Little Owls Nursery Meanwood

Meanwood Children's Centre Daycare Potternewton View, LEEDS, West Yorkshire, LS7 2DW

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 18/09/2013 17/02/2011

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early years provision

This inspection: 4 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 4 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 4

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This provision is inadequate

 Staff do not adequately safeguard children because they do not thoroughly investigate complaints of allegations made against staff, inform parents of the outcome of complaints or follow the setting's safeguarding policies and procedures. In addition, children's attendance is not accurately recorded to safeguard them in the event of an emergency.  Information regarding children's welfare is not adequately protected because staff do not adhere to the setting's confidentiality policy.  Children's welfare needs are not sufficiently met because staff do not ensure water is accessible at all times and there are too few toilets in full working order.  Children are not making adequate progress in their learning and development because staff do not quickly identify gaps in children's learning or plan effectively to close gaps.  Children do not fully understand the rules and boundaries of the setting because staff

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This provision is inadequate

do not consistently remind them of the behaviour expected of them.

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It has the following strengths

 Children are settled-in the setting because staff create a friendly environment and support children to gradually transition into the setting, ensuring they feel safe and secure.

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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 children in all three base rooms and in the outdoor areas.  The inspector completed a joint observation with the children's centre teacher.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector held meetings with the manager, deputy manager, children's centre teacher, special educational needs co-ordinator and three parents.

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Inspection activities

 A range of documents in each base room were inspected including observations, planning, tracking of children's progress and daily diaries.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector checked evidence of staff suitability, risk assessments, training certificates, policies, procedures and the setting's self-evaluation documents.

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Information about the setting

Meanwood Children's Centre Daycare first opened in 1974. It is owned and managed by Leeds City Council and is registered on the Early Years Register. It is situated in a purpose built premises in the Meanwood area of Leeds. The setting serves the local area and is accessible to all children. There is an enclosed area available for outdoor play.

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Information about the setting

The setting employs 12 members of childcare staff. Of these, nine hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 3 or above, including one member of staff with Qualified Teacher Status. The setting opens Monday to Friday all year round and sessions are from 8am until 6pm and children attend for a variety of sessions.

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Information about the setting

There are currently 79 children on roll, of whom all are in the early years age group. The setting provides funded early education for two-, three- and four-year-old children and currently supports a number of children with English as an additional language and children with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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must:

 implement the safeguarding policy and procedures in the event of an allegation being made against a member of staff to ensure children are effectively safeguarded

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must:

 notify complainants of the outcome of any investigation within 28 days of a complaint being made

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must:

 ensure an accurate daily record of the hours of attendance for each child is kept and maintained

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must:

 ensure that all staff understand the need to protect the privacy of children and keep information relating to children confidential

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must:

 use the tracking of children's progress to respond to each child's emerging needs and close gaps in children's learning and development

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must:

 ensure fresh drinking water is available and accessible for all children at all times

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must:

 ensure there is an adequate number of working toilets available for children to access.

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

 develop the educational programme for personal, social and emotional development to ensure children are developing an awareness of rules and boundaries

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

 strengthen systems for evaluation and monitoring to ensure targets for improvement are identified and prioritised.

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who attend

Staff have a sound understanding of how children learn and develop. They regularly observe children during play and use this information to plan a range of activities that further most children's interests. Staff track children's progress, but do not adequately use this information to support children to make sufficient progress across all seven areas of learning. In addition, gaps in children's learning are not quickly identified and closed. This means children's individual emerging needs are not sufficiently addressed. Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities are welcomed into the setting alongside children with English as an additional language. However, children with identified needs are not always effectively supported with their learning and development. This is because staff create individual education plans for some aspects of their learning that require support but not all areas. Consequently, they do not make adequate progress from their

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who attend

starting points and gaps are widening in their learning.

