Karebears Childcare

Karebears Childcare Ryesland Way, Creech St. Michael, TAUNTON, Somerset, TA3 5TA

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 14/11/2013 31/07/2013

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early years provision

This inspection: 3 Previous inspection: 3 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

 Staff provide a warm and welcoming environment for the children where they enjoy a suitable range of activities and experiences.  Children are confident, happy and settled; they form strong attachments to their key person, which helps them feel safe and secure.  Staff establish positive relationships with the parents, which contributes to the meeting of children's individual care needs.

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It is not yet good because

 Some teaching does not challenge children well and activities are not always based on children's interests or needs.  Children are not fully challenged to learn in the outdoor environment.  Some routines are not always used to promote children's independence further.

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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 playroom and the outside learning environment.  The inspector had discussions with the manager, staff, children and a parent.  The inspector invited the manager to complete a joint observation.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector sampled a range of documentation, including children's records and planning.

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Information about the setting

Karebears Childcare registered in 2013. It is a privately owned nursery situated centrally in the village of Creech St. Michael, near Taunton in Somerset. The premises include an entrance hall, a large central room, two side rooms, a sleeping room, kitchen and toilets on the ground floor. There is also a staff room, toilet and office on the first floor. There is an enclosed area for outdoor learning.

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Information about the setting

The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and on the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. The nursery opens Monday to Friday all year round. Sessions are from 7.30am until 5.30pm. There are currently 24 children on roll, all of whom are in the early years age range. The nursery supports children who speak English as an additional language. There are five members of staff working with children, including the owner who is also the nursery manager. Four members of staff hold level 3 childcare qualifications. The nursery provides funded early education for two, three and four-year-old children.

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must:

 improve the quality of teaching by consistently using the information gained from observations and assessments to plan learning opportunities for children that are tailored to children's needs and interests to promote good progress.

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

 improve the organisation of the outdoor area so that children have more varied and challenging opportunities across all areas of learning

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

 develop daily routines, such as snack time, to promote children's independence fully.

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who attend

Children enjoy a range of experiences and activities, most of which interest them and support them to make steady progress in their learning and development. Staff provide a warm and welcoming environment where children can make independent choices from a suitable range of toys and resources. Children take on familiar roles as they play in the home corner. They pretend to put washing into the washing machine, using their voice effectively to imitate the sound that it makes. They dress the dolls, and take them for a walk in the pushchair. They pick the 'baby doll' up, and pat their back when they become upset, using soothing words to comfort them. This shows they use their imaginations well.

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who attend

Staff make observations of the children engaged in activities, they take photographs of children and link these to the area of learning. Staff use these to help them identify children's next steps. However, this is not always consistent, as some activities are not based on children's interests and are over directed by the adult. For example, children are shown how to paint the rim of plastic cups and print circles on the paper to make a caterpillar. Children quickly lose interest in the activity and paint their hands instead. This shows that staff do not always use the information gained from observation to build on what children already know and support them to make progress in all areas.

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who attend

Children enjoy using their senses as they explore and investigate shaving foam in their messy play. They touch the foam, moving it through their fingers and their hands describing what it feels like. Staff introduce new words such as 'soft', 'smooth' and 'squidgy' as children play, building on their vocabulary. Children learn about measurement and capacity. They play in the sand filling and emptying containers. They count the number of scoops it takes to fill different vessels and staff ask them questions to help children make comparisons to decide which is the biggest. Children enjoy listening to stories and looking at books. Children listen to a story in a group or select books from low- level shelving, sit and relax on cushions to share a story with their friends. This supports their early literacy skills as they begin to understand that print carries meaning.

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

Children are confident, happy and settled. They share close relationships with staff, particularly their key person, which effectively supports their emotional and physical well- being. Staff act as good role models to the children by setting clear expectations and giving the children regular praise for their achievements. As a result, children behave well. Children learn to take turns and help one another as they tidy away the toys and resources. They enjoy taking on responsibilities such as preparing the tables for snack time. Staff help children to prepare for school in some areas such as managing some of their own self-care skills and dressing for outside play. However at snack time staff pour the children's drinks and serve them their snack, rather than encouraging them to be fully independent.

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

Children have daily opportunities to have fresh air and exercise to promote their good health. However, the outside area is not used effectively to promote all areas of learning well, or to fully support those children who learn best outdoors. For example, the outside area is over crowded with bikes, tricycles and other wheeled vehicles. Therefore, children cannot move freely in the outside environment and as a result, their interest is not always sustained. Staff lead by example, they follow good hygiene and nappy changing procedures. Children routinely wash their hands and play in a clean and well-maintained environment. Staff support children to develop an understanding of the importance of a healthy lifestyle and diet. They are encouraged to make healthy choices from fruit at snack time and staff talk to them about the importance of keeping healthy.

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

Staff teach the children how to keep themselves safe. They practise the fire drill so that they know how to evacuate the building quickly and safely in the case of an emergency. This raises children's awareness of fire safety.

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provision

The manager and her staff team have a sound understanding of their responsibilities in meeting the safeguarding and welfare requirements. Appropriate recruitment procedures are in place and these help ensure staff are suitable to work with children. Thorough risk assessments have been carried out, including daily checks to ensure the premises is safe. The premises are kept secure throughout the day and robust procedures are in place for the safe collection of children. The manager and her team have a good understanding of their responsibilities to keep children safe and free from harm. The manager is the designated safeguarding officer; she has attended the required training. There is a clear safeguarding policy in place, which is shared with parents. Staff have a secure understanding of child protection issues and are aware of the correct reporting procedure should they have a concern. Accidents, incidents and any pre-existing injuries are

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provision

The manager and her staff team have a sound understanding of their responsibilities in meeting the learning and development requirements of the Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage. Overall, staff provide a range of experiences which help children to suitably progress towards the early learning goals, although these activities and experiences vary in challenge. There are systems in place to monitor the quality of the educational programmes; however, these are not yet robust enough to ensure that all areas are fully covered.

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provision

Partnerships with parents are positive. Detailed information is gathered from parents at the start of the placement, which enables staff to meet children's care needs well. Parents appreciate the exchange of verbal information on a daily basis from their children's key person; they feel involved in their child's learning and appreciate the friendliness and support from the staff. Staff are aware of their responsibility to share information with other early years settings when children's care and learning are shared, in order to promote consistency.

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provision

The manager and her staff meet regularly to reflect on their practice, to discuss their strengths and identify areas for further development. This includes, increasing resources and developing the outside area to include a 'welly' garden and mud kitchen. The manager discusses training needs with her staff, which helps to enhance practice. There are plans to develop supervision and appraisals to include observation of practice to help focus on improving the quality of teaching. This shows a secure commitment to maintaining continuous improvement.

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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 EY455304 Local authority Somerset Inspection number 939386 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 8 Total number of places 26 Number of children on roll 24 Name of provider Karen Davey Date of previous inspection 31/07/2013 Telephone number 01823 444422

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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

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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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