The Heathers Nursery

The Heathers Nursery Bracken Avenue, Norwich, Norfolk, NR6 6LS

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 09/09/2013 10/09/2009

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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

 Staff understand how children learn. They support them well through a balance of child-initiated and structured activities, which enables children to make good progress in their learning and development from their starting point.  The setting is child-centred and well organised. Staff undertake thorough observations to identify children's next steps for learning, which are reflected in the planning of activities, to meet the unique needs of children.  Partnerships with parents are fostered well, as staff work to ensure that there is a joint approach to children's learning. Transitions are handled sensitively and effectively, enabling children to make a successful and smooth move on to school.  Children's health and well-being is effectively supported, as staff ensure children learn good personal care routines, develop an awareness of healthy eating and children spend lots of time outdoors each day enjoying fresh air and physical exercise.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 There is scope to increase children's interest in imaginative role play, such as providing a greater variety of resources, particularly in the home play area, which encourage children to use materials to represent their own ideas and first-hand experiences.  Sometimes children's speaking and listening skills, during adult-led activities, such as story-time, are not always promoted as well as possible, resulting in less confident children being less likely to contribute or fully engage in the activity.

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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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Inspection activities

 The inspector observed activities in the rooms where children play and outdoors.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector met with the supervisor of the provision, a member of the pre-school committee and spoke to staff and children at appropriate times throughout the inspection.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at children's progress records, planning, evidence of suitability of staff working within the setting, a selection of policies and other relevant documentation.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector also took account of the views of parents spoken to during the inspection.

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Information about the setting

The Heathers Nursery opened in 1996. It is registered on the Early Years Register. The setting operates from a mobile unit and a purpose built classroom within Heather Avenue Infant School in Hellesdon, Norfolk. The setting is run by a committee and serves the local area. It is accessible to all children and there is an enclosed area available for outdoor play.

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Information about the setting

The nursery is open Monday to Friday, from 8.45am to 11.45am and 12.00 to 3pm, during term times only. Children attend for a variety of sessions. There are currently 54 children attending, who are in the early years age group. The setting 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 and who have special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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Information about the setting

The committee employs 11 members of staff to work with children. Of these, five hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 3, three at level 2 and three are soon to start childcare training.

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

 enhance further the resources within each of the role play areas, to further stimulate children's interest and enjoyment of imaginative role play

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

 maximise the opportunities already available to promote children's speaking and listening skills, but particularly during large group activities, such as story time, to further promote their learning.

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who attend

Children make good progress in this setting because staff understand how young children learn and are competent in providing a balanced range of play and learning experiences. They recognise that children learn through play and provide a welcoming, child-centred environment, where children feel confident and secure. Children's starting points and interests are assessed as they settle into the setting, so that staff get to know children's abilities and can provide activities which interest them. The key person regularly observes children during their play, noting and tracking their progress. This information is meaningfully recorded in individual books, along with photographs demonstrating children's achievements. Staff plan a good variety of indoor and outdoor activities, based on what they know about children and their identified next steps for learning. This ensures that children are successfully helped to move along their developmental pathway at their

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who attend

own pace. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities are supported effectively, enabling them to make good progress during their time at the setting. Staff liaise closely with parents and other professionals involved in children's care to ensure that children receive appropriate intervention and encouragement.

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who attend

Older children express themselves well. Animated and lively conversations take place between children and staff during activities. Children listen well in small groups and understand simple instructions and comments made by staff. A quiet, cosy area is set up near to a good display of books. This encourages children's enjoyment of books and stories as they confidently select favourites to look through on their own or with friends or they ask staff to read to them. Staff use these opportunities to introduce new words as they talk with children about what they can see in the pictures. Most children readily engage in large group storytime and become engrossed in listening to the story, read by a member of staff. However, background noise from other children and staff not engaged in this activity, means that sometimes hearing is difficult, some children become distracted and quieter children's contributions cannot be heard. Although, more confident children

