Zoe's Childcare Dallas Street

Zoe's Childcare The Lodge, Dallas Street, MANSFIELD, Nottinghamshire, NG18 5TA

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 13/11/2013 Not Applicable

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early years provision

This inspection: 3 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 3 The effectiveness of the leadership and management of the early years provision 3

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This provision requires improvement

 This small nursery has a strong family feel throughout because the whole setting is set up like a home. The small rooms are all open plan allowing children of all ages move freely and play and learn appropriately together.  Relationships with parents are very positive and they discuss with practitioners each day about their child's welfare. This means, in the main, that children's care needs are met.  Practitioners provide a nurturing environment in which children feel secure and form strong attachments. As a result children are happy, settled and safe.

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It is not yet good because

 Opportunities for the supervision of practitioners are not yet embedded in management practices and procedures to monitor the effectiveness of the quality of teaching. This results in inconsistencies in the teaching and learning, particularly with regard to the management of children's behaviour and the planning of interesting and challenging activities.  The outside play area does not offer sufficiently rich and challenging activities to help children to thoroughly explore their own ideas.  Children are not always learning appropriate practices with regard to understanding how hygiene routines can contribute to their good health.

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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 observed activities in the main play rooms and outside play environment.  The inspector conducted a joint observation with the owner/manager.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke with the owner/manager, practitioners and children at appropriate times throughout the inspection.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector looked at children's learning journey records, planning documentation, a selection of policies and children's records.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector checked evidence of suitability and qualification of practitioners working with children and the owner/manager's self-evaluation form.  The inspector took account of the views of parents and carers spoken to on the day.

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Information about the setting

Zoe's Childcare was registered in 2013 and is privately owned. They are registered on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. It is situated in converted offices in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire. The nursery serves the local area and is accessible to all children. The nursery has sole use of the building for childcare. There is an enclosed area available for outdoor play.

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Information about the setting

There are currently 46 children on roll, of whom, 28 are within the early years age range. Children attend for a variety of sessions. The nursery receives funding for the provision of free early education for two-, three- and four-year-old children. The nursery is open from 7.30am until 6pm, 50 weeks of the year. It closes for Christmas week and the Spring Bank holiday week and all other bank holiday days. The nursery employs seven members of staff. Of these, five hold appropriate early years qualifications, one holds a level 4 and four hold a level 3. One practitioner is currently working towards a childcare qualification. The nursery also employs a practitioner who helps with the school and nursery runs.

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must:

 provide regular opportunities for practitioners to benefit from effective supervision arrangements, such as coaching and guidance, to improve their knowledge, understanding and practice, particularly with regard to the management of children's behaviour and the planning of activities, so that children's learning and welfare is consistently supported

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must:

 improve practitioners understanding and confidence to provide interesting and challenging experiences that meet the individual needs of all children.

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

 ensure children understand the importance of good health, for example, through following suitable hygiene routines and practitioners role modelling appropriate practices

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

 improve the outside play area so that it: offers rich, challenging learning activities across all areas of learning and allows children opportunities to explore their own ideas in depth.

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who attend

Children enjoy their time at the nursery. They are happy, settle well and have opportunities to choose from the range of available activities. Therefore, children make satisfactory progress in their learning. Practitioners are continuing to develop their knowledge of the Statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage in order to guide the learning and development of children's capabilities. The practitioners use a computer programme to record their observations, but some practitioners are not taking this to the next step to help them complete up to date assessments. As a result, some planned activities provide less challenge or are less closely tailored and monitored to reflect the different learning styles and interests of individual children. Subsequent observations reflect children's achievements across all areas of learning, but the next step is not always consistently identified to move children on in their development to enhance

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who attend

learning further. Nevertheless, children make steady progress towards the early learning goals and are gaining sufficient skills for the next stage of their development, such as starting school. The nursery has successfully implemented the progress check at age two and all related documentation is in place. Most practitioners skilfully use open questions during activities with the children and allow them time to respond. This encourages children to use and develop their language and thinking skills.

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who attend

Children access books and sit turning pages and looking at pictures. A small group of children listen well as a practitioner reads the 'Grufflo' story to them, they use soft toy props effectively to keep the children's attention on the story. Children get excited as they join in with key words and the repeated refrains. The practitioner uses the props to help the children recall parts of the story. This helps to develop their communication skills and love of stories. Older babies crawl around and pull themselves up to standing. They enjoy opening and closing the wooden play washing machine door and putting items in and taking them out. The younger children concentrate well on things that interest them, for example, one child spends time with a 'pop up' interactive toy. Children build towers with wooden bricks and are encouraged by practitioners to count the bricks and identify their colour. Most children are able to share the resources well and wait until it is their turn.

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who attend

Older children play cooperatively with each other, for example, they have tea parties in the role play area or in the den. They confidently take on familiar roles being the 'mummy' or 'baby'. Outside they show care and concern for the dolls as they take them for walks in the prams. Children are encouraged to make their own marks with pencils and crayons and practitioners do ask the children questions to encourage them to talk about about their creations. However, they miss opportunities to teach children to respect story books as they allow children to make marks in these books instead of on paper.

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who attend

Practitioners spend time talking to parents and finding out what children can do before they start at the nursery, which enables them to create realistic starting points to meet children's development needs. Practitioners also talk to parents each day about their child's care and welfare. Parents can see their child's learning journey record at any time. The older children have book bags where they can take a story book home to look at and read with their parents, this encourages parents to be involved in their child's learning at home.

