Little Luvs Childcare

Little Luvs Childcare Sure Start Carlisle South, Petteril Bank School, Burnett Road, CARLISLE, CA1 3BX

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 03/10/2013 04/12/2012

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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

 The highly innovative outdoor environment is well organised and well planned with unique characteristics and features that offer children opportunities for physical activity, freedom and movement which has a positive impact on children's well-being and development.  Children feel safe and secure within the nursery because the staff implement an effective, well-organised key person system, which helps all children to form a secure attachment and a strong bond with their main carer.  Children are provided with a broad range of learning experiences across all seven areas of learning. They make good progress in their learning and development because staff provide challenging experiences that stimulate and meet their individual needs and interests well.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 There is scope to enhance and develop further children's learning experiences and exploration of the nature and properties of water to extend children's understanding, curiosity, imagination, and experimentation.  Opportunities to support children's use of their home language and the use of visual images are not fully embraced within the pre-school room to positively reflect the children's cultural and linguistic identity and experiences and to support language awareness.

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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 playing in the baby room, toddler room and pre- school room and outdoor play area.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector held discussions with the manager, the staff and the children throughout the inspection.  The inspector held a meeting with the nominated person and manager.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector took account of the views of parents of the early years children attending the setting who were spoken to on the day of the inspection.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at children's assessment records, the planning documentation, and the systems for the monitoring of children's progress.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector checked evidence of suitability and qualifications of staff working with children, the policies and procedures for the setting, and the documented self- evaluation systems that support the service.

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Information about the setting

Little Luvs Childcare was first registered in 2004 and then registered again in 2007 on the Early Years Register. It is situated in purpose-built premises in the grounds of Petteril Bank School and is part of Carlisle South Children's Centre serving the local area and community. It is managed by the school governing body and is accessible to all children. It operates from within five rooms and there is a fully-enclosed area available for outdoor play.

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Information about the setting

The nursery employs 14 members of childcare staff who all hold appropriate early years qualifications and one member of staff holds Early Years Professional Status. The nursery opens Monday to Friday, all year round. Sessions are from 8am until 5.30pm.

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Information about the setting

There are currently 65 children attending, who are within the early years age group. Children attend for a variety of sessions. 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 and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities. The nursery is a member of the National Day Nurseries Association.

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

 enhance children's understanding, curiosity, imagination, and experimentation in water play by providing additional opportunities to design and create a water wall to further develop children's learning experiences and exploration of the nature and properties of water

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

 provide more visual images in the pre-school that positively reflect children's cultural and linguistic identity and experiences and obtain information about children's home language experiences to enable the continued support and development of children's language awareness and skills at home and in the nursery.

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who attend

Staff effectively implement the learning and development requirements of the Statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage. They have a good understanding of how children learn and support their learning effectively. As a result, children continue to make good progress in relation to their individual starting points. Staff establish good relationships with parents who are more than happy with the care and learning opportunities that the staff provide for their children. Parents feel at ease at leaving their children in the nursery. They say that they are always made to feel welcome and would not leave their children in the hands of anyone else. Parents are effectively supported to continue to help with their children's learning at home. They know their child's key person who keeps them fully informed about their child's care needs and daily activities. Parents are invited to contribute their observations from home on 'wow' moment stickers seen

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who attend

throughout the nursery rooms and they say that they are always asked about what their children do at home. Therefore, parents feel that they are consulted for their views about their child and contribute to their children's learning. Parents complete 'all about me' sheets before their child starts nursery which details background information, family structures, children's development, care routines, and well-being. The child's key person uses this information to help children settle in and to plan activities that meet the needs and interest of the children. Consequently, staff know the children well and therefore meet their individual needs effectively.