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who attend

can recount familiar stories, predicting what might happen next and they eagerly express their ideas in this large group environment. Staff use open-ended questioning to encourage children to think and express themselves. For example, while looking for insects under logs in the garden, children are prompted to remember those they have found previously. Some children can offer quite detailed information about the centipedes, ants, bugs and woodlice they expect to find, showing this is a familiar and enjoyable activity children regularly enjoy. Children eagerly turn the logs and use magnifying glasses to examine what they find, they talk about the life cycle of some insects and count how many they see or the number of legs each insect has. Consequently, children are developing a good understanding of the natural world, developing their vocabulary and communication skills and using basic counting skills. Mathematical concepts run through

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who attend

many activities. For example, children talk about buckets of sand being 'heavy and light', during play in the sandpit and count and compare size and shape while playing simple computer games. Children enjoy activities on the computer and demonstrate their increasing coordination and control of the mouse. They are learning to share effectively, as they know to take turns with some children considerately helping others. Consequently, children's social skills are developing through their play.

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who attend

Children enjoy being creative and staff plan a choice of craft based activities each day. Displays of their creative work decorate the walls, showing that children use a range of creative media and materials. Children's hand and eye coordination is developed as they paint, draw, chalk or cut with scissors. They enjoy pretending to paint outdoors, using buckets of water and rollers or brushes to decorate the wooden posts supporting the covered area. Children help themselves to water from the butt, successfully turning on and off the tap to fill their buckets. Consequently, children are developing good manipulative skills. Children's independence is encouraged. They confidently select what they would like to play with, choose when they would like to play outdoors or come in for their snack. Staff encourage children to try for themselves, providing support as needed. Children's attempts, as well as achievements, are praised, which encourages children to

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who attend

persist at a task. Consequently, children are developing good skills, which support them well in their future learning.

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who attend

Partnerships with parents are a key strength of this setting and as a result, parents comment that they feel well informed, supported and involved in their children's learning. Daily discussions as children arrive and leave each day, enable parents to share information with staff and help promote consistency in care for children. Recently introduced communication books, provide a further means of communication and encourage all carers to contribute and share in children's learning.

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

Children are cared for in a calm and caring atmosphere, which creates a positive learning environment for all. Staff pay close regard to the safety of children and ensure that activities, resources and equipment are well suited to their needs. Good consideration is made to the daily presentation of resources both indoors and outside, which ensures that children can make independent choices in what they wish to play with. Some imaginative play areas are set up indoors, based on the planned theme, such as creating a travel agents. Although, other areas, such as the home role play area, sometimes lack the richness of resources to fully stimulate children's interest and imaginative play. Children move freely between the indoor and outdoor environment for the majority of each session. Outdoors is well used to enhance children's learning, providing exciting opportunities to explore, investigate, be creative, imaginative and physically active.

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

Arrangements to help children settle into the setting and build secure emotional attachments with their carers are effective. Induction visits by all new children and parents ensure that key persons become knowledgeable about the individual children in their care. Staff are alert to the feelings of children and offer sensitive support. For example, if children appear uncertain about joining a group activity, then they allow them to choose something else, to support them in settling. The pre-school is within the grounds of the school, so children frequently see older children, particularly their siblings when outside. This helps children to make associations about their move to big school and as a result, children are supported in making a smooth transition into school.

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

Children are learning to be independent in their self-care and staff encourage them to develop an understanding of healthy lifestyles. For example, children know they need to wash their hands before snacks or meals. Staff effectively support children who have special dietary requirements, liaising with parents to ensure that children's individual dietary needs are met. Children are very involved in snacktime preparation and are becoming very independent. They collect a cup and plate, serve themselves drink and food, pass bowls of food to others around the table and even hold the bowl while a friend serves themselves. Children relish opportunities to help chop fruit and vegetables, such as bananas, learning to use small knives both safely and with precision. They help in the mixing of ingredients for healthy dips and parents comment that children eat many foods within the setting that they will not try at home. Some children bring packed lunches if

