Sugarcane Nursery LTD- Nursery on the Heath

Nursery On The Heath Marketing House, Hatfield Heath, Nr Bishops Stortford, Hertfordshire, CM22 7EB

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 27/09/2013 22/07/2013

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early years provision

This inspection: 2 Previous inspection: 4 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 provide a good variety of interesting and stimulating activities, indoors and outside to promote children's progress in all areas of learning.  Children quickly establish warm relationships with staff and, as a result, they are happy, keen to learn and rapidly growing in self-assurance.  Staff make very clear their expectations for children's behaviour, which means that children behave well and respond positively to others.  Staff establish positive and trusting relationships with parents. An effective two-way flow of communication supports children's welfare and learning and development.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 There is scope to extend the range of multicultural resources in the role-play area that reflect a range of cultures to promote children's understanding of the world.  Opportunities to develop independence skills for older children are not fully explored.

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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 inspectors observed activities in all rooms and the outside area.  An inspector undertook a joint observation with the manager.

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Inspection activities

 The inspectors looked at a selection of policies, procedures and photographs of children joining in with different activities.

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Inspection activities

 The inspectors spoke with the provider, manager, parents, staff and children at appropriate times throughout the inspection.

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Information about the setting

Nursery On The Heath was registered in 2011 on the Early Years Register and both the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. It operates from converted premises in Hatfield Heath, Hertfordshire. The nursery 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 nursery is open Monday to Friday, from 7.30am until 6.30pm, for 51 weeks of the year. Children attend for a variety of sessions. The nursery provides funded early education for two-, three- and four-year-old children and there are 100 children on roll. The nursery supports children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children who speak English as an additional language.

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Information about the setting

The nursery employs 23 members of childcare staff. Of these, two hold appropriate early years qualifications at level 2 and 15 at level 3 or above.

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

 extend the range of resources in the role-play area to include more toys and objects that reflect children's family lives and communities. Also include resources that reflect lives that are unfamiliar, to broaden children's knowledge and reflect an inclusive ethos

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

 develop the independence skills of older children further by giving opportunity for them to help prepare the food at snack time.

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who attend

Children are making good progress in their time at the nursery. Staff collect good information from parents when their child first starts to attend about their interests and what they can do. They then use this to plan a range of activities that they know children will enjoy, which helps them settle easily in the nursery. Staff consistently observe each child's progress across all areas of learning, and ensure that they successfully use this to challenge and motivate each child in their care. They have a thorough knowledge of the children for whom they are responsible. They talk in detail about what these children can do and how they plan to help them progress. This means that children access activities that continually build on what they know and successfully support them in achieving the next steps in their development. Learning journals that include photographs, observations and achievable next steps in learning are in place for all children. These highlight the good

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who attend

progress that all children, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, are making. Staff have daily discussions with parents to provide them with informative feedback about their children's daily activities, learning and progress. They encourage parents to share their comments about their child's learning at home and to contribute comments to their child's learning journal. This approach is successful in engaging parents in their children's education.

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who attend

Children explore, play and learn in a safe and secure environment both indoors and outdoors. Staff organise the playrooms and plan activities to ensure that every child enjoys exciting and challenging learning and development experiences that meet their individual needs. Children clearly enjoy learning through play, eagerly choosing what they wish to do from the varied range of resources offered. They demonstrate a positive approach to learning, supported by the cheerful interactions of the staff caring for them.

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who attend

Children play outside on a daily basis and the outdoor area promotes children's developing physical skills and confidence. Children choose from a range of physical play equipment, including wheeled toys, tyres, balls and equipment to support all areas of learning which is readily accessible for children to self-select. There is a good mix of adult-led and child- initiated play experiences, which encourages children to be active learners as they move freely between activities of their choice. The indoor environment is effectively organised, allowing children to access a developmentally appropriate range of toys and resources covering all areas of learning. However, there are fewer multicultural resources in the role- play area to fully reflect diversity to help children learn about similarities and differences between themselves and others, and among different families and communities.

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who attend

Children feel valued and become inquisitive, active learners through the natural ability of staff to engage positively with them. They extend children's learning through careful questioning, while giving them the space to explore and develop their own ideas. For example, during a planned cooking activity, staff encourage children to name, smell and handle a variety of vegetables they help to prepare. Staff make further skilful use of this learning opportunity as together they count the chopped segments and describe the changing texture, so developing children's mathematical skills. Children imaginatively offer their suggestions to further extend the activities linked to the theme of 'Harvest'. For example, one child suggests 'we could paint scarecrows with pink dresses'.