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

Children are happy and form close bonds with their key person and all practitioners. Relationships are warm and caring and children are treated with kindness and respect. Consequently, they develop secure attachments and feel special. The key person system and flexible settling-in arrangements successfully aids transitions from the children's home to the nursery. Care arrangements are followed, as agreed with parents, to meet children's individual needs, for example, by adhering to routines for babies. Practitioners cuddle babies frequently and children stand close to key persons when they need help. Consequently, they are comforted and respond positively to encouragement to join in with activities. Children's behaviour is satisfactorily managed and in a manner appropriate to their age and stage of development and particular needs. Practitioners praise the children for what they do well but on occasions miss opportunities to clearly explain to the children

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

what they have done wrong. Consequently, a few children are not always learning how to manage their own behaviour. Children are encouraged to care for the environment. For example, they have a tidy up time but it is not always very well organised. This means that children are sometimes unclear about what they are expected to do and as a result they become confused and disorientated. Some children wander aimlessly until they find the right place where they are supposed to be. Others continue playing for several minutes until practitioners guide them to where they want them to go. Children have some opportunities to learn about other cultures and beliefs as the owner/manager and practitioners provide a range of activities and experiences. For example, they provide activities to help children become aware of the wider world, they recently provided activities about Diwali.

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

Children have regular snacks and meals and healthy eating is promoted through the variety of meals, which are freshly prepared on site. Generally, daily routines, such as those related to hand washing, are used to help children develop an understanding of the importance of personal hygiene. However, adults' expectations vary and are not always high enough with regard to washing their hands before lunch and preventing younger children accessing open bins. Nevertheless, children benefit from fresh air when they play outside and because they can rest appropriately. For example, babies sleep according to their established pattern and older children sleep after lunch if they need to.

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

Children have opportunities to access resources and to become familiar with the layout of the rooms as they move around freely. Each room is suitably organised, allowing children to make their own choices from the available, easily accessible resources, which supports their growing independence. Children are beginning to have a clear understanding of keeping safe through participation in fire drills. Practitioners promote children's safety through close supervision and they are effectively deployed to provide support during activities and care routines. The indoor environment is stimulating and enables children to follow their own interests. However, a smaller variety of outdoor resources means that opportunities for children to play and explore extensively is less well facilitated when they are outdoors.

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provision

Safeguarding meets requirements and causes no concern. Appropriate checks on adults are carried out to safeguard children and the welfare of children is monitored closely. The designated lead for safeguarding has a clear understanding of the role and all practitioners are well versed in what to do should they have concerns about a child. There is a robust procedure in place relating to recruitment, which means that all adults on the premises are suitable to work with children and their ongoing suitability is regularly reviewed. The performance management of practitioners is less effective in securing the necessary improvements to teaching. Thisis because observations of practitioners practice and developmental feedback have not yet been regular enough for teaching to improve quickly. The systems for checking the progress for different groups of children within the nursery are at an early stage of development and have not been in place long enough to

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provision

demonstrate good progress for all groups.

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provision

The owner/manager supports practitioners to create an environment which, generally, helps all children make progress in their learning and development. However, there are some inconsistencies in practice across the nursery. While senior practitioners have a secure understanding of how children learn and their role within this, others are less confident. Consequently, children are not always provided with appropriate levels of support or challenge in order to extend their learning. The owner/manager has a hands-on approach, spending time in the rooms observing practice. However, arrangements to monitor practitioners' individual performances and coach the less capable practitioners are not well-established. This means that the planning of interesting and challenging activities and managing children's behaviour is not always consistent.

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provision

Regular meetings are held, providing opportunities for practitioners to make contributions to the self-evaluation of the nursery. There is an awareness of the importance of making improvements. Written risk assessments for the premises and all outings are in place and daily, ongoing checks made by individual rooms ensure that hazards to children are identified and minimised. Security is tight to ensure no one is able to access the nursery and children cannot leave the building unaccompanied. Closed-circuit television is an added precaution to guarantee the safety and welfare of all the children in the nursery.

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provision

The owner/manager is committed to including parents in the nurseries day-to-day running, for instance, regular newsletters and children's progress reports are e-mailed to families with detailed information and photographs. Parents spoken to felt that relationships with practitioners are strong and they are confident to leave their children in their care. All parents commented positively about the owner/manager and her commitment to quality, flexibility and the family friendly approach. One parent commented that they liked the 'chilled out feel, it is not clinical'. They like the fact that staff take the children out locally to an allotment, library, shops and parks. Parents receive a written daily diary of their child's care and activities as well as verbal feedback. Partnership working is being developed, such as links with local schools and visits by teachers, which supports children's later transition into 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 Requires improvement The provision is not giving children a good standard of early years education and/or there are minor breaches of the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. It will be monitored and inspected within twelve months of the date of this inspection. 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

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Grade Judgement Description

the Early Years Foundation Stage. It will be monitored and inspected again within six months of the date of this inspection. 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 EY462408 Local authority Nottinghamshire Inspection number 918505 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 30 Number of children on roll 46 Name of provider Zoe's Childcare Ltd Date of previous inspection not applicable Telephone number 07403 330 402

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Setting details

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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