Koala Kidz Ltd - Old Buttery

Koala - Kidz Old Buttery Nursery, 16 High Street, Willingham, CAMBRIDGE, Cambridgeshire, CB24 5ES

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 28/11/2013 18/03/2011

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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 support children well when they join the nursery and when they move into their new rooms and eventually to school. As a result, children approach the next stage of their learning with confidence.  The adventurous outdoor play areas mean children have a good understanding of risk and develop positive attitudes towards active physical exercise.  Parents are welcomed into the setting and are encouraged to share information about their children's interests at home. This helps to support children's learning and development at home and in the nursery.

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It is not yet good because

 Staff do not consistently make best use of their observations on children's learning to plan challenging, tailored activities that fully support individual learning needs. As a result, not all children make good progress.  Teaching is not consistently good in all areas of the nursery. Not all staff demonstrate a secure understanding of how to successfully extend children's communication and language through effective open-questioning and two-way conversations.  Lunchtime arrangements do not enable children to sit sociably with staff and enjoy their meals together.  Self-evaluation is not fully effective in driving rapid improvement.

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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 the children at play and spoke with staff about their teaching and planning for children's learning.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke with the manager and the provider about recruitment procedures, management issues, supervision, appraisals and staff training.

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Inspection activities

 A range of documentation was examined, including risk assessments, policies and procedures, children's records and their learning journals.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke with one parent during the inspection and took account of other parents' views through comments and testimonials.

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Information about the setting

Koala-Kidz at the Old Buttery Nursery is one of two nurseries owned by Koala Kidz Ltd and is located in Willingham, Cambridgeshire. The nursery first opened in 1990 and was purchased by the current owners in 2003. It is registered on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register. The nursery operates from a two-storey building and adjacent converted out buildings. Children are housed on the ground floor and have access to outdoor play areas. There are currently 45 children in the early years age group on roll. The setting supports a small number of children who have English as an additional language and with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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Information about the setting

The nursery opens five days a week, all year round, with the exception of bank holidays from 8am to 6pm. Children attend for a variety of sessions. There are 6 staff who work with the children, all of who have appropriate early years qualifications at level 2 or 3. The nursery is a member of the National Day Nurseries Association.

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must:

 improve the delivery of the educational programme by ensuring staff develop consistent questioning skills that support children's communication, language and promote their creative and critical thinking

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must:

 make better use of observation and assessment to plan challenging activities that focus on what children enjoy and can do, and what they need to do next.

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

 improve self-evaluation to develop and implement an effective action plan that accurately acknowledges the nursery's strengths and tackles areas for development

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

 review the lunchtime routines to minimise younger children's waiting times and enable staff to sit with them and share sociable two-way conversations.

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who attend

Children enjoy coming to nursery, and settle quickly to play with their friends. They benefit from a good range of age-appropriate resources and have reasonable opportunities to initiate their own learning. However, the teaching strategies staff use to support children's learning are not always consistent across the nursery. While some staff question the children well, others ask closed questions or pre-empt the answers and therefore, opportunities to stimulate children's thinking and effectively promote their communication and language are overlooked. Staff work effectively with parents when children first start to gather information about their starting points. Initial assessments are made promptly, and staff gather observations regularly and assess children's progress to inform themselves and parents about children's abilities and learning preferences. However, they do not consistently make effective use of that information to plan

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who attend

challenging, tailored activities that fully support children's individual learning needs. As a result, not all children make good progress across all the areas of learning.

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who attend

Staff read stories to the children and there are cheerful displays of words and pictures around the nursery to stimulate children's interest in literacy. Staff learn words and phrases in other languages to support children learning English as an additional language. They work with parents to learn about home cultures and talk to the children about their differences and similarities. This helps to teach children about respect and tolerance for others. Staff encourage younger children to develop their fine muscle control as they show them how to cut play dough with scissors and use cutters to make shapes. During an adult-led activity a member of staff questions older children well about numbers and colours to develop their mathematical skills. All the children participate in a range of art and craft activities that enable them to explore different materials and express their imagination. A varied selection of pens, pencils, markers and chalks stimulate children's

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who attend

interest in making marks. Children's understanding of technology is supported well. For example, they enjoy using remote controlled cars, and learn how to manoeuvre around obstacles. Staff help children to develop their independence, for example, they encourage them to put on their outdoor clothing and prepare their snacks. Overall, children acquire the skills they need to support them in the next stage of their learning.