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who attend

Staff are skilled at supporting children's communication skills. Babies have lots of eye contact with very attentive staff, who respond to their babblings and early attempts to form words. Toddlers join in action songs, smiling and copying staff. Older children are articulate, confident to interact with visitors to the nursery. Staff support children with special educational needs and/or disabilities and children with English as an additional language well. For example, they know and use simple words and phrases in the children's home language. This helps staff to communicate effectively with children and to understand their needs. Staff listen intently to what children say and do, ensuring children feel valued and boosting their self-esteem and confidence. Staff make good provision to encourage children's early writing. They provide a range of opportunities including using media, such as paint, dough and foam. Outdoors, children love using chalks and making

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who attend

marks in the sand. Children are motivated to learn, interested and engaged in activities. All children receive strong support to develop good attitudes and skills to learn effectively. Staff skilfully give young children the space and time to explore what they are interested in so that, when older, they concentrate and persevere in their learning. Consequently, children are gaining skills which help prepare them for school.

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

Children play a full and active role in their learning in this warm and welcoming environment. Upon arrival, older children settle swiftly to an activity of their choice and confidently seek assistance and reassurance if needed. Babies and toddlers share a warm relationship with their key person and other staff, who are kind and gentle towards them. From an early age, they explore their surroundings, supported effectively by attentive staff. Regular praise and encouragement helps to promote children's self-esteem. Staff gather good information from parents about their child's care needs and effective settling- in routines help children create strong bonds with staff. As a result, all children form secure emotional attachments to staff, confidently seeking them out for reassurance when needed. These good relationships also help to prepare children for future transfers, for example, from one base room to another within the nursery and, later to school.

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

Children benefit from a warm, safe and stimulating environment. Well-resourced playrooms offer plenty of space for both table top games and floor activities. Children reach toys with ease, due to the arrangement of low-level cupboards and drawers. Children play freely in the outdoor play area that is well equipped with resources to allow for physical activity.

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

Staff support children's emerging understanding of the importance of a healthy lifestyle that involves physical exercise and a healthy diet. The nursery chef prepares nutritious snacks and meals, which include fruit and vegetables, and children's individual dietary requirements are met well. However, opportunities to encourage older children to learn independence skills by helping to prepare the food at snack time are not fully explored. Children are learning about the need for good hygiene practices as they routinely wash hands before touching food and after visiting the toilet. Children benefit from regular fresh air and exercise during outdoor play.

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

Children play cooperatively with their friends, taking turns and demonstrating respect for each other. Staff apply clear, consistent boundaries and consequently, children's behaviour is good. They encourage use of manners, with gentle reminders to say 'please' and 'thank you'. Older children willingly take on responsibility, for example, as they help to tidy away their toys after play. The daily routines include regular safety reminders to raise children's understanding, such as learning to take care with simple tools and follow rules when going outside. Regular fire evacuations enable staff and children to know what to do in an emergency. As a result, children enjoy their experiences in the nursery and learn skills that help them manage their move to school.

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provision

The provider has a good understanding of the safeguarding and welfare requirements. Management deploy staff well and adhere to regulatory ratios, resulting in them supervising the children effectively to promote their welfare. Procedures for safeguarding children are good as staff understand their responsibilities and are fully aware of the procedure to follow should they have a concern. Robust vetting procedures check staffs' suitability to work with children. In addition, a clear staff induction supports their developing knowledge of the setting's policies and procedures. A number of staff hold current paediatric first aid certificates so that they can attend to a child in the event of an accident. Staff understand their responsibilities to provide safe play environments for children. Children play in a secure, safe environment where staff complete daily safety checks and regularly review risk assessments, including those for outings, to promote their

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provision

The manager and her team demonstrate a good understanding of the Early Years Foundation Stage and their responsibility to promote the learning and development of all children. The manager has developed secure systems to ensure that the educational programmes and children's individual development are successfully monitored. This results in children receiving a broad range of experiences which are suited to their individual development needs to enable them to make good progress in all areas of learning. The manager has also recently introduced a tracking system to ensure that all children are making good progress and to identify any gaps in their learning. The manager monitors staff performance both informally through working alongside the staff and more formally through annual appraisals. These are used to highlight training and development needs, ensuring continual professional development. The manager uses regular staff meetings to

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provision

discuss and share any ideas and practice issues to further promote effective outcomes for children. All actions raised at the previous inspection, such as improved observation and assessment systems, have been implemented. This helps to promote good outcomes for children. The manager and staff team demonstrate a commitment to the ongoing development of the whole provision and continue to identify priorities for improvement. Evaluation takes account of the views of the manager, staff, the local authority advisor, parents and children. Parents complete regular questionnaires and monitoring visits from the local authority are used to enhance the service provided and promote further improvement.

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provision

Partnerships with parents and carers are a clear strength of the nursery. Parents warmly praise the 'caring and friendly' staff team and the progress their children are making. Staff keep them informed about their child's learning through daily verbal feedback, photographic displays and written activity planning. Parent consultations also take place during the year to formally share information about their child's progress in nursery and at home. Effective relationships with other professionals and external agencies are established so that children's needs are supported and help them to make progress. Staff promote good links with other early years providers, which further aids children's progress and development. Information sharing is effective and this eases children's move to other settings or on to school.

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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 EY429000 Local authority Essex Inspection number 933713

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 50 Number of children on roll 100 Name of provider Sugarcanes Nursery Ltd Date of previous inspection 22/07/2013 Telephone number 01279 730 331

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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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