Nook Nursery

The Nook Nursery 10 The Glen, Worthing, West Sussex, BN13 2AB

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Inspection date

Previous inspection date 22/11/2013 30/03/2010

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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

 All staff spend lots of time explaining things to children and giving them choices to make so they learn through their own actions.  Activities are very much based on children's interests so they are engaged and learn well from them.  Children enjoy a rich learning environment where they are encouraged to be imaginative and creative.  Children are helped to behave well as staff use effective methods of helping children manage their feelings and those of others.

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It is not yet outstanding because

 Parents do not collect the children from inside the nursery so they can proudly share and show what they have been doing, to involve parents more in their children's learning.

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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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Inspection activities

 The inspector observed activities in both rooms and outside.  The inspector had discussions with parents and staff.  The inspector undertook a joint observation with the manager.

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Inspection activities

 The inspector sampled a range of documentation including children's records, policies and procedures and information shared with parents.

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Information about the setting

The Nook Nursery is a privately run nursery that registered in 1999. It operates from a converted bungalow in the Salvington area of Worthing, West Sussex. Children have access to an outdoor play area. The nursery is registered on the Early Years Register and opens from 9am to 3.45pm on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays and from 9am to 12.15pm on Tuesdays and Fridays during term times. There are currently 27 children aged from two years to under five years on roll. The nursery currently supports a number of children with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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Information about the setting

The nursery employs five members of staff, all of whom hold appropriate early years qualifications to at least National Vocational Qualification level 2. The manager has a foundation degree and is working towards a BA degree in Professional Studies in Learning and Development. The nursery provides funded free early education for two-, three- and four-year-olds.

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

 improve the organisation of going home time so parents can enter the nursery, find out about their children's day and further develop partnership working.

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who attend

The staff are very knowledgeable about how children learn and how to provide a broad range of experiences in all areas of learning for them. They engage very well with children so they can support and extend their learning through skilled questioning and discussions. For example they often describe what they are doing for children, such as finding a pen and paper so they can write a shopping list of things to buy from the play shop. Children are eager to explore and are inquisitive about the resources and their environment. They compare raw and cooked spaghetti, listening to the sound it makes as they snap the raw spaghetti and describe the sticky feel of the cooked spaghetti. With encouragement from staff they discover that although both foods are spaghetti they behave quite differently before and after cooking. Children delight in finding out about things and investigate who might have eaten the vegetables they grow in the garden. Staff ask children to predict

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who attend

who it might be and they suggest a variety of suspects, such as a crocodile, a rabbit and a snail. Staff help them to question and problem solve until they find some woodlice inside a tomato. They make a whole display including a photograph of a slug eating a tomato. Children continue their interest over a long period of time, studying the snails in the tank and discovering a tiny baby snail in the garden. They look through magnifying glasses like scientists to examine the creatures' features thoroughly.

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who attend

Children have many opportunities to express themselves imaginatively and creatively. They make full use of the role play area, often re-enacting real scenarios such as shopping and taking photographs like the photographer did who visited the nursery. Staff provide the resources and opportunities and let children decide when and how they want to use them. For example some like to stand at the easel and paint with great flourish and others like to only paint outside. Staff then use children's individual interests to encourage them to also do it inside by wheeling their favourite vehicles through paint to make patterns and tracks on huge lengths of paper. Many of children's creations are displayed so everyone can see them, including small constructions that they cannot take home to show their families. However, as parents do not collect the children from inside the nursery, children cannot proudly show them what they have made. They often forget to take home artwork

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who attend

from the tray as they leave from another room. This also hinders parents' opportunities to be more involved in their children's learning and development.

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who attend

Staff continuously observe children's achievements and keep records with regular assessments of their progress. They share these regularly with the parents and ask for 'wow' moment information about children's activities at home to contribute to the planning for each child's next step in their learning. This enables parents to be mostly well involved in children's learning and development so home and nursery work in close partnership to support the children.