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who attend

Children are able to choose from a selection of resources both indoors and outdoors. Older children enjoy listening to stories and join in with reciting the days of the week and discuss the weather in small groups. This supports them to adequately learn skills for the future and prepares them well for sitting and listening to instructions in preparation for school. Younger children explore a range of interesting resources, they smile and delight in playing with metal lids and listen to the crinkling sound of a space blanket. This allows children to explore their surroundings and try new experiences.

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who attend

Staff have developed appropriate relationships with parents. They discuss each child's day with parents when children are collected and formal occasions are also arranged to share children's development files. For example, parents are invited to parents' evening to talk to their child's key person and regular newsletters keep parents up-to-date of events in the setting.

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

Children are settled and happy in the setting and part from their parents with ease, quickly finding their friends to play. Staff are friendly and welcome both children and parents into the setting, taking time to talk to them as they arrive. However, children's basic needs are not consistently well met. For example, some children do not have access to fresh drinking water at all times throughout the day and there are too few toilets in full working order for older children to access.

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

The setting has a well-embedded key person system, which means that all children have a specific person they are able to make a bond with. The key person supports children to settle and visits children in their home prior to attending the setting. This means staff and children can get to know each other in a familiar environment. During transitions between rooms the key person system is effective in supporting children through a period of change. For instance, staff accompany children to their new room and stay with them until they are settled. Furthermore, the key person liaises with parents to learn children's individual routines and gives feedback at the end of each day as to how children have enjoyed their time. A daily diary sheet is shared with parents detailing feeds, sleep and nappy changes for younger children to ensure care routines are consistently managed between home and the setting.

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

Children are provided with balanced and nutritional meals and snacks at the setting and have a range of opportunities to exercise and develop their physical skills. For instance, they take part in movement and dance sessions, using ribbons to move to the music and they are learning to climb and balance on apparatus in the garden. This allows children to take small risks in their play and begin to manage dangers in the environment. Most children behave well in the setting, however, some children do not conform to the rules and boundaries put in place by staff. This at times disrupts other children's enjoyment of activities and poses a danger to other children, staff and parents. For instance, a number of children use scooters and bicycles to purposely crash into people.

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provision

The inspection was brought forward by Ofsted following a complaint regarding the behaviour of staff. At the time of inspection all staff are subject to a rigorous recruitment and selection procedure and are vetted to ensure they are suitable to work with children. However, complaints are not dealt with by the management in a timely and appropriate manner. For example, the Local Safeguarding Designated Officer is not contacted following an allegation made against staff and the management team does not follow the setting's safeguarding policy. In addition, complainants are not made aware of the outcome of their complaint, information regarding specific children is not kept confidential by staff members and registers of children's attendance are not accurately maintained throughout the day. This means there are several breaches of requirements and children are not effectively safeguarded in the setting.

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provision

The children's centre teacher and management team are responsible for monitoring the planning and quality of teaching. They have recently changed the way staff plan for children's interests and stage of development. However, monitoring of children's progress is not robust. Consequently gaps in children's learning are not quickly identified and some children are not making adequate progress from their starting points.

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provision

Staff attend regular training opportunities and setting meetings. For example, the setting closes early on the first Wednesday of each month to allow time for staff to meet and discuss the setting and the planning. Training is delivered in-house by the management team and staff also have opportunities to choose external courses to attend and further their professional knowledge. Regular supervision meeting and appraisals allow staff to discuss their professional needs with the management team.

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provision

Staff have created positive relationships with most parents. Parents are grateful for the support staff give to their families and feel very included in the setting. Staff listen to parents' views and have created a parents' forum to work in partnership with them. Consultations are held regularly with parents to drive improvement throughout the setting, however, priorities for improvement are not prioritised effectively. Partnerships with outside agencies are securely in place and staff regularly liaise with other professionals to gain advice to support children.

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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 512407 Local authority Leeds Inspection number 932264

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 5 Total number of places 50 Number of children on roll 79 Name of provider Leeds City Council Date of previous inspection 17/02/2011 Telephone number 0113 2623592

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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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