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who attend

Staff complete a mixture of small post it note statements and much longer more detailed observations to assess children's development and learning. They are skilful in guiding, extending and building on what children already know and are interested. As a result, children remain engaged in activities for some time. Children in the toddler room enjoy transporting resources from one area to another and from the play room to the outside play area. The staff support this 'schema' by providing a free-flow system to the outdoor play area and by duplicating children's interest outside. This is clearly supported through the children's love of water play which children have constant access to both indoors and outside. Indoors they access several water trays with funnels, tubes and containers which they fill themselves by transporting water from the sink. Outside, again children think for themselves how they can fill the two empty water trays. They find various containers to

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who attend

transport water to them and in turn they competently fill their containers and empty the water into the trays. Children add drain pipes and proceed to pour water down them watching it flow speedily to the floor. The pre-school children wash the wheeled cars with sponges and soapy water and they take part in singing number songs using resources in the water tray. Staff support these activities by questioning the children about what are doing. They build on children's communication and language skills by introducing new words and vocabulary, and reinforce their language by repeating what children say. However, there is scope for the staff to further enhance children's love of water by introducing additional water play opportunities with scientific experiments to further develop children's exploration of the nature and properties of water.

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who attend

In the baby room the children enjoy sensory activities using a number of natural materials. Children enjoy baking activities with the staff. Firstly staff encourage the children to use their hands to make circular movements to spread the flour on the table and use their fingers to make marks. The children then roll out the bread dough mixture, pat it and mould it into round shapes before placing it on the baking tray. The staff count the number of dough balls the children have made and then place them in the oven for snack time later. Children enjoy the activity and show great excitement as they take part. Their personal, social and emotional well-being is fostered well throughout the nursery. Children are happy, content and confident in their surroundings and settle easily in the relaxed atmosphere.

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who attend

Children with special educational needs and/or disabilities who require specific help are supported well. This is because the staff know them well and work closely with their parents to support their individual needs. For example, in the pre-school room the staff have introduced a word book to share with parents whose children require help with their speech and language. The staff and parents together record any new words they hear the child speak at home and in nursery so that they can both support their language skills. The consistent communication with parents and the extended partnership with other professionals are very effective in ensuring that early intervention is swiftly obtained to support each child's overall development. This contributes effectively towards the children gaining the necessary skills they require for the next stage of their learning and future move onto school.

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who attend

The nursery rooms are warm and welcoming, well organised and well resourced to meet the needs and interest of the children attending. Staff constantly evaluate the environment. They introduce changes in the environment after observing the children in their play. For example, in the toddler room the staff noticed how the children kept taking the construction resources into the quiet room to play with them. So they changed the layout of the room and placed the construction resources in the quiet room and rearranged the quiet area into the main room. By doing so they found the children became more deeply involved in construction and the layout allowed them to leave what the children made so they could return to them later. The role play areas in each room are developed to follow children's interests and help them to re-enact real life experiences. For example, the hospital in the pre-school room has been created by the staff because

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who attend

several children had visited or been in hospital recently and they are also due their inoculations. The toddler room role play area is a hairdresser's and the baby room is a home corner kitchen with resources related to their home life. The younger children access natural wicker baskets filled with numerous natural materials for open ended sensory play. They build with hallow boxes and access musical instruments, and musical sounds and noises when pushing buttons on interactive activity walker toys. Staff encourage all children's self-help skills of dressing and undressing with all age groups. For example, the children from an early age are helped to put on their coats and change into wet weather shoes or wellingtons to go outside. They do this with help in the baby room but when reaching the pre-school room are expected to do this by themselves. As a result, children's independence in all areas is supported well so they gain the skills required in

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who attend

Staff support children's physical skills outdoors. The baby room children are taken outside by the staff so they get fresh air and outdoor physical activities during the day. There are several covered sections and grassy areas where less mobile babies can sit and enjoy the natural environment. This keeps them safe and secure from more mobile toddlers and older children who enjoy running about. Staff supervise the children very well and deploy themselves effectively to support children's safety. For example, when children play on the wooden climbing frame and slide the staff position themselves beside the equipment to ensure children's safety. Children ride on wheeled toys and push doll buggies around the grassy mounds and roadway designed path which stretches all around the perimeter of the play area. They access an indoor covered sand play area and enjoy sitting in the sensory garden smelling the scented flowers growing in the raised beds. Children have an

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who attend

underground cave, and a bridge and tunnel to walk over and crawl through. This area is a favourite with children and staff who role play their favourite traditional stories. For example, traditional stories such as 'the three little pigs' and 'the three billy goats gruff'. The outdoor play area is truly a magical place where children can experience all areas of the learning in safety.

