St. Michael's Nursery

St Michael's Nursery Barnstaple St Michael's Nursery Barnstaple, Bickington Road, Sticklepath, BARNSTAPLE, Devon, EX31 2DB

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 04/10/2013 Not Applicable

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early years provision

This inspection: 2 Previous inspection: Not Applicable 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

 Children's speech and language is well supported and, as a result, they are learning to become enthusiastic and competent communicators.  The indoor and outdoor play spaces provide a supportive learning environment; as a result children are actively involved in a broad and balanced range of experiences.  There is a good management structure across this group of nurseries and, as a result, there are robust procedures for recruitment and training of staff which helps to ensure suitably qualified staff care for children and keep them safe and secure.  Children behave well because staff make their expectations clear.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Parents are not actively encouraged to share their children's achievements from home and contribute to their development records on a regular basis.

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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 viewed areas the children have access to.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector sampled a range of documentation including the self-evaluation form, children's records, planning, safeguarding procedures and policies.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector discussed children's welfare, progress and self-evaluation procedures with the manager.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector observed children's play and staff interaction in each of the playrooms and outside.  The inspector had discussions with staff and parents at convenient times.

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Information about the setting

St Michael's Nursery Barnstaple registered in 2013. The nursery is run by a limited company St Michael's Learning Centres Limited and operates from a converted church situated in Barnstaple, Devon. The company also runs another nursery, which operates from the nearby village of Tawstock, Devon. Children have use of a main entrance hall, four adjoining play rooms, dining room and toilet facilities on the ground floor; the first floor has two adjoining play rooms, a dining room/messy area, a designated cot room and separate toilet facilities for children and staff. There is a separate kitchen, dining room and office area. There is a mature enclosed garden at the back of the premises available for outdoor play and learning; this includes a Forest School area. The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary part of the Childcare Register. The nursery is open all year round, Monday to Friday, from 8am to 6pm. There are

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Information about the setting

currently 51 children on roll who are aged from three months to four years old. The nursery receives funding for the provision of free early education for children aged two, three and four years and provides support for children with special educational needs. A team of seven staff are employed. There is an overall manager, who has a BTEC Level 3 National Diploma in Childhood Studies, one member of staff has a Foundation Degree in Early Years, three members of staff have a Level 3 qualification in childcare, one has a Level 2 early years qualification and one is an apprentice.

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

 strengthen partnerships with parents further through actively encouraging them to contribute to their children's development records on a regular basis.

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who attend

Staff use effective planning to ensure there are good opportunities for children to be engaged in both focused and self-initiated activities. As a result, children are enthusiastic learners who are actively involved in a broad range of experiences. For example they play imaginatively with a large fabric model helicopter, engage in small world play, and experiment with paint and construction equipment.

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who attend

Staff regularly observe children and evaluate children's their progress in order to plan the educational programme according to individual interests and needs. This means that children make good progress in all areas of their development. Staff gain good information from parents on children's starting points, finding out what children can already do when they join the nursery. They use this information successfully to plan for children's individual needs from the start. Consequently children settle well, form good relationships with staff and are making good progress. Ongoing involvement of parents in their children's learning is less established. Staff do not encourage parents to regularly contribute to their children's progress records and share information about children's achievements at home.

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who attend

Staff have a very good understanding of the learning and development requirements of the Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage. They use detailed observations of children to identify their stages of development and track their progress. Planning sheets include children's initials to identify children's progress towards the early learning goals and this information is transferred to individual children's records. As a result staff are able to confidently demonstrate progress that children are making and identify the next steps in their learning.

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who attend

Children of all ages and abilities become independent learners as they explore the range of resources with interest. Older children have free access to the well-designed, mature garden and choose from a range of resources to support physical development. For example, they enjoy using a range of wheeled toys and they develop co-ordination and balance. Children are well-motivated learners because staff are skilled in following children's lead in their self-chosen activities and provide good support to promote their development. For example, when children choose to engage in water play staff encourage them to choose the small world items to place into the water.

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who attend

Children enjoy exploring numbers and early phonics which is a particular strength of the nursery. During circle time staff interact well to challenge children's learning and help them to recognise familiar letters and develop phonic awareness as they ask children to suggest words that begin with the chosen letter. Staff then support this with some imaginative drawing to provide a visual picture of the word that matches the sound, such as an 'alligator' to go with the sound 'a'. Staff praise children for good listening and following instructions. Staff promote children's communication and language development well, showing a genuine interest in what they have to say and modelling the use of language effectively. Staff embrace the home languages spoken by children and incorporate them into activities, for example numbers are recited in German and English when counting at during registration. This effectively supports bilingual children to gain

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who attend

confidence in using both of their home languages. This also helps all children to learn to value diversity.

