First Class Kids

First Class Kids Old Post Office, Calthwaite, PENRITH, Cumbria, CA11 9QT

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 09/12/2013 09/09/2009

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early years provision

This inspection: 2 Previous inspection: 2 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

 Strong partnership with parents results in good information sharing and continuity of care for children.  Staff use good teaching techniques to support and challenge their learning, as they ask well-posed and appropriate questions.  Clear leadership and management results in a strong team of knowledgeable and skilled staff who care for and safeguard children very well.  Children display good behaviour, as a result of the range of interesting activities that help to keep children engaged in their play.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Pre-school children do not always have opportunities to practise their mark-making during outdoor play.  The outdoor environment does not always fully facilitate children's individual learning needs.

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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 practice in each of the three rooms of the main setting, the barn area, during outdoor play and at snack time.  The inspector conducted a joint observation with the manager of the setting.

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Inspection activities

 A sample of documentation was checked including children's assessment records, staff checks and qualifications, policies and procedures and the setting's self- evaluation.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector spoke to children, staff, other trustee members and parents and took account of their views.

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Information about the setting

First Class Kids registered in 2006 and is privately owned and run by the board of trustees of Calthwaite Nursery. It operates from a number of designated playrooms in a former post office building, situated on the main road through the village of Calthwaite, near Penrith. The nursery serves the immediate locality and also the surrounding areas. The nursery opens each weekday from 8am to 6pm during term time. Times of opening during school holidays vary according to need. There is an enclosed yard area, large enclosed garden and smaller dedicated area for the pre-school children.

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Information about the setting

There are currently 34 children in the early years age range on roll, who attend for various sessions. The nursery receives funding for the provision of free early education for children aged three- and four-years-old.

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Information about the setting

The nursery employs 10 members of staff, of these, nine hold appropriate early years qualifications. The nursery is a member of Pre-School Learning Alliance and is registered on the Early Years Register and the compulsory and voluntary parts of the Childcare Register.

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

 provide opportunities for children of all ages to make marks and write for meaning, particularly during outdoor play.

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who attend

The atmosphere in the setting is calm and purposeful. Staff have a secure understanding of the Statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage and how children learn, enabling children to make good progress in their learning and development. Children engage in a wide range of freely chosen and interesting planned activities. Staff encourage children to direct their play, supporting them as they explore. For example, outside staff notice children pretending the climbing frame is a pirate ship. One member of staff quickly joins in, gathering yellow discs and pretending they are gold coins, as she says, 'Look I've found some treasure!' Children squeal with delight as they help to find some more. Afterwards, staff encourage children to count how many they have found. Here children develop wonderful imaginative skills as well as practise their counting and problem solving. Staff use powerful techniques to encourage children's thinking and

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who attend

communication skills. They ask well-posed, open-ended questions and allow the children time to think and answer. They skilfully steer chatty conversations towards more targeted learning opportunities. For example, staff respond enthusiastically to a conversation about Santa giving out sweets, giving children time to talk about their home life. They then move the subject on to the importance of brushing their teeth by asking questions about how the children brush their teeth and why. This good quality interaction enables children to learn from their personal interests.

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who attend

Children have many outdoor choices. The pre-school children have a dedicated outdoor area that enables them to move freely between indoors and outdoors. Many children choose to play outdoors where they enjoy exploring with water. One child attempts to fill up the watering can but notices the water is too shallow. He uses excellent problem solving skills as he tries using a smaller bucket to transfer the water. Other children have fun with the skipping ropes, hanging musical instruments, digging patch and building blocks. In this particular area, children have too few opportunities to make marks and write for meaning. Large chalk boards are displayed outside but no chalks were seen on the day of inspection and boxes of writing resources were inaccessible to children. This results in missed opportunities for children to freely choose to practise their literacy skills. Younger children and babies have fun outside as they play on small ride along toys and

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who attend

enjoy listening to nursery rhymes. They have easily accessible books, mark making items and building blocks. Children learn about the world around them during fun, creative active activities. For example, during Diwali children learn about the festival of light as they make Diva candles using clay. Staff display photos of the children enjoying the festivities, for them to recall afterwards.

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who attend

Staff keep detailed and well-presented development records for each child. These include observations and photographs to map children's progress. Observations are well captured, evaluative and include identified next steps. Staff use their knowledge of the children well to inform individual planning. All information is shared with parents, contributing to the strong parental involvement in place. Staff are creative in finding ways for parents to continue learning at home. For example, home packs including 'bite size' information of how children learn through play and relevant play resources provide parents with excellent opportunities for continuing learning at home. Staff seek feedback from parents on the home packs and any other observations from home, that are used to inform planning and as evidence for assessments. Children's independence is supported in many ways. Children are encourage to fetch and put on their coats, given choices in what shoes they

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who attend

want to wear outside and become helpers at snack time where they set the table and serve their peers. Older children self-register and learn to sit quietly and patiently for short periods of time. As a result, they are acquiring the skills and attitudes required for a smooth transition to school life.