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

Children are happy and contented. They settle into the nursery routine and within the nursery rooms with ease, due to the relaxed settling in procedures implemented by the staff. Children demonstrate a strong and secure attachment with their key person, who greets them with a friendly smile on arrival. Staff and parents share information daily with each other which means that children's interests and achievements are obtained from home. Children settle easily in to the nursery routine because they become familiar with the environment and the nursery staff. They first attend for short periods of time until the children are ready to stay longer and move between rooms when they are ready. The parents provide a wealth of information for staff on registering and constantly update staff through discussion and written comments displayed on the 'wow' displays in each room. This provides the staff with a good overview of children's interests and current family

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

events which staff can talk to children about and build into their planning. As a result, children's emotional well-being is effectively promoted.

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

Children get plenty of fresh air and exercise. They freely access the spacious outdoor play area and mix with all the other children attending the nursery. Staff monitor and supervise the children well and deploy themselves effectively to support their safety and learning. Staff constantly praise the children in everything they do. These positive methods support children's sense of belonging and their good levels of confidence and self-esteem. Children are well behaved. They use good manners and learn to share and take turns in group activities. Children are tolerant of those who may display different levels of behaviour. This is because the staff explain to them that some children are different from themselves and sometimes cannot always communicate to ask for things as well as they can.

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

Children safely investigate and explore their community and surrounding environment. The older pre-school children have their lunchtime meal in the school hall attached to the nursery. They mix with the children in school and as a result, become more familiar with the school environment in readiness for their move later in the school year. Children learn how to manage their own risk in an environment which gives them confidence to try out new things and develop their physical skills in safety. They pedal bikes and wheeled toys round the paved road way and learn to manage the steps safety to the lower section of the play area. Children crawl through underground tunnels and enjoy numerous role play experiences in the cave and hazel stick den. Children feel safe and secure in the nursery. They learn how to keep themselves safe through regular evacuation practices and through gentle reminders as they play. For example, children take part in emergency evacuation

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

procedures and they talk about road safety and holding hands as they walk around the garden path. All aspects of children's safety are monitored well by staff throughout the inspection. For example, children learn to help to look after the toys by helping to tidy them away when not in use, they are reminded by staff to sit nicely and to sit down when eating. Staff supervise children using the bathroom, and they constantly count the number of children in and out of the rooms and outside.

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

All staff create an indoor environment that is warm and welcoming, stimulating and inviting. The rooms are very spacious with low-level labelled storage. This enables children to independently access a wide range of age appropriate resources and make their own choices and decisions about their play. The children in each room learn to value and respect others who may have differing characteristics from themselves. The staff in the baby room create 'all about me and my family' books which display photographs of special people in the children's lives and photographs showing them in activities they particularly enjoy. These books help to promote discussion and children's awareness of themselves and familiar people known to them. Staff incorporate various cultural celebrations in to the planning and make sure that there are some resources and books that represent difference and diversity throughout the nursery. However, there is scope to extend this

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

further in the pre-school room for children with English as an additional language. For example, by providing more visual images that positively reflect the children's cultural and linguistic identity and experiences, and to obtain more information about children's home languages. So that staff can continue to support and develop children's language awareness and skills at home and in the nursery.

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

Children learn to be independent, learn about healthy eating, good hygiene habits and the importance of healthy lifestyle. This is through the practical routines staff implement daily. Mealtimes are a social occasion where manners are encouraged. Children sit together in each room to eat their meals. As a result, children from a young age are developing positive attitudes towards eating and the experiences offered are appealing and stage appropriate according to their individual needs and abilities. For example, younger children are encouraged to feed themselves using a spoon and do this well. Children who have packed lunch meals have these stored safely till required. They easily access fresh drinking water and they are offered different healthy snacks including fresh fruit and bread and cereal products. A menu is displayed and parents are informed about how much the children have eaten in nursery. Staff promote basic hand washing and toileting skills

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

throughout the day and teeth cleaning after meals. Children are changed if the get wet when playing with the water and staff follow hygienic nappy changing practices at all times.

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

The nursery and the host school have established an excellent relationship between them. The staff work also closely with the other settings children attend. They share children's development and learning records with parents' permission so a full and bigger picture of children's development is obtained. This also enables consistency in children's learning.