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who attend

Children gain a good understanding of numbers through play and daily routines. For example, they count the number of children at snack time and the numbers of plates handed out. During register time they are learning to recognise numerals which staff write on a white board, and take part in simple addition as they add the number of boys and number of girls that are present.

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

A good key person systems enhances children's well-being. The key person works closely with parents to meet children's care needs, and provide consistency between home and the setting. For example, parents provide photographs of the family so that staff can use this when getting to know the children better. Parents of new babies are welcomed into the setting and work with staff to settle the children. As a result, children form strong attachments with the staff early on, which enables them to develop in confidence.

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

Children are based in rooms according to their age. The baby room provides a safe, spacious and comfortable area that helps children to feel at home, and the older children have free access to playrooms and the outdoor area. As a result, children are learning to make independent choices in a safe learning environment.

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

Staff provide a range of resources to support children's development in all areas of learning and they organise the environment effectively so that children can be independent and develop some good practices. For example, they can take themselves to the toilet and wash their hands; they know how to put on shoes when going outdoors and how to put on coats themselves. Children are also encouraged to wipe their noses and put tissues in the bin, and they wash their hands before and after snacks and mealtimes.

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

The nursery provides fresh, nutritious meals, cooked off-site, which children eat with enthusiasm. All children attending the morning session have breakfast. Children enjoy the snack time and engage in discussions about the food.. This helps them to learn about healthy eating.

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

Staff use a daily communication sheets to share information with parents. This includes information about care routines, what children have eaten and also highlights the learning experiences children have had. Parents are very positive about this form of communication and also about the way staff engage with children. They appreciate the time that staff will spend talking to them and sharing information about their children and are very happy with the way that their children have settled so well.

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

Children are well behaved because staff provide good role models and are quick to encourage and praise children for good behaviour. Parents are particularly happy about the way that children are learning polite social skills. For example, children learn to share, to wait their turn and to use 'please' and 'thank you'.

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

Staff give high priority to children's safety and they teach children how to follow safe practices for themselves. For example, they remind children about how many can safely play together in the toy helicopter, and they teach children how to eat and drink with care.

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provision

The new management team of the nursery, which opened in April 2013, has a good understanding of its responsibility in meeting the learning and development, and safeguarding and welfare requirements.

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provision

Staff safeguard children through implementing effective policies and procedures. There is a security camera which monitors the entrance to the nursery and staff gain access by using a security key pad. All required documentation is well-maintained and there are very good recruitment and induction procedures which ensure that the nursery employs suitable staff who understand their responsibilities for the welfare and learning of children. Staff provide children with a safe and secure environment and complete a detailed risk assessment of resources and the premises in order to protect children from potential risks and hazards.

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provision

The manager reviews children's progress files regularly to ensure that she maintains a secure overview of children's progress and she works closely with the deputy manager, and the manager from the sister nursery, to ensure quality and consistency of provision.

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provision

Good arrangements have been identified for regular supervision of staff. The manager is supported by the sister nursery and she ensures that all new staff undergo an in-depth induction process and complete basic training. She encourages ongoing training for all staff and uses the twice-yearly supervision events to monitor their professional development and identify any specific training needs.

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provision

Good partnerships with parents and outside providers enhance children's care and learning. Parents receive valuable information about the setting, including the policies and procedures, while a daily communication sheet identifies children's experiences and keeps parents well informed of their children's daily achievements.

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provision

The manager has a good understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the provision through the self-evaluation process begun during preparation for the registration visit. She has carried out an initial evaluation of the provision and is beginning to identify actions to raise the quality of the provision. In addition, the manager has started to develop plans to improve children's engagement with the local community. There are plans for children to attend the local church's Harvest Festival and for children to visit the nearby care home during the Christmas period. There is a clear drive for improvement.

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provision

Staff work closely with parents and outside agencies to support the development of children who have been identified as having special educational needs. As a result they make good progress from their individual starting points and gain the skills needed for the next stages of their learning.

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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 EY463033 Local authority Devon Inspection number 918016 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 8 Total number of places 56 Number of children on roll 51 Name of provider St Michael's Learning Centres Ltd Date of previous inspection not applicable

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Telephone number

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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