Busy Bees at Birmingham Kingsheath

Treetops at Sunny Corner 146 Haunch Lane, BIRMINGHAM, West Midlands, B13 0PY

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 14/08/2013 07/09/2012

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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 have a thorough knowledge of how children learn, which means they provide a wide range of exciting learning experiences and resources through which children make good progress.  Children are safe both on and away from the premises as robust policies and procedures are implemented very effectively.  Children's health and well-being is given high priority by caring staff in the homely, welcoming environment of the nursery. Children form close bonds with their key person and are very happy and secure.  Staff are extremely well supported by the management team and there is an excellent drive for continuous improvement through sharply focused self-evaluation and training.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 There is even more scope to involve children's families in their learning so that they receive further valuable support to aid their progress.

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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 four playrooms and the outdoor play area, including a joint observation with the acting manager of the nursery.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector held meetings with the acting manager and the area manager of the nursery.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at and discussed children's assessment records, the self- evaluation process, planning documentation, evidence of suitability of staff working in the nursery and a range of other documentation.

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Inspection activities

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

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Information about the setting

Treetops at Sunny Corner was registered in 1990 and is one of 34 nurseries owned by Treetops Nurseries Ltd. It is registered on the Early Years Register and operates from eight rooms in a converted building in the Kings Heath area of Birmingham. The nursery serves the local area and is accessible to all children. It opens on Monday to Friday from 7.30am to 6.15pm for 50 weeks a year, with the exception of bank holidays. There is an enclosed area available for outdoor play.

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Information about the setting

The nursery employs 16 members of childcare staff, 14 of whom hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 2 and 3. Children attend for a variety of sessions. There are currently 86 children attending who are within 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 with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children who have English as an additional language. The nursery receives support from the local authority.

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

 extend the already strong partnership with parents and carers by finding ways to involve other family members in children's learning in order to support this even further.

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who attend

The nursery rooms and outdoor area are very well organised and well thought out. This means children develop and extend their learning as they choose from a wide range of easily accessible toys and resources. Staff have a thorough knowledge of the characteristics of play and how children learn. They know the children very well and challenge them effectively through exciting activities planned around their individual needs and interests, which means they make good progress. Staff make regular observations of children which they record so that they have a clear view of each child's progress across all areas of learning. This means they identify and address any gaps in learning so that all children make progress at their own pace and level. Staff evaluate their teaching and planning which means they build on children's learning and plan the next steps in their learning effectively. There are strong partnerships with parents and carers because staff invite them to attend

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who attend

play sessions with children and advise them about how to support children's learning at home. Information about children's progress and achievements is shared daily which means that all children's needs are met and both staff and parents have a clear view of their progress and what they will do to build on this. There is even more scope to extend this partnership further through more frequent involvement of other family members in the support of children's learning. Parents are very well informed about their children's activities and how children learn from them. Staff encourage them to share their cultures with the children through cooking, dressing up or dance activities.

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who attend

Staff develop children's communication and language skills well as they chat to them during activities. Their skilful questioning means children think about their learning. For example, a group of pre-school children build a train track and are challenged to find ways to build the bridge and attach it to the rest of the track so the train is not derailed. A small group of three-and four-year olds find a snail, so staff encourage them to look for more, asking where they might find them, what they like to eat or how they move. Staff allow children the freedom to extend this activity as they wish after lunch, so that they learn about nature, living things and how to care for them. They are well prepared for school, as they learn to recognise the shapes and sounds of letters and a wide range of mathematical skills through the activities, such as water play. Older children use the computer independently to develop their technological skills and younger ones use a range

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who attend

Babies and toddlers enjoy exploring a wide range of textures, such as play dough, sand, water and exciting natural objects in treasure baskets. They are imaginative as staff encourage them to pretend to cook in the kitchen role play area as they chat about foods they like. They choose from a wide range of mark making materials outside and experiment with water and building blocks. All children develop their physical skills well through their use of wheeled toys and a range of climbing and balancing equipment. Older children extend this further as they use the larger equipment at the nearby park. Children enjoy sharing books and listening to stories. Staff pause so that children join in with familiar parts of the story and relate it to their own experiences. They all enjoy taking part in action songs and dance and are imaginative in their use of percussion instruments.