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provision

The manager and staff team work closely together to ensure that all the learning and development and safeguarding and welfare requirements are effectively implemented throughout the nursery. The manager has a good understanding of her role and responsibility in ensuring the efficient management of the nursery and a strong partnership is established with the nominated person of the nursery. The manager liaises closely with all of the staff who share a continuous flow of information with her. The staff review their practise accordingly and implement any new ideas from their training to improve the effectiveness of the provision. For example, the 'Every child a Talker' programme.

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provision

The monitoring of the educational programme and staff performance is maintained to a good standard and children's learning and development needs are effectively well met. Staff team meetings and senior staff meetings are held regularly to discuss nursery matters, safeguarding and training and children's development to ensure that all children's activities and opportunities support children's needs and meet their interest. The ongoing assessment of children's progress is completed by key staff who reflect on children's skills, abilities, and achievement. They ensure that the next steps in children's learning and development are recorded to inform future planning. As a result, children continue to make good progress towards the early learning goals from their initial starting points. The staff complete summative reports, including the progress check at age two, which show children's continuous development and they identify how gaps in children's development

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provision

are closing. Children's progress is tracked and closely monitored by the manager. The good partnership established with parents combined with the good links with multi-agency workers and other professionals working with the children ensures that any early intervention and help required is obtained swiftly to ensure children make continued progress in their development.

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provision

Children are protected and safeguarded. The manager and staff are fully aware of their role and responsibilities should they become concerned about any child in their care. They are fully trained in child protection procedures and regularly update their knowledge by attending a higher level of training and by completing elearning training packages in this sensitive subject. This ensures that staff keep themselves up to date with any changes in legislation and continue to be well informed about what to do and who to contact so that children remain safeguarded and protected in the nursery.

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provision

Children's safety is a high priority within the nursery. Staff deploy themselves effectively to support and supervise children's play and to keep them safe at all times. They use an internal security entry system to prevent unauthorised access into the nursery rooms and all visitors' identity is checked on arrival. Throughout the nursery, staff complete detailed safety checks before children use any area, including the spacious outdoors. A written risk assessment is also completed for all the areas the children have access to and these are available in the main office. The staff complete individual risk assessments for each outing undertaken by the children to ensure their safety at all times. All the staff employed at the nursery are suitably vetted through the Disclosure and Barring Service checks which are recorded in a central file held in school by the nominated person. This ensures that all adults in contact with children are safe and suitable to do so. There is a robust recruitment

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provision

procedure and a rigorous induction process in place. This ensures that all staff understand their roles and responsibilities and that they remain confident in following the nursery's policies and procedures. Staff and child ratios are fully maintained to effectively support children's safety, learning and play, both indoors and outside.

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provision

The manager regularly reviews the policies and procedures which are shared with parents, carers, and staff to ensure the efficient management of the nursery. All staff are trained in first aid and complete all the required accident, incident and existing injuries documentation which are shared with parents as required. The manager monitors the accident records to see if a pattern of accidents is forming in any particular play area and if so an additional risk assessment is made. The manager completes regular supervision and appraisal sessions with the staff which results in the effective monitoring of staff performance and contributes greatly to the continuous professional development of all staff. As a result, staff feel valued and work well together as a team. They share their ideas and views after attending new training and request to attend additional training in subjects that interest them. As a result, the nursery has dedicated and enthusiastic staff

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provision

members who continue to provide good quality teaching and learning for all children.

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provision

The manager effectively completes a thorough self-evaluation of the nursery using a number of documents including a focused improvement plan. Self-evaluation is contributed to by all the staff and includes information gathered from parents, carers and children in detailed questionnaires. Targets set by the advisory team and through the local authority monitoring processes are met and all previous recommendations are completed. As a result, children benefit from a continually improving setting with an experienced, knowledgeable and well-qualified staff team.

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provision

Parents and carers spoken to at the inspection highly recommend the nursery saying they would not send their children anywhere else. They are highly complementary about the service the manager and staff provide and say how fantastic the staff team are. They say the nursery is flexible in accommodating work patterns and that their children have made good progress in their development since starting. Parents and carers feel involved in their children's learning and as a result, a long and lasting partnership is maintained.

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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 EY362246 Local authority Cumbria Inspection number 937750

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 5 Total number of places 55 Number of children on roll 65 Name of provider Petteril Bank School Governing Body Date of previous inspection 04/12/2012 Telephone number 01228 546 903

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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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