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

they stay all day. Discussion during mealtimes supports children in learning about healthy eating. Children readily help themselves to drinking water during sessions, so are learning to take responsibility for their own bodily needs. Staff attach great importance to children being outside and enjoying fresh air and exercise. They carefully plan the outdoor environment so there is a good choice of resources, so that children want to play outdoors and be physically active. Children develop self-confidence in their physical skills as they use a varied range of equipment to promote their physical development. They are learning to take acceptable risks as they climb the slide, run, jump and ride small wheeled toys. Staff provide gentle reminders, when necessary, to promote children's understanding of their own and other children's safety. For example, they are asked to think about what might happen if they do not sit on chairs properly or not handle small tools safely.

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

Children behave well in the setting. They are learning to be kind and offer to share and take turns with resources with little or no prompting. Staff act as positive role models, speaking kindly to children and gently reminding them to say 'please' and 'thank you'. Regular praise and encouragement from staff helps to develop children's self-esteem and sense of achievement. The pre-school is inclusive and children learn to respect and celebrate each other's differences. Children with English as an additional language or those who are bilingual are well supported as staff use gestures and pictures to aid communication. They find books in their home language to share and help children settle.

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provision

The committee and supervisor demonstrate a shared understanding of the responsibilities the setting has to meet the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. Staff work well together as a cohesive team and are supported by a strong committee. There is a shared commitment towards improving further the service provided for children and their parents. Regular supervision of staff and annual appraisals ensure staff have opportunities for training and professional development and all staff have a professional development plan in place. The team use self-evaluation to effectively highlight successes and areas for development. They have implemented many changes, particularly to improving the process of observation, assessment and planning, so that this is consistent amongst all staff. Systems to track children's progress have been reviewed, ensuring that these are now more effective in identify any gaps in learning early, so that timely intervention can

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provision

be planned. Consequently, children have benefitted from the changes made

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provision

The setting is run by a parent committee, which means that parents can be active in key decision making. Furthermore, the views of parents are regularly sought, for example, through questionnaires. Parents also sign up to 'stay and play' sessions. This enables parents to more fully share in their children's pre-school experiences as they join in activities with their child and other children. They spend time talking to their child's key person and share their child's assessment records and progress to date. Parents freely comment that they feel well informed, supported and welcome in the setting. The setting uses many different ways to share information with parents, such as email or paper copy newsletters, information boards and displays, or the welcome booklet. In addition, children each have their own book bag, so that they can take home pictures or artwork and children regularly choose a book from the setting to take home and read with their

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provision

parents. This helps children to develop links between the setting and home and encourages parents to share in their children's learning at home. Consequently, strong partnerships are established with parents.

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provision

The setting works in close partnership with other professionals and organisations involved in the care and well-being of children. Regular communication and sharing of information assures continuity in care for children and supports their families. This multiagency approach, coupled with staff's positive attitude, means that where children need additional input, individualised plans are formed in consultation with parents, to ensure that appropriate support is arranged. Furthermore, there are good links with other early years providers and the primary school, which enable staff to complement children's learning and encourage a smooth transition when children move on to school.

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provision

Safeguarding is considered a priority in the setting. Staff fully understand the issues surrounding child protection and are clear about the procedures they need to follow to report any concerns. Rigorous recruitment procedures ensure that all staff working with children are suitable to do so. Daily risk assessments help to keep the premises safe, minimise potential hazards and protect children from harm. Staffing ratios are maintained and staff are assigned to different rooms and areas, so that children are well supervised. Furthermore, staff vigilance allows children to play and explore with appropriate levels of supervision. Clear policies and procedures, which are accessible to parents, support the good care and learning practices in the setting. Records are well maintained and stored confidentially, although, parents can access their children's records at any time. Consequently, children are well cared for and their safety and good health are assured.

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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 257937 Local authority Norfolk Inspection number 929199

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 5 Total number of places 44 Number of children on roll 54 Name of provider The Heathers Nursery Committee Date of previous inspection 10/09/2009 Telephone number 01603 485371

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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

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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