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

The nursery is small and homely and staff ratios are good so children are well supported. They each have a key person who helps them settle in and they get to know each other well so children feel safe. The nursery staff work in partnership with other local agencies if any children need additional support, such as with speech and language, so children continue to make good progress in all areas of their development. Staff support parents to help children cope with new experiences such as wearing glasses when they are reluctant. They visit a local optician to get spare frames and make a display with mirrors so all the children can try some on and see how good they look in the mirrors.

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

Teachers from the local schools come in to the nursery to visit the children before they move on to school so they see them in surroundings where the children feel safe and confident. Nursery staff help children prepare for this move by always encouraging their independence, doing as many things for themselves as they can, such as dressing, preparing their snacks and tidying up. Staff also encourage children to think and make decisions by offering them choices and letting them choose what they do, providing information that will help them decide.

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

Clear explanations and discussions help children behave well. Staff negotiate very well and employ successful techniques for helping children to cope with difficult situations. For example, when they have taken a toy another child had. Staff explain that the other child wanted to hold it a bit longer so how could they make it a bit easier to wait for a turn. After some thought the children suggest using an egg timer which staff agree is a good way of knowing how long each person can hold it for. They decide to use a timer that has a number '1' on it for one minute. Staff are very calm and get right down to speak with the children at eye level, so they appear equal and children are confident to speak up.

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

The continual discussions and explanations also help children to become aware of safety, for themselves and others. For example when staff ask children what might happen if a toy train is left lying in front of the doorway. Children state that someone might hurt their chin and move it back to where it belongs. Children learn about safety through well- planned activities such as building fires. Outside they sit under a canopy and pretend to cook food, moving carefully around the pile of logs they have placed to represent a campfire. Outdoor play is popular and enables children to be active. They climb, run and jump, counting forwards and backwards as they move up and down the hopscotch squares. Staff show children how to plant crops and look after them so they grow, until they can harvest and taste them. They enjoy healthy snacks of crackers, cheese and apples, spreading the butter while being careful with the knives. They talk about the food

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

being healthy, which foods are crunchy, which are crispy and which are just soft. Children recognise changes in their bodies such as getting warmer when they are active and needing to take off some clothes to cool down. Children have as many opportunities to write, count and draw outside as they do inside so those children who prefer to be active are still learning in all areas. Both indoors and the outside area are well resourced, rich learning environments for all children.

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provision

There is a robust recruitment procedure for new staff that is followed by a thorough induction and probation period. This ensures staff are familiar with the nursery's policies and procedures so they comply with expectations for good working practice. Staff continue to be monitored through regular supervision and annual appraisals to support their professional development and to help improve outcomes for children. They work well as a team and share with each other any knowledge they gain through attendance on courses so they all work cooperatively and consistently. Staff all attend first aid training so they can manage children's illness and accidents well. Through child protection training they learn to identify the types of injuries that may not be accidents and other signs that might indicate a child is at risk of harm. They know what the policy says about the action they must take to safeguard the welfare of any child in their care. Staff regularly update

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provision

their knowledge of early years care and practice through training and are dedicated to providing rich learning experiences for children and helping them to make the best progress they can. The management monitor the planning and learning programme so that they know how effective it is in meeting children's learning needs and where improvements can be made.

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provision

The whole staff team constantly reflect on their practice and invite the views of parents and children. The parents complete an annual questionnaire that has questions for parents to complete with the children. For example, 'can children choose what they do?' and 'do they know where to get a drink from?'. The staff team are committed to constantly improving the quality of care and learning for children and evaluate what they are doing constantly.

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provision

Parents are encouraged to be involved in the nursery and what their children are learning by contributing information about what they are interested in at home and by joining in with activities. Each year there are social events for parents so they get to meet other parents and the staff on a more informal basis that deepens the partnerships. Parents receive information well in advance of events so they can arrange to join in. For example the email and newsletter detailing the Christmas festivities was sent out in October. This enriches the learning for children as they see strong relationships with the key people in their lives as their parents take part.

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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 113775 Local authority West Sussex Inspection number 941798 Type of provision Full-time provision Registration category Childcare - Non-Domestic Age range of children 0 - 5 Total number of places 16 Number of children on roll 27 Name of provider David Liley Date of previous inspection 30/03/2010 Telephone number 01903 261220

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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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