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who attend

Bilingual staff help to support children for whom English is an additional language and parents are invited to share words in their home languages, which are displayed in the nursery. This promotes children's awareness of diversity. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities are supported well, as staff work closely with parents and other professionals, such as a speech therapist.

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

Children are very happy and secure in the very homely and welcoming environment of the nursery. They form close bonds with the caring, friendly staff and are confident in their use of the space and in their choice of activities. Each room displays photographs of children's families, which gives them a sense of belonging and comfort if they need it. Children feel secure, as they bring comfort items from home and receive cuddles from staff if they are tired or upset.

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

Behaviour is very good, as staff set clear boundaries. Children form very good relationships with staff and with each other and enjoy social time throughout the day. They feel valued as they receive frequent praise from staff when they try something new or are kind, such as when one child puts another one's sock on for them. Staff encourage children to share the toys and to help each other. Children are calm and settled and busy in their enjoyment of the activities. They help to look after a rabbit and hamsters at nursery, which develops their sense of responsibility and teaches them to care for living things.

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

Staff ensure children learn to keep themselves safe by developing an awareness of their surroundings, such as avoiding obstacles and other children. Children manage risks safely in their use of the climbing equipment and forest schools activities. They learn to be independent in their personal care routines and to serve themselves at meal times. The nursery provides nutritious, home-cooked food and healthy snacks so that children learn to make healthy choices. They have fresh air and exercise each day in the nursery garden and on their trips around the local area.

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

Children's moves to new rooms in the nursery are managed sensitively with the involvement of parents. They spend increasing amounts of time in their new room with their key person until they become settled. Transitions to schools are smooth, as staff contact teachers from the schools children will attend and invite them to visit the nursery. This means children get to know them and they find out about their schools, which helps them to feel secure. Information about children is passed on to schools so that their needs continue to be met.

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provision

The nursery is one of a group of nurseries, so leadership and management are very strong. The acting manager and the acting deputy manager are extremely well supported each week in their supervision and monitoring of staff performance by the area manager. The appointment of a new manager is in progress. Staff are observed regularly and areas for improvement are identified and addressed through training and coaching. Staff evaluate their performance in discussion with the management team and have plenty of scope to develop their own professional interests. Self-evaluation is very sharply focused and includes input from all staff, children and parents. This results in highly effective, continuous improvement in the nursery provision, which means children's learning experiences are constantly improving. There is excellent teamwork and staff are highly motivated in striving to provide the best care for children.

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provision

The acting manager ensures that all staff understand and implement the very detailed safeguarding policy and procedures. Children are very well supervised and the premises are secure. Staff carry out very thorough risk assessments throughout the day and are meticulous in their record keeping and the signing in out of children. This means that children are safe and registers are maintained in case of emergency evacuation, which is practised regularly. All staff attend regular safeguarding and paediatric first aid training and there are robust procedures for staff recruitment in place.

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provision

There are very strong partnerships with parents and other professionals in order to further children's progress. Staff invite parents to fill in questionnaires and comment on the provision so that their views are taken into account. All policies and procedures are shared with parents, including the complaints policy. Staff work with speech therapists, health visitors and other professionals and have very good links with other local early years providers and other nurseries in the group. This means they share training and best practice for mutual support and improvement of the provision. Information about children's progress and well-being is shared with the other settings children attend, so that there is continuity of care and their learning is complemented.

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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 EY268855 Local authority Birmingham Inspection number 927506

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 5 Total number of places 74 Number of children on roll 86 Name of provider Treetops Nurseries Limited Date of previous inspection 07/09/2012 Telephone number 0121 443 2600

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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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