and make a significant contribution to meeting children's individual needs. This ensures continuity of care and learning and effectively supports children with the transition process. Relationships with outside professionals and external agencies, such as educational psychologists, speech and language therapists are exceptionally good. Consequently, all children receive the appropriate support and interventions they need and no child is disadvantaged. Close monitoring of children's progress throughout the setting, ensures that gaps in learning are swiftly identified. This demonstrates how the setting is closing the achievement gap of vulnerable groups of children. Parents have access to a wide variety of organisational policies and procedures and information about what to do and who to contact if they have any concerns. The use of daily diaries, along with

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provision

opportunities for parents to share verbal information with friendly, approachable staff, ensures that there are strong relationships between the home and the setting.

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provision

Parents comment very positively about the setting and the care and education their children receive. They are given lots of information about the Statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage through parents' noticeboards, leaflets and newsletters. Parents state that 'staff know my child extremely well'.

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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 EY272716 Local authority Middlesbrough Inspection number 915201

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 60 Number of children on roll 58 Name of provider Middlesbrough Borough Council Date of previous inspection 05/01/2011 Telephone number 01642 354302

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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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