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

Children are well cared for in this welcoming setting. Staff are warm and friendly towards the children, who they know well. Strong bonds are clearly in place as all children arrive happy and quickly settle into the routine. Babies are cared for by nurturing and attentive staff who respond promptly to their needs. Babies are reassured and enjoy the close relationships with their key person. All children's emotional well-being is fostered. Key persons work closely with parents in order to gather detailed information about their children's care needs and routines when they first start and to ensure regular updates are shared. This helps staff gain a good understanding of children's routines and individual needs, enabling them to support their emotional and physical well-being. Staff ensure younger children are sensitively settled into the setting. For example, key persons ensure favourite items are made available upon arrival to provide a sense of familiarity for the

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

younger children and ease the transition between home and nursery. Together with parents, staff build 'all about me' books for each child that include photographs from home of special family members. They are made available for the children to access independently, which they often do. This further supports children's feelings of security within the setting.

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

Children are emotionally prepared for school as staff take great care to ensure they feel a sense of familiarity. For example, many of the children go on to attend the school opposite the setting. In the lead up to leaving for school, all children go for lunch in the school to help prepare them for a change of environment and the new routine they will experience. Photographs of the schools the remaining children go on to are displayed in the setting for them to refer to. Children are able to manage their feelings and, as a result, display very good behaviour. They use words, such as please and thank you, demonstrating good social skills. Staff use explanations well to ensure children gain an understanding of the rules of the setting, further supporting their ability to manage their own behaviour and safety. Outside children learn about taking risks and using equipment safely. For example, they climb the rope ladder ensuring they have plenty of space and know to wait until there

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

is room at the bottom to go down the slide. Staff provide opportunities for children to learn about dangers outside the setting also. For example, children enjoy learning about road safety as they role play on the pretend road and use the zebra crossing. They also conduct traffic reports from inside the garden fence, further supporting children awareness of road safety. Regular outdoor play also provides children with opportunities for exercise and to develop their physical skills, supporting their physical well-being. They learn good skills in self-care and independence as they are encouraged to wash their hands before eating and help to prepare for snack and lunch.

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provision

Leadership within the setting is strong. The experienced and qualified manager is conscientious and committed to her role. She has a firm understanding and knowledge of how to meet the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the Statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage. All staff have a thorough understanding of safeguarding and what to do should they have concerns about a child in their care. All staff have undertaken safeguarding training and have a good understanding of the policy and procedure to follow should they have concerns about children's welfare. The manager is the designated person for safeguarding and has received appropriate training to support her in this role. The robust recruitment procedure in place ensures that staff are suitable and safe to work with children. All staff receive a full induction to ensure that they understand all of the setting's procedures. Annual appraisals and regular staff supervisions

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provision

take place to monitor the continued professional development, conduct and training needs of staff. The manager ensures that the correct staff to child ratios are adhered to at all times and that staff are effectively deployed. This results in children being well supervised and helps to ensure that their individual needs are well met. Effective annual risk assessments and daily visual safety checks undertaken inside and outside minimise hazards in order to reduce the risk of accidents to children. All staff are trained in paediatric first aid and, therefore, able to appropriately and safely manage any accidents or medical emergencies should they arise.

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provision

The staff team is highly qualified and strong priority is placed on their continuous professional development. Regular training sessions, both in-house and with the local authority take place. Staff members have the opportunity to conduct the in-house training sessions, giving staff a wonderful sense of empowerment. The continuous updating of skills and knowledge results in a competent and well-informed team who are able to effectively support children's learning. The impact of teaching on children's learning is closely monitored by the manager. She conducts both planned and spontaneous observations of staff practice. As a result, a consistent approach is used by all staff to support children's learning and development. This means that children are supported effectively to make good progress in their learning and development. Monitoring also includes that of staff's observations of the children, how these are used to inform planning

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provision

and the children's summative assessments, so ensure children are making steady progress.

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provision

The staff team establish positive partnerships with parents. Parents express the good quality care the staff provide and how involved they are in their children's learning. Parents are made to feel welcome in the nursery, and are kept informed through the wealth of information available. Partnerships with other providers and external agencies are equally well established. The setting works closely with other early years settings the children attend, supporting the continuity of care and learning for the children. For example, the setting invites the childminders caring for children due to start at the setting, for short sessions to ensure a smooth transition for the child. The views of children and parents, local authority monitoring visits and reports and contributions from the staff team are used to inform the settings improvement plans. Staff are encouraged to be self- reflective and complete evaluations for their individual rooms. This results in well-targeted

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provision

and specific action plans that support the ongoing and continuous improvement of the setting.

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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 EY337410 Local authority Cumbria Inspection number 862731

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Type of provision

Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 17 Total number of places 16 Number of children on roll 34 Name of provider Calthwaite Nursery Date of previous inspection 09/09/2009 Telephone number 01768 894078

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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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