Little Memories

Lilliput Childrens Day Nursery 254 Alcester Road South, BIRMINGHAM, B14 6DR

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 18/03/2013 13/10/2010

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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

 The monitoring of planning and activities is not rigorous enough to ensure activities are sufficiently interesting and challenging for children. In addition, information gained from observations is not used well to promote their learning. Consequently, children's development and their progress are not supported effectively.  Some parents are not encouraged to become fully involved in their children's learning. Therefore, the partnership with parents does not support children's progress sufficiently well.  Appraisals and supervisions of staff are not carried out. This results in a lack of enhancement in the knowledge and skills of staff to ensure they are able to support children's learning effectively at all times.  Self-evaluation of the nursery is not sufficiently rigorous to maintain continuous improvements that support children's individual needs adequately.

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It has the following strengths

 Children's sense of belonging is generally promoted and they have opportunities to develop suitable exploratory skills. They form strong attachments with key persons. Consequently, they are happy and well behaved.  Children are kept safe because staff have a clear understanding of how to protect the children in their care. Staff work fairly well with external agencies and other providers to ensure children receive appropriate support.

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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 conducted a tour of the premises during the inspection.  The inspector spoke with the provider, manager, staff and children on the day.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at a selection of children's records and other documentation, including questionnaires completed by parents and the local authority evaluation documents.  The inspector spoke with parents on the day of the inspection.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector carried out a joint observation of a teaching and learning activity with the manager.

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Information about the setting

Lilliput Childrens Day Nursery was registered in 2010 on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. It is one of two settings owned by the provider and is situated in a converted domestic premises in the Kings Heath area of Birmingham. The nursery operates from three rooms and there is a fully enclosed area available for outside play. It serves the local area and is accessible to all children.

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Information about the setting

The nursery employs 12 members of childcare staff, all of whom hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 2 and above. The nursery opens Monday to Friday, all year round, except for Bank Holidays and one week at Christmas. Sessions are from 7.30am to 6pm. Children attend for a variety of sessions. There are currently 67 children on roll who are in the early years age group. The nursery provides funded early education for three- and four-year-olds. It supports children who speak English as an additional language.

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must:

 develop the educational programme to provide interesting experiences and challenges appropriate to the development of children, and improve staff use of appropriate teaching methods to promote children's learning effectively at all times

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must:

 develop effective methods of monitoring assessment and planning to ensure staff use information from observations to plan the next steps in children's learning, to support them effectively in making good progress towards the early learning goals

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must:

 develop appropriate arrangements for supervision and appraisal of staff, and develop a culture of support, coaching and continuous improvement to assist staff in enhancing their practice for working with children

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must:

 help parents to consistently share what they know about their child in relation to their ongoing learning and development, and give parents the opportunity to contribute to their child's learning record.

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

 develop self-evaluation to drive improvement across all areas of practice to achieve consistently high standards to maintain children's care and learning at all times.

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who attend

The staff have an insufficient understanding of delivering activities that promote children's learning. As a result, they do not make adequate progress in their development. When children first start in the nursery, staff hold discussions with parents about children's care routines and preferences, but obtain little or no information about children's developmental stage. Consequently, initial assessments of children's learning are not completed and this means there is no baseline from which to measure children's progress. Although staff use information gained from observations to plan the next steps in children's learning, these are not always relevant to their individual needs. For example, staff do not take account of what children already know to plan interesting learning experiences. In addition, activities, such as those planned to develop good pencil control for children who can write their names, labels and captions, are at a level well below their

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who attend

abilities. Such activities do not provide appropriate challenge to move children on in their development or to learn new skills. Staff talk to children during the activities using mainly closed questions. This results in a failure to develop children's critical thinking skills. Although staff follow children's lead at times, for example, when they introduce a new dimension to the activities, staff are not sufficiently skilled at developing this additional aspect to extend their learning.

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who attend

Social evenings are used to share some information with parents about their children's progress and to discuss how they can offer some support to the children at home, for example, to develop counting skills. However, the information exchanged is not always valuable to parents due to poor staff knowledge of the Early Years Foundation Stage and knowledge of individual children. The progress checks at age two years are prepared and agreed with parents. However, some parents are not aware of the use of learning journals and do not have opportunities to add their comments and views. Therefore, children's learning is not always linked to what they do at home, and opportunities are missed in promoting consistency for children between their different environments. Transition documents are completed for children when they leave the nursery, and reception teachers are invited into the nursery to meet children in preparation for school. Overall,

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who attend

this supports a smooth transition as children move on from the nursery.