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

Children benefit from good relationships between themselves and the staff. They show secure attachments to their key person and move around the nursery with confidence. Settling-in procedures are thorough and include visits to the children's homes where requested. These early links build positive partnerships with parents and help children to feel safe and secure. Children are introduced gently into their new rooms when it is time to move on, which gives them confidence when it is time to prepare for school. Children behave well because staff have a consistent approach to behaviour management. They are encouraged to play sharing games together, and join in small group activities that develop their social skills. Staff remind children of safety issues, such as staying within sight of staff in the garden. Children learn how to keep themselves safe in practical ways, for example, they practise the fire drill. The nursery is suitably organised with plentiful,

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

accessible resources. All areas provide children with a child-friendly and welcoming environment.

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

Home cooked meals are varied and reasonably healthy. Snacks are served at regular intervals through the day. Older children develop their independence as they help to prepare and serve their fruit and bread. At lunchtime, arrangements for serving food lead to younger children waiting unnecessarily for their meals. Additionally, staff are busily engaged in supervising the serving of hot food, and therefore, miss opportunities to sit with the children to support them and engage them in friendly conversation. Staff talk to the children about germs and emphasise the importance of cleaning their hands after outdoor play, which helps to develop good hygiene routines for the future.

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

Children learn to take appropriate risks as they play in the large garden. Staff remind them to stay safe by talking to them about hazards, such as brambles, or uneven ground. Older children spend a good deal of time in the garden and enjoy active exercise in the fresh air. They run around the woodland, and play on large climbing equipment, which effectively develops their physical confidence. Staff promote children's understanding of the world well as they encourage children to look under logs for slugs and woodlice. They provide books for reference so children can identify beetles and birds. Younger children are taken out at regular intervals and play in the safer areas closer to the nursery building. Staff cater reasonably well for their learning needs, for example, they provide sand and a digging area so children can explore natural materials.

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provision

This inspection was carried out because the registered provider had failed to pay the Ofsted registration fee on time and the nursery registration was cancelled. Ofsted subsequently reinstated the registration when the fee was paid. On the day of the inspection there were no breaches to the requirements for the Early Years Foundation Stage relating to the cancellation of the registration. There was no adverse impact on the children as a result of the failure to pay the registration fee. This is because the manager and staff demonstrate a suitable understanding of the safeguarding requirements. The designated person for safeguarding has attended the required child protection training. She and the other staff are fully aware of their responsibilities to protect children from harm. Staff make appropriate risk assessments that help to keep children safe. The registered provider has taken steps to improve the monitoring of the Early Years

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provision

Foundation Stage requirements to ensure fees are paid on time. Appropriate recruitment procedures ensure staff working with the children are safe and suitable to do so. Students and agency staff have the same induction as permanent staff so they understand their roles and responsibilities. All staff hold first aid certificates so they can attend to children safely in the event of an accident. Staff are vigilant about safety and the security of the premises and supervise the children effectively as they play.

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provision

The nursery self-evaluation has brought about some improvements and actions and recommendations from the last inspection have been met. For example, children have much improved access to resources and enjoy periods of free-flow play. This enables them to pursue their own interests and develop their learning independently. However, lack of a clear action plan means progress is steady, rather than good. As a result, although managers and staff aspire to good quality provision, there is not enough impact on the quality of teaching to rapidly raise children's achievements. The manager has begun to offer staff individual supervision meetings and works with them to identify training needs. All the permanent staff hold appropriate qualifications and some have attended some further training, such as 'superhero and boys play'. They have opportunities to share their learning at team meetings, and implement their ideas. This has led to new activities that

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provision

motivate children well, such as den building. Nonetheless, staff's teaching skills are variable and not all children make good progress. Monitoring of the educational programme and children's achievements is sufficient to help staff identify children at risk of delay. They implement prompt interventions where necessary, such as contacting other agencies to offer advice and support, such as speech and language therapists.

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provision

Partnerships with other agencies are well established to ensure children receive the support they need. For example, staff work with the local authority special educational needs co-ordinator to devise educational programmes for children with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Parents are well informed about their children's care and learning experiences in the nursery. Staff provide verbal feedback each day and encourage parents to access the children's learning journals. Displays in the entrance of the nursery provide parents with a good range of information about events, staff details and local amenities. Parents speak warmly about the nursery and the staff. They appreciate the welcoming and friendly environment and say their children enjoy their time at nursery. Teachers from the local schools visit the nursery during the summer term to meet the children going to school. Staff work with parents to arrange visits to the schools

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provision

as needed so that children are suitably prepared for their entry into reception.

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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 EY261311 Local authority Cambridgeshire Inspection number 944426

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 60 Number of children on roll 45 Name of provider Koala-Kidz Ltd Date of previous inspection 18/03/2011 Telephone number 01954 260046

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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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