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who attend

Although planned learning experiences are poor, there are a wide range of good quality resources available that interest children of all age groups. For example, children aged two years play contentedly with a selection of programmable toys as they press buttons and listen to sounds. They walk around with mobile telephones to their ear as they pretend to talk to parents. This means that children have some opportunities to engage in play experiences of their choice. Children who speak English as an additional language have made steady progress and are now able to speak fluently in English. For these children, this demonstrates steady progress that contributes to their preparation for school. The staff feature children's work in a selection of tasteful displays. For instance, throughout the nursery there are many examples of children's abilities to make marks relative to their age. These include drawings with lots of detail completed by pre-school children, and

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who attend

these demonstrate their imaginative skills well. Children's problem-solving skills are developing as they join in activities to find hidden shapes in the outside play space, and they demonstrate clear recognition of basic shapes, such as circles and squares. Staff read for short periods to toddlers, resulting in the promotion of their skills in listening and understanding familiar stories. Children's large muscle skills develop through regular opportunities to play outdoors. They hop on alternative legs, jump and maintain their balance generally well. Nevertheless, children do not receive effective support to make acceptable progress towards the early learning goals, and they are therefore not adequately prepared for the next stage in their learning.

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

The learning and development requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage are ineffectively met. This impacts adversely on children's well-being because they are insufficiently supported to develop skills that are appropriate for their age. A gradual settling-in period is agreed with parents to support children, and the child's key person works with parents to find out about children's care needs. Consequently, this contributes positively to children's sense of comfort in the nursery and they form relationships with the staff and their peers. Staff talk pleasantly to children and praise them for completing tasks, for example, during a writing activity. This raises children's self-esteem appropriately and, as a result, they are encouraged to maintain their involvement. The staff use age-appropriate methods to manage children's behaviour. Therefore, children gain a suitable understanding of the boundaries of behaviour.

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

Pre-school children are developing a clear understanding of safety as they explain the staff's use of the emergency button, for example, to summon extra staff help if it is necessary to the first floor. Children play outside daily and this helps them to learn about the effects of exercise on their bodies. The provision of balanced, freshly cooked meals and daily fresh fruit supports children's awareness of healthy lifestyles. Children are gaining some independence skills by helping themselves to pieces of fruit at snack times and they access individual beakers of water that are within reach. However, pre-school children and more-able children aged two years are not consistently encouraged to serve themselves at mealtimes. This means that children's independence skills are not sufficiently extended during routine activities. Babies sleep according to their established pattern and they are helped to settle as agreed with parents, for example, by rocking cots

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

and not simply by patting them until they fall asleep. Therefore, children's individual care needs are met appropriately. Children with medical conditions receive competent support because care plans are shared with all staff, who receive clear guidance in managing children's needs. Opportunities are provided for children to experience gradual settling-in sessions between rooms and, owing to the small size of the nursery, children know all staff and most of the children who attend. Consequently, transitions within the nursery are stress-free for all children.

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provision

The nursery does not comply with the learning and development requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage, and this means that children's progress is inadequately promoted. The monitoring of activities and assessments is not sufficiently rigorous to ensure staff practice is of a consistently high quality to support the children. As a result, children do not make sufficient progress because staff do not always use information from the assessment of children's development to plan the next steps in their learning, or use appropriate teaching methods to support learning effectively at all times.

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provision

Supervision and appraisals of childcare staff are not carried out to identify underperformance and to improve the effectiveness of practice. These are breaches of the safeguarding and welfare requirements. Consequently, children's individual needs are inappropriately met. This inspection took place following a complaint relating to the management of sickness and behaviour, and staff deployment. A sickness policy is in place and the manager has a clear understanding of procedures to be followed if there are incidents of sickness in children. Adult-to-child ratios are consistently maintained, resulting in continual supervision of children and effective behaviour management.

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provision

The two-way flow of daily communication is positive to keep parents informed about children's experiences. However, some parents receive feedback relating mainly to care practices, and sufficient information about children's learning is not routinely shared. This means that the partnership with parents does not support children's learning effectively to help them make progress. Parents contribute to the self-evaluation of the nursery through questionnaires, and the management team are responsive to their suggestions for improvement. For example, they have plans to involve fathers more through specific activities, such as Father's Day events. The management and staff have identified the development of the outside play space as an area for improvement. However, they have failed to ensure that they identify all areas for improvement to ensure all requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage are met. This means that areas that they have identified

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provision

for development are not focused on the most significant areas for improvement or designed to have the most impact on children's experiences.

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provision

There is a programme of professional development and staff take responsibility for different roles in the nursery. For example, the deputy manager shares responsibility for child protection as a designated person. She supports staff appropriately in their understanding of their roles to protect children. As a result, staff are clear about procedures to be followed if they have concerns about children in their care. In turn, this contributes positively to the protection of children in the nursery. Recruitment procedures are, on the whole, rigorous, and an established induction programme ensures newly appointed staff have some understanding of what is required of them in their work with the children. Any person who is not vetted works under supervision until information is received that confirms that they are suitable to work on their own with children. The management team are fully aware of the importance of liaising with other early years

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provision

providers children attend. They have contacted other settings to share information to promote some continuity for children.

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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 EY408101 Local authority Birmingham Inspection number 906972

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 40 Number of children on roll 67 Name of provider Lilliput Childrens Day Nursery Limited Date of previous inspection 13/10/2010 Telephone number 01214441788

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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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